Walk-on Jumper

You'll need to be pretty strong to do it, make sure you get a good weights and plyometrics base this fall. Once you jump 38 feet, you certainly can ask- if the team is thin in that event they might relax their policy. Unless that policy specifically excludes seniors, go ahead and walk on your senior year if you want to.

(I worked with a jumper this summer who is in a similar situation: she went 34 feet in high school and is hoping to jump around 39 feet and compete as a sophomore for a Big 12 school.)

Good luck!

Thank you ! So far I do weights and plyos mon -tues and weds morning and sometimes weekends. And i'm running 4 miles to keep in shape anywhere from 1 or more times a week. Should I be sticking to a more strict schedule? Would I be able to walk on mid Season maybe in time for outdoor?

I can't speak for your coach, but as I said before once you've jumped 38 feet in competition there's no harm in asking.

You do need a stricter training schedule. Your training program does not have sufficient neural stimulus to take you from 34 - 38 feet, and you do not have the correct hard/easy design that will let you progress without injury. Other coaches can feel free to chime in here, but here's an example of a training program for a beginner/developmental college jumper like you:

M - Sprints

T - Plyos and weights

W - Recovery (tempo run, swim, calisthenics, etc.)

Th - Sprints

F - Plyos and Weights

S - Recovery (See Wednesday)

Su- Rest

Ditch the 4 mile runs and do 4x300's instead.

At this time of the season, a bit more strength/acceleration based work is what you should probably consider.

M- accels/short bounds on grass, med ball throws, olympic lift

T- depending on energy system, intensity, volume: 10x100, 8x150, 6x200, 4x300, strength circuit

W- active recovery, stretch, foam roll

T- accels/bounds on grass, med ball throws, olympic lift

F- strength circuit, body building

S- either strength circuit, or above running, recovery mobility

S- off

Question, did you only jump in HS or do you have a reasonable 100 or 200 time?

The above schedules sound fine but I would make two changes.

First, really think about what day of the week is the best to take off. My guess is that there is a reason why you currently run M,T,W and not on Thursday and so on. You can slide either of those schedules around to place the rest day on any day of the week that will best fit the rest of your life.

Second, I would change, "either strength circuit, or above running, recovery mobility" to good dynamic warmup, 8 x 200 in 150% of max 200 time, (so if you can run 200 m in 28 seconds, you want to run slow 200s in 42 seconds, no faster) 100 m jog/walk in the same time, recovery mobility.

Yes my 100 and 200 times were reasonable . Don't remember the times exactly but I was in the 4x200 team so I believe it was around a 26-28.

So you are at a JR. College now?? Which one? Why would you join a club for indoor season?? Are you saying your school does not have track? Are you transferring in January?? Who are you walking on with??

It seems you may also have been asking whether it is reasonable to expect to jump 38 feet by the outdoor season or even by next season. That kind of thing is hard to predict for lots of reasons, but if there were no chance we coaches would not be bothering to give you training programs!

Raw speed is a very good predictor of how far you can jump: We have a young lady in our training group who is barely 5 feet tall and has a 200PR of 26.5 and she jumped over 19 and 40 last year as a high school junior.

Just remember that even doing a strict training program and having some speed will not get you to 38 feet if you do not also have sound jumping technique. Having a knowledgeable athlete or coach watch you is best, but getting someone to video you and comparing it to good jumpers on Youtube can work.

Yes i'm currently a junior LSU. I want to walk on to the LSU team but my mark is only a 34 and I missed the try out for this season due to a groin strain

Yea i'm also working on breaking it down and improving my technique