8 Long Jump Drills Every Coach Uses to Fix Takeoff and Build Power

Most “long jump drills” articles online are lists of exercises with no explanation of what any of them fix. That is not how coaches actually work. A drill is a tool. If you use bounding to fix a takeoff angle problem, you are hitting a screw with a hammer.

Here are the eight drills that show up in almost every serious long jump program, what each one addresses, and how to sequence them across a training week.

Diagnose before you drill

Before you pick a drill, know what you are trying to fix. The four common problems in long jump technique are:

• Not enough approach speed.
• Approach speed not converting into vertical lift (angle too shallow, distance falls short).
• Approach speed converting into too much vertical (angle too steep, distance falls short in a different way, which we cover in the takeoff angle guide).
• Bad landing, with feet coming down short of where the flight path would carry them.

Most drill lists collapse these into “power” or “explosiveness.” That is why athletes practice drills for six months and see nothing move on the distance chart. Match the drill to the actual problem. If you are not sure which of the four you have, an AI long jump coach will tell you from a single video.

1. Bounding

Bounding is exaggerated running, one foot to the other, with maximum knee drive and full hip extension. Each contact should be long, powerful, and covering ground.

Fixes: knee drive, hip extension, ground contact quality.

How to do it: 20 to 30 meters at maximum effort, focused on covering the most distance per stride. Rest 2 to 3 minutes between sets. Do 4 to 6 sets. This is not a conditioning drill. If you are tired, stop.

2. Short approach jumps

A short approach jump is a full jump from a 6 to 10 stride run-up instead of your full 18 to 22. Almost every technique problem in the long jump can be worked on in short approach, and the reduced speed lets you actually feel what you are doing.

Fixes: takeoff mechanics, penultimate step, arm action, in-air posture.

How to do it: 4 to 8 jumps per session, into a pit or landing mat. Use these as your primary technical work. Full approach jumps in training are for peaking, not learning.

3. Box jumps for knee drive

Box jumps here mean a single-leg or double-leg jump from a standstill up onto a plyometric box. The goal is not height. The goal is aggressive knee drive.

Fixes: knee drive at takeoff, reactive strength.

How to do it: Box height should be low enough that you can land in the same body position you took off in, with no collapsing. 5 to 8 reps per set, 3 to 4 sets. Rest fully between reps.

4. Wall drives for hip extension

Stand about a meter from a wall. Lean forward at 45 degrees, hands against the wall, body in a straight line from head to heels. Drive one knee up, then punch it back down into the ground, driving through full hip extension.

Fixes: hip extension pattern, sprint-specific mechanics that transfer directly to the takeoff.

How to do it: Alternate legs, 10 to 20 reps per leg, 3 sets. Slow enough that you can feel the hip extension complete before the next rep.

5. Standing long jumps

From a static start, feet parallel, arms swinging back and up. Jump as far as possible horizontally. Land on both feet.

Fixes: raw takeoff power, arm-swing coordination.

How to do it: 5 to 8 jumps per session. Measure each one. Progress in this drill is the single most reliable predictor of progress in the full long jump. If you added 20 centimeters to your standing long jump over six weeks, you probably added distance to your running jump too.

6. Skip for height

An exaggerated skip focused on maximum vertical lift per bound. Land, then immediately spring back up as high as possible.

Fixes: reactive strength off one leg, penultimate step feel.

How to do it: 20 to 30 meters. Focus on the “up” and not the “forward.” Rest 2 minutes between sets. 3 to 5 sets.

7. A-skips and B-skips

A-skips are a sprint drill: high knee up, foot punches straight down into the ground. B-skips add a forward leg extension before the punch. Both drill the mechanics that separate a fast sprinter (and therefore a good long jumper) from a merely quick one.

Fixes: sprint mechanics, cyclic leg action, ground contact time.

How to do it: 20 meters, 3 sets each. Not a warm-up drill. Do them as technical work with rest between sets, focused on quality.

8. Depth jumps

Step (do not jump) off a low box, land on both feet, and immediately explode back up as high as possible. Box height matters: too high and the jump becomes about absorbing shock rather than reacting.

Fixes: reactive strength, tendon stiffness, force absorption during landing.

How to do it: Box height of 20 to 40 centimeters to start. 5 to 6 reps per set, 3 to 4 sets. Full rest between reps. Do not do these tired.

A weekly template that uses all eight

Assuming three training days a week with a jumping focus, here is one workable sequence.

Monday, technique day:

• Warm-up with A-skips and B-skips.
• Wall drives.
• Short approach jumps, 6 reps.
• Bounding, 4 sets.

Wednesday, power day:

• Warm-up with A-skips.
• Standing long jumps, 6 reps.
• Box jumps, 4 sets.
• Depth jumps, 3 sets.

Friday, integration day:

• Warm-up with skip for height.
• Short approach jumps, 4 reps.
• Full approach jumps, 2 to 3 reps only, if peaking.

Weekly volume: about 20 to 25 total high-intensity jump contacts. If your knees or hamstrings are talking to you the next day, cut volume before you cut intensity.

The takeaway

Drills only work when they target the specific thing that is holding your jump back. Film a full-approach jump, watch it with a coach or use an analysis tool, identify the one or two things that are actually off, and pick two or three drills from this list that address exactly those. Everything else is filler.

If the problem is a takeoff angle issue, read this first. If it is fouls and inconsistency, work through the run-up guide before you touch any of the drills above.