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3 Key Sprinting Wall Drills

Les Spellman

18K subscribers • 7 videos on Filmroom

YouTube

19K views4 recommendations

SprintsWarm-ups and drillsAccelerationBlock starts

Les Spellman demonstrates three essential wall drills to improve sprinting acceleration, posture, and leg drive.

What's good #speedcity! Starting the week off with 3 key sprinting wall drills. Be on the look out for tomorrow as we are dropping a new project!! FREE PDF: How To Build A Speed Training System train.lesspellman.com/speedsystem I just released my NEW course "Art Of Acceleration: Coach's Guide To Programming For Speed"! The purpose of this course is to share my step-by-step speed development process to profile, study, analyze, program, and give feedback to your athletes. Check it out here: train.lesspellman.com/artofacceleration

Why it's here

4 people recommend this

What commenters say. Highly recommended for learning how to push during acceleration and for training sprint mechanics in limited spaces.

@EverybodyWangChung52in r/trackandfield • Recommends

On “What are exercises I can do to get faster if I don’t have space to run or a treadmill?”

Track coach in northeast during indoor track. I’ve gotten good at this. Get a good band, wrap around your waste, wrap other end around structural beam/support/something that won’t move. Now you can do resisted sprints. Get a light band, now you can do resisted broad jumps and single leg jumps. Wall drills, A-switches. Check out Les Spellman on YouTube, he actually has some videos about sprint drills inside. link to this video link to this video
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@--buddhistboy--in r/Sprinting • Recommends

On “Start critique”

The good: High hips in the set position, good arm spacing, block settings look alright, you're hitting *consistent* angles, meaning that your shin angles in the blocks are similar to the angles of your first few steps which is good. Your triple extension looks mostly alright except for the very start. Knee angles are good, arms are good. Dorsiflexion is there too. All of that's really important and you have it down which is good. The not so good: You cycle very early. 1st step isn't awful, but after that you're cycling through your whole acceleration, not good. Cycling means high heel recovery, not what we want. Your hips are kinda left behind on the first step or two, you miss the triple e…
2View on Reddit

@ppsoapin r/Sprinting • Recommends

On “Block Start Tips”

Dont be so bent over coming out. Let your spine straighten out as you push out. I think a good drill to help you would be like a sort of projection against a wall. Leaning against a wall, get on to one leg and load your hips back, then extend thru your planted leg and drive thru. Make sure your body is in good alignment whilst doing it. Here is a video demonstrating what i mean
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@killiancurranin r/Sprinting • Recommends

On “Rate my start, open to any advice.”

Ye pretty much. Its explained really well in this video link to this video
1View on Reddit

@killiancurranin r/Sprinting • Recommends

On “How would you look to further optimise my start?”

…patient in acceleration. It might make you slower out of the first 10-20m for a short period while you get to grips with it, but in time it will make a huge difference to not only the start of your race but also in setting up a better model for the rest of your race. Les Spellman has some good content on this topic of learning to push. Example: link to this video…
1View on Reddit

@ppsoapin r/Sprinting • Recommends

On “Help with block start”

Here Its the second drill in this video, the load and lift. Really emphasize loading that front leg, and when you drive forward, drop that knee and really push with your toes. This video kinda just isolates that movement without a knee drive. Again really work on dropping the knee and really driving the hips forward and extending with the ankle. Another good exercise to do would be bent knee calf raise against the wall, really emphasizing driving forward and pushing off the ground.
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@bottomhousevirginin r/Sprinting • Mentions

On “Rep from today”

Pretty good stiffness at ground contact for somebody starting out sprinting. You open up your knee too much when driving your leg forward. This makes it more difficult to attack back when accelerating. I’d recommend some wall drills to help with acceleration mechanics. Here’s some good ones to start: [video https://preview.redd.it/qrmkiio5qlbg1.jpeg?width=775&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d621cb289d4cf1c0ea6bfca04af0f9139db334fd
6View on Reddit

@bottomhousevirginin r/Sprinting • Mentions

On “Looking for blocks tips”

…t up so far back that your legs are extended and you can’t really generate push that well. In every clip, you also lift your heels out of the blocks. Driving forward with the hips will keep your heels low for more efficient acceleration mechanics. Do some wall drills to train this movement pattern and get accustomed to the body angles. Example: link to this video…
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@bottomhousevirginin r/Sprinting • Mentions

On “Wall Acceleration Drills”

https://preview.redd.it/ps6fdkc4qo5h1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=60ada5a84416daa24344325b1aa6f8b4c998c486 I think the movement looks good overall but you open up quite a bit. That’s what’s going to set you up more vertically. And also your gaze is down. Keeping your head tilted down will affect body alignment here. One more wall drill I like to throw into the mix is the last progression from this video - loading up and then switching. link to this video
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@bottomhousevirginin r/Sprinting • Mentions

On “how’s my block start”

…You’re also forcing your head down to “stay low” but it’s compromising your posture and body angles. Try to maintain alignment and gradually rise. See how you’re already striking vertically by the 3rd step. Actively striking back and pushing will help you “stay low” while maintaining good angles. Some short and sweet videos for acceleration: - link to this video - link to this video…
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@bottomhousevirginin r/Sprinting • Mentions

On “How can I improve on the blocks and witch is the best”

I wouldn’t consciously try to keep your feet lower. It’s a byproduct of good acceleration mechanics and driving through the hips. Wall switches are really good to drill this. link to this video The last iteration of that drill is really nice to put it all together.
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@bottomhousevirginin r/Sprinting • Mentions

On “Block start”

I get what you’re trying to accomplish, but the combination of keeping the core engaged and keeping a relaxed straight spine seems counterintuitive. How do you engage the core but relax the spine. Sounds confusing. He’s too focused on staying low rather than extending through the hips. He comes out spinning his wheels instead of pushing back. Here’s a video on start mechanics that might be useful: link to this video And a video with wall drills for hip engagement: link to this video
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