Takeoff foot

[scubastevesgirly]

I could swear that I once heard that you want to use your whole foot on your takeoff step. My coach is saying to jump off my toes...which feels really weird to me (maybe I have weak ankles or something)

...so full foot or toes?

[fong520]

toes.. the higher ur take off point the better.. are u higher on ur toes, or when ur feet is flat on the ground?..
personally i take off on the balls of my feet.. i dont think my heels actually ever touch the ground except for the 1st 2 steps, which is a suprise to me cause im a distance runner too ha..

[Vault Old School]

Fong is right, always be at least on the balls of your feet whether sprinting or jumping. Never be on your toes. Anytime your toes contact the ground before any other part of your foot you will be slowing down. This is because your toes can't be used effectively as a lever. This is a big reason why so many people contract shin splints when they sprint or jump. However, if you contact the ground directly underneath the big toe first then you have an efficient and effective biomechanical lever. That is of course if your leg happens to be underneath or a bit behind your center of mass. If it is in front of your center of mass then you will be effectively blocking any forward or upward motion that you might be trying to achieve whether it be sprinting or jumping. Taking off with your whole foot won't really hurt you significantly as long as it is underneath your COM. Hope that helps.

[scubastevesgirly]

sorry...i guess i didn't mean toes in the literal sense...just front foot only vs whole foot contact.

[izzystikchik]

Actually its funny that you should bring that up. I remember when I was at a couple at camps they were discussing this.

The last 2 steps are quick and explosive. They are very similar to a lay up, because you are no longer sprinting forward, but are preparing to jump so your whole will make contact, not at the same time, but more like rolling from your heel up to the balls of your feet.

Think of a basket ball player when they go up for a lay-up. They don't just run off their toes, they speed dribble towards the hoop and then its BOOM-BOOM!! Right off their feet!

[ryansanta]

Read a little on the long jump. In the second to last step (penultimate) there should be a lowering center of gravity. This is minimal compared to a long jumper who you can see dip down dramatically, however it should be there setting up the jump on the final step. To achieve this you should first contact the ground with the bottem of your foot/heel. I don't know exactly how to explain it, but its like a roll from the back portion of your foot to the front. It should be practiced, but in a full run no speed will be lost and you will have a lower center of gravity.

[souleman]

What I think your coach is talkng about is by taking off on the ball of your foot you will be in the best position to form the backward C as is what is perscribed in the 6.40 model. You will notice in the pictures from the link that I'll include, that the vaulter is creating a backward C at take off. You can not take off with a free take off or pre jump and create that backward C unless your take off foot is under or slightly behind and under your body. Therefore, to do that take off correctly, it can't be done flat footed in any way. A flat footed or heel first take off can only be done if the vaulter is under and there are a gazillion entries about the ineffectiveness of being under in this forum. The thread I started (where I got this link from) about the Jan Johnson drill, and the ones about the free take off and pre jump, address the take off very well. What I have found is "when in doubt, always refer to the 6.40 model" . Check this link out and see what I mean. ..........Later...........Mike
http://advantageathletics.com/2005/?page_id=138

[ladyvolspvcoach]

If you hit flat footed or if you roll from you heel to toe you are reaching with your last step (at least), lowering your center of gravity and slowing down and destroying your take off! You want to be as "tall" as possible on your last three steps and as quick as possible to be able to jump as high as possible. Your coach should be able to see seperation between your right knee (driven high) and your take off leg. Just a little comment!

[VaultMarq26]

ryansanta brings up a good point about the parallels with long jump.....the last step should be almost pawing a the takeoff board. Doing this made a big difference in my LJ...i have not yet tried to do it in PV though

[AVC Coach]

I remember reading about USA's three 2004 Olympic long jumpers averaging a take-off foot a whopping 50 cm. in front of their center of gravity. How can we use this info toward the pole vault?

[ashcraftpv]

I recently attended the USATF Level 1 coaches school, and they say that the appropiate takeoff in the long/triple jump is with the foot dorsi-flexed (toe up) with a rolling from the heel to the ball of the foot. This is accompanied by a lowering of the center of gravity on the prior step, so the center of gravity is already rising at take off. The dorsi-flexion of the foot creates a more powerful jump due to the extra stretching of the calf at the moment of takeoff. (i don't remember the scientific term for it). I'm not sure if that sort of takeoff is completely appropriate for the vault, but it makes sense for the horizontal jumps.

[VaultMarq26]

I recently attended the USATF Level 1 coaches school, and they say that the appropiate takeoff in the long/triple jump is with the foot dorsi-flexed (toe up) with a rolling from the heel to the ball of the foot. This is accompanied by a lowering of the center of gravity on the prior step, so the center of gravity is already rising at take off. The dorsi-flexion of the foot creates a more powerful jump due to the extra stretching of the calf at the moment of takeoff. (i don't remember the scientific term for it). I'm not sure if that sort of takeoff is completely appropriate for the vault, but it makes sense for the horizontal jumps.

It is part of the stretch shortening cycle.....store up energy in the series elastic components and releases it.....it is different than the stretch reflex...but the idea is close