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← 4 x 4-Week Preseason Sessions

Session 1: Tendon sequencing and neuromuscular patterns

Low volume technical training to build a strong base for the season. Weeks 1 to 4 · 3 days a week · 30 to 40 minutes a day

Day 1

Shins, strength, event technique

Event:
Session 1 · Day 1 · Circuit A2 rounds, left to right

Shin quick sets A

Knee-to-wall ankle check

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

A-march

  • What: A slow march that builds the sprint leg action.
  • How: March forward tall. Lift the knee to hip height with the toe pulled up, step over the other knee, and put the foot down under your hip.
  • Cue: "toe up, step over"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 m every warm-up.

A-skip

  • What: The A-march at skipping speed.
  • How: Skip forward. Knee to hip height, toe up, then snap the foot down under the hip. Opposite arm drives.
  • Cue: "knee up, snap down"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 m every warm-up.

Small pogos

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

Strength: bodyweight, hips, core A

Hip flexors

  • Sets & Reps: wall knee drive and floor knee pull-through, 2 x 8 each leg.

Bodyweight squat

  • What: A full squat with no weight.
  • How: Feet shoulder-width, sit down between your heels, chest tall, knees out. Stand by pushing the floor away.
  • Cue: "chest tall, knees out"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 12.

Split squat

  • What: A one-leg-forward squat for landing strength.
  • How: Long split stance. Drop the back knee toward the floor, front heel down, then drive up through the front heel.
  • Cue: "front heel, drive up"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 8 each leg.

Your event A

Long jump

Step-swing takeoff

  • What: A walking takeoff where the free leg swing lifts you.
  • How: Step forward onto your takeoff foot and swing the free thigh up hard from the hip. The swing lifts you forward and up; the jump leg does little.
  • Cue: "swing does it"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 6 each leg.
Triple jump

Tiny hops

  • What: Small, quick single-leg hops.
  • How: Hop forward on one leg. Bring the hop leg through low, at the height of the other ankle, and pull it back down to a flat foot.
  • Cue: "toes up, land flat"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 contacts each leg.
Hurdles

Wall drill, lead leg

  • What: The lead knee drive, against a wall.
  • How: Face the wall, hands at shoulder height, leaning forward. Drive the lead knee up toward your chest, extend through the heel, return.
  • Cue: "knee first, punch through"
  • Sets & Reps: 10 each leg.
Pole vault

Hip walks

  • What: Tall walking with high hips.
  • How: Walk forward with high hips and an open stride, stepping over the opposite knee each step.
  • Cue: "tall spine, step over"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 m.

Tap your events above.

Session 1 · Day 1 · Circuit B2 rounds, left to right

Shin quick sets B

Straight and bent-knee calf raise

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each way

Tib raise

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15

Toe and heel walks

  • Sets & Reps: 20 m each

Strength: bodyweight, hips, core B

Glute bridge

  • What: A two-foot hip lift.
  • How: On your back, feet flat. Push the hips up until knees, hips, and shoulders line up, squeeze, lower slow.
  • Cue: "squeeze top, ribs down"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 12.

Calf wall push

  • What: A still push through the ball of the foot that loads the Achilles.
  • How: Hands on the wall, lean from the ankles, heels up halfway. Lock the ankle and push into the floor without moving.
  • Cue: "lean, lock ankle"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Your event B

Long jump

Ribs-to-thighs march

  • What: A march for the thigh position before landing.
  • How: Hands on your ribs. March in place, lifting each thigh above parallel, and slide your hands down to meet it.
  • Cue: "ribs meet thighs"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each leg.
Triple jump

RR LL march

  • What: The right-right, left-left foot pattern at walking speed.
  • How: March forward with two contacts on the right foot, then two on the left. Drive the free knee up on each contact.
  • Cue: "right right, left left"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 m.
Hurdles

Wall drill, trail leg

  • What: The trail leg path, against a wall.
  • How: Stand side-on to the wall, inside hand on it. Lift the outside knee up to the side at hip height, then snap it forward past the hip, toe up.
  • Cue: "knee side, snap forward"
  • Sets & Reps: 10 each leg.
Pole vault

Standing pole carry

  • What: Holding the pole carry position still.
  • How: Stand with the stubby pole in your carry position. Hold 30 s while a partner checks hand spacing, arm angles, and tip height.
  • Cue: "relax shoulders, lock angles"
  • Sets & Reps: 4 x 30 s.

Tap your events above.

Session 1 · Day 1 · Circuit C2 rounds, left to right

Shin quick sets C

Single-leg balance

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 s each leg

Soleus walks

  • What: Walking on the balls of your feet with the knees bent.
  • How: Bend your knees and lift your heels. Walk forward 10 m, then back, without letting the heels touch down.
  • Cue: "heels never touch"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 m each way, every warm-up.

Ball-between-heels calf raise

  • What: A bent-knee calf raise with a ball squeezed between the heels, for the soleus and Achilles.
  • How: Tennis ball between your heels, knees bent. Squeeze the ball, rise up, hold 2 s at the top, lower slow.
  • Cue: "squeeze, rise, hold"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 8.

Strength: bodyweight, hips, core C

Spanish squat

  • What: A deep sit-back hold that loads the knee tendon.
  • How: Loop a band behind both knees and anchor it in front of you. Sit back until your knees bend about 90 degrees, shins straight up and down. No band? Hold a wall sit.
  • Cue: "shins straight, sit back"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Single-leg bridge hold

  • What: A one-leg hip lift held at the top, for the hamstring and glute.
  • How: Lie on your back, one heel on the floor, other leg up. Drive the hips high and hold, ribs down.
  • Cue: "heel down, hips high"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Your event C

Long jump

Standing hip pivot swing

  • What: A loose thigh swing from the hip.
  • How: Stand on one leg, hand on a wall. Swing the other thigh back and forward from the hip, relaxed.
  • Cue: "loose hip"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 10 each leg.
Triple jump

Standing triple jump

  • What: The hop, step, jump from a standing start.
  • How: Stand on your takeoff foot. Hop and land on the same foot, step to the other foot, then jump to both feet. Say the pattern out loud.
  • Cue: "same, other, both"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 4 (counts half).
Hurdles

Walking lead leg

  • What: The lead leg wall drill, walking.
  • How: Walk forward. Every third step, drive the lead knee up and extend through. Walking pace only.
  • Cue: "knee up, punch out"
  • Sets & Reps: 4 x 40 m.
Pole vault

Stationary pole drop

  • What: The first move of the plant, from a standstill.
  • How: Left foot forward, right foot back, pole in high carry position. Let the tip fall; the right hand is the pivot and the left wrist stays cocked.
  • Cue: "let it fall"
  • Sets & Reps: 15 to 20 reps.

Tap your events above.

Mental rehearsalevery day, three times

Find one video of an athlete in your event whose form you want, and study it. If you already know correct technical form from experience, picture yourself instead. Close your eyes and run your event in your head: walk through your warm-up drills, step onto the runway or into the blocks, and run one jump, one hurdle race or one sprint with correct form all the way through the finish. Feel each body movement. It takes as long as your race, plus a minute for your warm-up drills.

  1. When you wake up.
  2. Right after your circuits.
  3. Before bed.

This trains your nervous system. Imagery plus physical practice beats physical practice alone [8].

Daily shin ABCsevery day, rest days too

Every day, rest days too, 2 to 3 minutes.

  • Seated ABCs: trace the alphabet with your big toe, each foot.
  • Band ABCs: loop a band around your toes and trace the alphabet against it.
  • Foot on foot: cross one foot over the other and push against it, up, down, in and out, 5 s each way, then switch.

Day 2

General plyos, modified Nordics, tendons, hips and core, events

Back to top
Event:
Session 1 · Day 2 · Circuit A2 rounds, left to right

General plyos A

Pogo jumps, small

  • What: Quick, stiff-ankle bounces in place.
  • How: Feet hip-width, knees nearly straight, toes pulled up. Bounce off the balls of your feet, small and fast, same spot every time.
  • Cue: "toes up, stiff ankle"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10.

Modified Nordics A

Soleus walks

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

Knee-to-wall ankle check

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

Tendons, hips and core A

Spanish squat

  • What: A deep sit-back hold that loads the knee tendon.
  • How: Loop a band behind both knees and anchor it in front of you. Sit back until your knees bend about 90 degrees, shins straight up and down. No band? Hold a wall sit.
  • Cue: "shins straight, sit back"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Single-leg bridge hold

  • What: A one-leg hip lift held at the top, for the hamstring and glute.
  • How: Lie on your back, one heel on the floor, other leg up. Drive the hips high and hold, ribs down.
  • Cue: "heel down, hips high"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Hurdle lunge

  • What: A deep lunge that opens the front of the back hip. Hip mobility for every event.
  • How: Step into a long lunge, back leg turned out like a hurdle trail leg. Push the back hip forward and hold.
  • Cue: "back hip forward"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 s each side, every warm-up.

Your event A

Long jump

Ribs-to-thighs march

  • What: A march for the thigh position before landing.
  • How: Hands on your ribs. March in place, lifting each thigh above parallel, and slide your hands down to meet it.
  • Cue: "ribs meet thighs"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each leg.
Triple jump

RR LL march

  • What: The right-right, left-left foot pattern at walking speed.
  • How: March forward with two contacts on the right foot, then two on the left. Drive the free knee up on each contact.
  • Cue: "right right, left left"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 m.
Hurdles

Wall drill, trail leg

  • What: The trail leg path, against a wall.
  • How: Stand side-on to the wall, inside hand on it. Lift the outside knee up to the side at hip height, then snap it forward past the hip, toe up.
  • Cue: "knee side, snap forward"
  • Sets & Reps: 10 each leg.
Pole vault

Standing pole carry

  • What: Holding the pole carry position still.
  • How: Stand with the stubby pole in your carry position. Hold 30 s while a partner checks hand spacing, arm angles, and tip height.
  • Cue: "relax shoulders, lock angles"
  • Sets & Reps: 4 x 30 s.

Tap your events above.

Session 1 · Day 2 · Circuit B2 rounds, left to right

General plyos B

Mini-hops

  • What: Small two-foot hops with quiet landings.
  • How: Feet together, knees soft. Hop a few inches forward, toes up in the air, land without a sound.
  • Cue: "small hops, quiet feet"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10.

Modified Nordics B

A-march

  • What: A slow march that builds the sprint leg action.
  • How: March forward tall. Lift the knee to hip height with the toe pulled up, step over the other knee, and put the foot down under your hip.
  • Cue: "toe up, step over"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 m every warm-up.

A-skip

  • What: The A-march at skipping speed.
  • How: Skip forward. Knee to hip height, toe up, then snap the foot down under the hip. Opposite arm drives.
  • Cue: "knee up, snap down"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 m every warm-up.

Tendons, hips and core B

Copenhagen plank, short lever

  • What: A side plank with the top knee on a bench, for the inner thigh and hip.
  • How: Side plank on your elbow, top knee on a bench or a partner's hands. Lift the hips into a straight line and hold.
  • Cue: "stack hips, lift"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 to 20 s each side.

Front and side plank

  • What: Still holds for the trunk.
  • How: Forearms down, body in one straight line, ribs pulled down. Turn to one elbow for the side plank.
  • Cue: "long and still"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 s each.

Wall knee drive

  • What: A knee drive against a wall for hip flexor strength.
  • How: Hands on the wall at shoulder height, body leaning forward in a straight line. Pull the heel up toward your butt and bring the knee through to hip height, toe up. Set it down and repeat.
  • Cue: "heel up, knee through"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 8 each leg.

Your event B

Long jump

Standing hip pivot swing

  • What: A loose thigh swing from the hip.
  • How: Stand on one leg, hand on a wall. Swing the other thigh back and forward from the hip, relaxed.
  • Cue: "loose hip"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 10 each leg.
Triple jump

Standing triple jump

  • What: The hop, step, jump from a standing start.
  • How: Stand on your takeoff foot. Hop and land on the same foot, step to the other foot, then jump to both feet. Say the pattern out loud.
  • Cue: "same, other, both"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 4 (counts half).
Hurdles

Walking lead leg

  • What: The lead leg wall drill, walking.
  • How: Walk forward. Every third step, drive the lead knee up and extend through. Walking pace only.
  • Cue: "knee up, punch out"
  • Sets & Reps: 4 x 40 m.
Pole vault

Stationary pole drop

  • What: The first move of the plant, from a standstill.
  • How: Left foot forward, right foot back, pole in high carry position. Let the tip fall; the right hand is the pivot and the left wrist stays cocked.
  • Cue: "let it fall"
  • Sets & Reps: 15 to 20 reps.

Tap your events above.

Session 1 · Day 2 · Circuit C2 rounds, left to right

General plyos C

Jump rope

  • What: Light, quick ankle bounces.
  • How: Bounce on the balls of your feet, ankles doing the work.
  • Cue: "bounce light"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 30 s (warm-up, not counted as contacts).

Modified Nordics C

Modified Nordic

  • What: A slow forward lean from a kneel, resisted by your hamstrings, finished with a hip pop.
  • How: Kneel on a pad, partner holding your ankles. Keep hips straight and lower your chest toward the floor as slowly as you can. Catch yourself with your hands. Push back up, then pop the hips through so the hip, knee, and ankle extend together.
  • Cue: "lower slow, pop the hips"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 3 in Session 1, 3 x 5 from Session 2.

Toe and heel walks

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

Tendons, hips and core C

Banded or pulley knee drive

  • What: A knee drive against resistance on the ankle.
  • How: Loop a band or a simple pulley around one ankle, anchored behind you. Stand tall, hand on a wall if you need it. Pull the knee up and through to hip height, then lower slow.
  • Cue: "pull it through"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each leg.

Floor knee pull-through

  • What: A slow mountain climber for hip flexor control.
  • How: Start in a push-up position. Pull one knee toward your chest, slow and controlled, then return it. Hips stay level.
  • Cue: "slow knee, flat back"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 8 each leg.

Calf wall push

  • What: A still push through the ball of the foot that loads the Achilles.
  • How: Hands on the wall, lean from the ankles, heels up halfway. Lock the ankle and push into the floor without moving.
  • Cue: "lean, lock ankle"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Your event C

Long jump

Step-swing takeoff

  • What: A walking takeoff where the free leg swing lifts you.
  • How: Step forward onto your takeoff foot and swing the free thigh up hard from the hip. The swing lifts you forward and up; the jump leg does little.
  • Cue: "swing does it"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 6 each leg.
Triple jump

Tiny hops

  • What: Small, quick single-leg hops.
  • How: Hop forward on one leg. Bring the hop leg through low, at the height of the other ankle, and pull it back down to a flat foot.
  • Cue: "toes up, land flat"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 contacts each leg.
Hurdles

Wall drill, lead leg

  • What: The lead knee drive, against a wall.
  • How: Face the wall, hands at shoulder height, leaning forward. Drive the lead knee up toward your chest, extend through the heel, return.
  • Cue: "knee first, punch through"
  • Sets & Reps: 10 each leg.
Pole vault

Hip walks

  • What: Tall walking with high hips.
  • How: Walk forward with high hips and an open stride, stepping over the opposite knee each step.
  • Cue: "tall spine, step over"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 m.

Tap your events above.

Mental rehearsalevery day, three times

Find one video of an athlete in your event whose form you want, and study it. If you already know correct technical form from experience, picture yourself instead. Close your eyes and run your event in your head: walk through your warm-up drills, step onto the runway or into the blocks, and run one jump, one hurdle race or one sprint with correct form all the way through the finish. Feel each body movement. It takes as long as your race, plus a minute for your warm-up drills.

  1. When you wake up.
  2. Right after your circuits.
  3. Before bed.

This trains your nervous system. Imagery plus physical practice beats physical practice alone [8].

Daily shin ABCsevery day, rest days too

Every day, rest days too, 2 to 3 minutes.

  • Seated ABCs: trace the alphabet with your big toe, each foot.
  • Band ABCs: loop a band around your toes and trace the alphabet against it.
  • Foot on foot: cross one foot over the other and push against it, up, down, in and out, 5 s each way, then switch.

Day 3

Speed, then modified Nordics, shins, strength, events

Back to top
Event:
Session 1 · Day 3 · Circuit A: Speed and acceleration3 rounds, left to right · sprinters, jumpers, hurdlers, vaulters: all

Run these fast, with full rest between reps. Doing this part separately in your day is OK; together is best.

Speed and acceleration A

Wall drives

  • What: The acceleration position, against a wall.
  • How: Hands on the wall, body leaning about 45 degrees in a straight line. Drive one knee to hip height, toe up, stance leg long. Hold, then switch.
  • Cue: "lean 45, stiff back ankle"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 10 s holds each leg.

Speed and acceleration A

Skip series

  • What: Skips that drive the knee back behind the hip, a new task each rep.
  • How: Skip 20 m. Change the task each rep: quick skips, long skips, high skips. Squeeze the foot and ankle on every contact, hips tall.
  • Cue: "knee back, hips tall"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 20 m.

Speed and acceleration A

Hill or stairs build-ups

  • What: Short sprints up a gentle hill, up a flight of stairs, or on flat grass.
  • How: Sprint 15 m at about 70% effort, foot landing under your hips. Walk back down.
  • Cue: "stiff ankle, ground under the hip"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 15 m.
Session 1 · Day 3 · Circuit B2 rounds, left to right

Modified Nordics and shin quick sets B

A-skip

  • What: The A-march at skipping speed.
  • How: Skip forward. Knee to hip height, toe up, then snap the foot down under the hip. Opposite arm drives.
  • Cue: "knee up, snap down"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 m every warm-up.

Small pogos

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

Modified Nordic

  • What: A slow forward lean from a kneel, resisted by your hamstrings, finished with a hip pop.
  • How: Kneel on a pad, partner holding your ankles. Keep hips straight and lower your chest toward the floor as slowly as you can. Catch yourself with your hands. Push back up, then pop the hips through so the hip, knee, and ankle extend together.
  • Cue: "lower slow, pop the hips"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 3 in Session 1, 3 x 5 from Session 2.

Straight and bent-knee calf raise

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each way

Strength: bodyweight, hips, core B

Glute bridge

  • What: A two-foot hip lift.
  • How: On your back, feet flat. Push the hips up until knees, hips, and shoulders line up, squeeze, lower slow.
  • Cue: "squeeze top, ribs down"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 12.

Calf wall push

  • What: A still push through the ball of the foot that loads the Achilles.
  • How: Hands on the wall, lean from the ankles, heels up halfway. Lock the ankle and push into the floor without moving.
  • Cue: "lean, lock ankle"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Your event B

Long jump

Standing hip pivot swing

  • What: A loose thigh swing from the hip.
  • How: Stand on one leg, hand on a wall. Swing the other thigh back and forward from the hip, relaxed.
  • Cue: "loose hip"
  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 10 each leg.
Triple jump

Standing triple jump

  • What: The hop, step, jump from a standing start.
  • How: Stand on your takeoff foot. Hop and land on the same foot, step to the other foot, then jump to both feet. Say the pattern out loud.
  • Cue: "same, other, both"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 4 (counts half).
Hurdles

Walking lead leg

  • What: The lead leg wall drill, walking.
  • How: Walk forward. Every third step, drive the lead knee up and extend through. Walking pace only.
  • Cue: "knee up, punch out"
  • Sets & Reps: 4 x 40 m.
Pole vault

Stationary pole drop

  • What: The first move of the plant, from a standstill.
  • How: Left foot forward, right foot back, pole in high carry position. Let the tip fall; the right hand is the pivot and the left wrist stays cocked.
  • Cue: "let it fall"
  • Sets & Reps: 15 to 20 reps.

Tap your events above.

Session 1 · Day 3 · Circuit C2 rounds, left to right

Modified Nordics and shin quick sets C

Tib raise

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15

Toe and heel walks

  • Sets & Reps: 20 m each

Single-leg balance

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 s each leg

Soleus walks

  • What: Walking on the balls of your feet with the knees bent.
  • How: Bend your knees and lift your heels. Walk forward 10 m, then back, without letting the heels touch down.
  • Cue: "heels never touch"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 m each way, every warm-up.

Strength: bodyweight, hips, core C

Spanish squat

  • What: A deep sit-back hold that loads the knee tendon.
  • How: Loop a band behind both knees and anchor it in front of you. Sit back until your knees bend about 90 degrees, shins straight up and down. No band? Hold a wall sit.
  • Cue: "shins straight, sit back"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Single-leg bridge hold

  • What: A one-leg hip lift held at the top, for the hamstring and glute.
  • How: Lie on your back, one heel on the floor, other leg up. Drive the hips high and hold, ribs down.
  • Cue: "heel down, hips high"
  • Sets & Reps: 20 s, 4 rounds, half effort weeks 1 and 2, then at least 70% from week 3

Your event C

Long jump

Step-swing takeoff

  • What: A walking takeoff where the free leg swing lifts you.
  • How: Step forward onto your takeoff foot and swing the free thigh up hard from the hip. The swing lifts you forward and up; the jump leg does little.
  • Cue: "swing does it"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 6 each leg.
Triple jump

Tiny hops

  • What: Small, quick single-leg hops.
  • How: Hop forward on one leg. Bring the hop leg through low, at the height of the other ankle, and pull it back down to a flat foot.
  • Cue: "toes up, land flat"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 contacts each leg.
Hurdles

Wall drill, lead leg

  • What: The lead knee drive, against a wall.
  • How: Face the wall, hands at shoulder height, leaning forward. Drive the lead knee up toward your chest, extend through the heel, return.
  • Cue: "knee first, punch through"
  • Sets & Reps: 10 each leg.
Pole vault

Hip walks

  • What: Tall walking with high hips.
  • How: Walk forward with high hips and an open stride, stepping over the opposite knee each step.
  • Cue: "tall spine, step over"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 m.

Tap your events above.

Session 1 · Day 3 · Circuit D2 rounds, left to right

Modified Nordics and shin quick sets D

Soleus wall sit push

  • What: A held bent-knee calf push for the soleus.
  • How: Back against a wall in a high wall sit. Lift the heels halfway and press the balls of your feet into the floor. Hold still.
  • Cue: "knees bent, heels up"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 s.

Knee-to-wall ankle check

  • Sets & Reps: warm-up, once through

A-march

  • What: A slow march that builds the sprint leg action.
  • How: March forward tall. Lift the knee to hip height with the toe pulled up, step over the other knee, and put the foot down under your hip.
  • Cue: "toe up, step over"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 15 m every warm-up.

Ball-between-heels calf raise

  • What: A bent-knee calf raise with a ball squeezed between the heels, for the soleus and Achilles.
  • How: Tennis ball between your heels, knees bent. Squeeze the ball, rise up, hold 2 s at the top, lower slow.
  • Cue: "squeeze, rise, hold"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 8.

Strength: bodyweight, hips, core D

Hip flexors

  • Sets & Reps: wall knee drive and floor knee pull-through, 2 x 8 each leg.

Split squat

  • What: A one-leg-forward squat for landing strength.
  • How: Long split stance. Drop the back knee toward the floor, front heel down, then drive up through the front heel.
  • Cue: "front heel, drive up"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 8 each leg.

Your event D

Long jump

Ribs-to-thighs march

  • What: A march for the thigh position before landing.
  • How: Hands on your ribs. March in place, lifting each thigh above parallel, and slide your hands down to meet it.
  • Cue: "ribs meet thighs"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each leg.
Triple jump

RR LL march

  • What: The right-right, left-left foot pattern at walking speed.
  • How: March forward with two contacts on the right foot, then two on the left. Drive the free knee up on each contact.
  • Cue: "right right, left left"
  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 m.
Hurdles

Wall drill, trail leg

  • What: The trail leg path, against a wall.
  • How: Stand side-on to the wall, inside hand on it. Lift the outside knee up to the side at hip height, then snap it forward past the hip, toe up.
  • Cue: "knee side, snap forward"
  • Sets & Reps: 10 each leg.
Pole vault

Standing pole carry

  • What: Holding the pole carry position still.
  • How: Stand with the stubby pole in your carry position. Hold 30 s while a partner checks hand spacing, arm angles, and tip height.
  • Cue: "relax shoulders, lock angles"
  • Sets & Reps: 4 x 30 s.

Tap your events above.

Mental rehearsalevery day, three times

Find one video of an athlete in your event whose form you want, and study it. If you already know correct technical form from experience, picture yourself instead. Close your eyes and run your event in your head: walk through your warm-up drills, step onto the runway or into the blocks, and run one jump, one hurdle race or one sprint with correct form all the way through the finish. Feel each body movement. It takes as long as your race, plus a minute for your warm-up drills.

  1. When you wake up.
  2. Right after your circuits.
  3. Before bed.

This trains your nervous system. Imagery plus physical practice beats physical practice alone [8].

Daily shin ABCsevery day, rest days too

Every day, rest days too, 2 to 3 minutes.

  • Seated ABCs: trace the alphabet with your big toe, each foot.
  • Band ABCs: loop a band around your toes and trace the alphabet against it.
  • Foot on foot: cross one foot over the other and push against it, up, down, in and out, 5 s each way, then switch.

Week to week: the circuits show week 2, the standard week. In week 1, do fewer sets while you learn the positions. In weeks 3 and 4, add or ease off based on how your legs feel. Up to 40 jump contacts a week. Overtraining leads to injury.

Day 4

Optional: bodyweight and core. Keep 48 hours before the next hard day.

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Session 1 · Day 4 · Circuit A3 rounds, left to right

Day 4 A

Bodyweight squat

  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 15

Day 4 A

Split squat

  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 10 each leg

Day 4 A

Glute bridge

  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 15
Session 1 · Day 4 · Circuit B2 rounds, left to right

Day 4 B

Step-up onto a knee-high box

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 10 each leg
Session 1 · Day 4 · Circuit C2 rounds, left to right

Day 4 C

Front plank

  • Sets & Reps: 3 x 30 s

Day 4 C

Side plank

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 30 s each side

Day 4 C

Copenhagen plank

  • Sets & Reps: 2 x 20 s each side

Notes on repeating drills across all 16 weeks

Research notes

Science works through iteration, meticulous perseverance, comparison, challenge, and identifying patterns across the spheres of science, so no single study is the whole answer. Findings come from other populations, animal models, or other tissues in the body, because living systems share enough molecules and machinery that these clues help us understand our own health. Individual papers are cited as keystones to stir thinking, and each one opens onto years of peer-reviewed work it was built on. Follow the citations when something is relevant to you: they open further readings you can bring to your coach, athletic trainer, or doctor.

  1. Kubo K, Ikebukuro T, Yata H, Tsunoda N, Kanehisa H, 2010, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. Month-by-month changes in strength and knee tendon stiffness over 3 months of isometric training in 8 adult volunteers. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181c865e2
  2. Mersmann F, Bohm S, Arampatzis A, 2017, Frontiers in Physiology. Review of muscle and tendon development in youth athletes, with a tendon-loading program of at least 12 weeks proposed from adult trials. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2017.00987
  3. Oranchuk DJ, Storey AG, Nelson AR, Cronin JB, 2019, Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. Review of 26 isometric training studies, mostly adults, on effort, muscle length, and tendon change. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.13375
  4. Miller R, Balshaw TG, Massey GJ, et al., 2021, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Muscle size of elite versus sub-elite adult male sprinters. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000002522
  5. Deane RS, Chow JW, Tillman MD, Fournier KA, 2005, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. Eight weeks of hip flexor training and sprint, shuttle run, and vertical jump performance in untrained adults. https://doi.org/10.1519/14974.1
  6. van Dyk N, Behan FP, Whiteley R, 2019, British Journal of Sports Medicine. Meta-analysis of the Nordic hamstring exercise and hamstring injury in 8,459 athletes, mostly soccer, mixed ages. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2018-100045
  7. van der Horst N, Smits DW, Petersen J, Goedhart EA, Backx FJ, 2015, American Journal of Sports Medicine. Randomized trial of 25 Nordic sessions over 13 weeks in 579 adult male amateur soccer players. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546515574057
  8. Simonsmeier BA, Andronie M, Buecker S, Frank C, 2020, International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Meta-analysis of imagery interventions in sport studies, mixed ages and levels. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984X.2020.1780627
  9. Kubo K, Morimoto M, Komuro T, et al., 2007, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Plyometric versus weight training and Achilles tendon and joint stiffness in adults. https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0b013e31813e630a
  10. Kubo K, Ishigaki T, Ikebukuro T, 2017, Physiological Reports. Plyometric versus isometric training and muscle and Achilles tendon stiffness in adults. https://doi.org/10.14814/phy2.13374
  11. Lauersen JB, Andersen TE, Andersen LB, 2018, British Journal of Sports Medicine. Meta-analysis of strength training and sports injury in 7,738 people aged 12 to 40, mixed sports. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2018-099078
  12. Moran J, Liew B, Ramirez-Campillo R, et al., 2023, Journal of Sport and Health Science. Meta-analysis of plyometric jump training and lower-limb stiffness in healthy individuals. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2021.05.005

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