Ok guys…as ive stated before, i am a soccer player and not a track competitor. That being said, i still place the main focus of my off season on speed improvement. Since im a soccer player, ive never really believed that it was important for me to focus on the start of a sprint, rather i focus on improving acceleration from a jogging start and also on improving MaxV.
I have never used the starting blocks before but im going to start using them some just for the heck of it and i dont really know which foot should be placed in the front block. I am right footed and i kick a soccer ball best with my right foot. I feel like my right leg is a little stronger than my left leg. So, based on this info which on of my feet would be placed in the front block that is closest to the starting line.
Also, based on the info i have given you, which foot would you suggest i place in the front for a 3-point stance? I know that Maurice Greene places his right block forward, but i have seen him doing sprints from a 3 point stance and when doing sprints from a 3 point stance, Maurice has his left foot forward (and his left arm back) at the set position. Whats up with this?, and which one of my feet should be placed forward when starting from a 3 point stance? (Again…im right footed and i believe that my right leg is a little stronger than my left leg)
There are a number of different tests and methods that coaches use to figure this out, but perhaps the most important one is: which way to you feel most comfortable?
If you are so new to starts that you can’t even answer that, then try this: Stand with your feet together. Have someone stand behind you and give you a quick firm push so that you lose your balance forward. You will need to step out with one leg in order to regain your balance. Which ever leg you step out with, that is the one you should put in the BACK block.
BTW, have fun with your starts, but from a training-for-soccer perspective, you would probably gain more from doing lying starts instead of worrying about the technical nuances of block starts.
if your right is stronger then that one is forward. Heres a simple way to figure out your blocks(general not specific) count two pigeon steps for your forward foot and three pegeon steps for the back foot. You want to push out as hard as possible driving useing big movements since little ones rise you quicker, so driving hard as far as you can will attomatically stay down longer, you do not want to be hunched over a nice 45 angle is optimal.
Another option is to answer this question. If you had to kick a soccer ball as far and hard as you could, what foot would you strike the ball with? Try that foot in the back (swing leg) and put the other in the front (stance or support leg). One wants to go and the other wants to stay and support the body. Rudimentary but sometimes effective.
If you are so new to starts that you can’t even answer that, then try this: Stand with your feet together. Have someone stand behind you and give you a quick firm push so that you lose your balance forward. You will need to step out with one leg in order to regain your balance. Which ever leg you step out with, that is the one you should put in the BACK block.
Hornblower says:
I was always told to fall forwards and see which leg you bring forwards to stop yourself from hitting the ground. that one goes in front…
The leg that you bring forward to stop yourself from falling is the one that is a natural to put in the back block because it is the one you need to drive forward first when the gun fires (this is the “quick leg”). The one that stays on the ground is your support leg and that one stays in the blocks longer, hence it should be the front foot.
As far as the kicking test. It would make sense to me that the leg you kick with would be the back leg and the leg you plant would be front (for the same reasons as above). However, personally I kick better with my left foot yet that is my front foot during starts…go figure?!?
I’m with you, XLR8, not Hornblower. The majority of people are right-handed and right-footed. Yet most have their left foot forward in the blocks. I think this is because the left foot is the natural plant (pushing) foot for righties, whether kicking a ball or jumping, while the right leg is the swing leg.
dudes i would have to say your wrong about putting your dominant foot back, why would you want your slower reacting leg to be the one that gets you out of the blocks? And since this is not a single motion of simply pushing one time the amount of support that you (weak) lead leg gives you is not nearly as vital as the power you would generate from the power foot being forward.