Editing Jumping jack (section)

{{Short description|Physical jumping exercise}}
{{About|physical exercise|other uses|Jumping jack (disambiguation)}}{{Distinguish|Jump'n Jack}}[[File:Elementary school students conduct jumping jacks to warm up USMC-120214-M-MA421-288.jpg|thumb|Schoolchildren in the US are performing jumping jacks.]]

A '''jumping jack''', also known as a '''star jump''' and called a '''side-straddle hop''' in the US military, is a physical jumping [[exercise]] performed by [[jumping]] to a position with the [[Human leg|legs]] spread wide. The [[hand]]s go overhead, sometimes in a clap, and then return to a position with the [[foot|feet]] together and the [[arm]]s at the sides.

The jumping jack exercise's origin has sometimes been erroneously identified as World War I U.S. General [[John J. Pershing|John J. "Black Jack" Pershing]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neatorama.com/2014/05/02/The-Jumping-Jack-Is-Named-after-Its-Inventor-General-Black-Jack-Pershing/|title=The Jumping Jack Is Named after Its Inventor, General "Black Jack" Pershing}}</ref> who is said to have developed it. The name comes from the [[jumping jack (toy)|jumping jack children's toy]], which makes similar arm swing and leg splay motions when the strings are tugged.

Although he did not invent the exercise, the late fitness expert [[Jack LaLanne]] was credited for popularizing it in the United States. LaLanne used the jumping exercise during routines he promoted in decades of television fitness programming.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theatlanticwire.com/opinions/view/opinion/Remembering-Fitness-Legend-Jack-LaLanne-6675|title=Remembering Fitness Legend Jack LaLanne|author=Erik Hayden|work=The Wire|access-date=25 February 2011|archive-date=30 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110130175658/http://www.theatlanticwire.com/opinions/view/opinion/Remembering-Fitness-Legend-Jack-LaLanne-6675|url-status=dead}}</ref>