Whenever I’m working on speed training with my athletes, we’ll include the wall sprint. This is especially great for young athletes who are still working on form before power. Keep reading to learn why you should be using the wall sprint drill and how to tie it into your workout.
WHY DO THE WALL SPRINT?
The wall sprint is a technical, acceleration drill that teaches you to work on front-side mechanics.
There are two major forms of “sprint” mechanics that I coach: acceleration and top speed. Acceleration, is the first part of your sprint or your “takeoff” where you’re leaning into the run and focusing on stabbing at the ground with each step. You might not be moving through a full range of motion quite yet, but each step is all power.
The wall sprint drill is a really accessible since you use the support of the wall to practice cycling the legs while leaning forward at an extreme angle. Focus on form at the while before taking things up a notch and sprinting on the turf.
To work on more, check out this post on Developing Acceleration in Athletes.
How to do the wall sprint?
To start, stand at a great angle with both hands on a wall, and your feet in line behind you. Put some weight into your hands, and draw one knee up to hip height. This should bring you into triple flexion at the hip, knee, and ankle. From here, practice exchanging the feet by powerfully pushing the top foot down into the floor and cycling the other leg up.
Begin by holding each side for a few seconds at a time, and then taking it to double-time (like this video).
Common Mistakes
This drill is all about precision and power. Don’t just jog in place with your hands on the wall. Practice accelerating forward with each switch of the legs so that is feels like you’re busting out of track and field blocks about to power up the field.
Programming
This is a drill I’ll typically include with other frontside mechanics or sprint specific drills. I recommend moving through a full warm-up routine, and then going right into your sprint mechanic drills before any lifting so you can do each skill with speed and accuracy.
I recommend incorporating this drill into your training a few times a week with a speed workout like this one.
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