Sprint Technique Warm up drills

There is no doubt that time spent on warming up and cooling down will improve an athlete's level of performance and accelerate the recovery process needed before training or competing again. An element of the warm up program should include event specific drills to stimulate the appropriate neuromuscular action for the range of movement and correct posture.

Drills should be conducted wearing trainers and not spikes. In all the drills, the coach/athlete should ensure a tall and relaxed posture with a correct range of movement of the arms. Check for

Eyes focused at the end of the lane - tunnel vision
Head in line with the spine - held high and square
Face relaxed - jelly jaw - no tension - mouth relaxed
Chin down, not out
Shoulders held down (long neck), back (not hunched), relaxed and square in the lane at all times
Smooth forward backward action of the arms- not across the body - drive back with elbows - brush vest with elbows - hands move from shoulder height to hips for men and from bust height to hips for the ladies
Elbows held at 90 degrees at all times (angle between upper arm and lower arm)
Hands relaxed - fingers loosely curled - thumb uppermost

General sprint drills

The following are an example of general sprint drills.

Walking on Toes

Aims - develop balance and strengthen the lower leg muscles (reduce shin splints)
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - walking on the balls of the feet - free leg to be lifted so that the thigh is parallel with the ground, lower leg vertical and the toes dorsi flexed (this end position can be held for a second or two to develop balance and a feel of the free leg position)

Walking on Heels

Aims - develop balance and strengthen the lower leg muscles (reduce shin splints)
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - walking on the heels of the feet - free leg to be lifted so that the thigh is parallel with the ground, lower leg vertical and the toes dorsi flexed (this end position can be held for a second or two to develop balance and a feel of the free leg position)

Butt Kicks

Aims - develop correct leg sprint action in the mid section following the drive off the rear leg
Amount - two repetitions over 20 metres
Action - fast leg movement on the balls of the feet - drive the knee up and bring the heel to the underside of the backside and the thigh parallel with the ground

Skips

Aims - to develop correct leg and foot action in preparation for the foot strike
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - skipping on the balls of the feet - free leg to be lifted so that the thigh is parallel with the ground, lower leg vertical and the toes dorsi flexed

Side strides crossover

Aims - to increase flexibility and range of hip movement
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - steady jog sideways on the balls of the feet - right leg across the front of left leg, left leg across the back of the right leg, right leg across the back of the left leg, left leg across the front of right leg and repeat this sequence.

Skip and clap

Aims - to increase flexibility and range of horizontal leg movement
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - skip on the balls of the feet - bring the whole leg up so it is horizontal with the ground, toes dorsi flexed and at the same time clap the hands together under the leg. The arms then come back up to the side to form a crucifix.

Skip Claw

Aims - to develop the claw action of the leading leg
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - skip on the balls of the feet - bring the whole leg up so it is horizontal with the ground, toes dorsi flexed and then pull the lower leg down so that the ball of the foot claws the ground pulling you forward

Skip for height

Aims - to develop rear leg drive
Amount - two repetitions over 30 metres
Action - skipping on the balls of the feet - emphasis is on the rear leg drive and drive back of the elbow - free leg to be lifted so that the thigh is parallel with the ground, lower leg vertical and the toes dorsi flexed

Plyometric work

Leg Plyometric drills can be include as appropriate e.g. single leg hopping, bounding, bunny hops, tuck jumps - one set of 5 to 10 repetitions (aim for quality not quantity)

Run outs

Aims - to develop a tall, relaxed and smooth sprint action
Amount - six repetitions over 40 metres
Action - tip start and gradually build up of speed over the 40 metres - first two reps focus on a tall action, next two on tall and relaxed and the last two on tall, relaxed and smooth

Aims - to develop the elbow drive
Amount - three repetitions over 100 metres (60 metres effort + 40 metres run out)
Action - tip start and over the first 30 metres gradually build up the speed and a tall, relaxed and smooth action - at 30 metres gradually add elbow drive to reach full sprint speed at 50 metres - maintain the tall, relaxed, smooth and drive action to 60 metres - sprinting through the 60 metres point is essential - gradually slow down over the last 40 metres

Associated Pages

The following Sports Coach pages should be read in conjunction with this page:

Associated Books

The following books provide more information related to this topic:

Sprints and Relays, F.W. Dick, ISBN 0 85134 082 2
Sprinting and Hurdling, P. Warden, ISBN 1 85223 299 4
How to Teach Track Events, M. Arnold, ISBN 0 85134 085 7
Advanced Studies in Physical Education and Sport, P Beashel et al., ISBN 0 17 4482345
Physical Education and the Study of Sport, B. Davis et al., ISBN 0 7234 31752
Essentials of Exercise Physiology, W.D. McArdle et al., ISBN 0 683 30507 7
Physical Education and Sport Studies, D. Roscoe et al., ISBN 1 901424 20 0
The World of Sport Examined, P. Beashel et al., ISBN 0 17 438719 9
Advanced PE for Edexcel, F. Galligan et al., ISBN 0 435 50643 9
Examining Physical Education, K. Bizley, ISBN 0 435 50660 9
Sport and PE, K Wesson et al., ISBN 0 340 683821
PE for you, J. Honeybourne, ISBN 0 7487 3277 2