TROUBLESHOOTING

ISSUE: NOT LANDING ON THE BALL OF THE FOOT

The ability to land on the ball of the foot is a product of basic calf strength. If you cannot do a full calf rise then you will not be able to land on your toe and lower yourself with any control. The tendency is then to land flat-footed.

Learn to land on the tiptoes, FIX using the calf and foot.

Stand on the foot to be EXERCISE worked, with a stretch band around both knees. With your hands on your hips, rise up onto full tiptoe on one foot. Hold the position. Hop on the ball of the foot in the full tiptoe position without dropping through the foot. Key point: you need to stay high on your tiptoes or ball of your foot (think ballerina). Have your trainers on for this one, as it can be sore. Repeat 12-20 times for three sets. It is tough to start with and cramp in the calf is common. Do as many reps as you can before you lose form.

ISSUE: NOISE ON IMPACT

Noisy hops shows poor deceleration and impact absorption. You need to work on the ability to absorb the force with your calf and foot muscles and maintain good ‘knee over foot’ form.

Learn to land on the toes and FIX roll through the foot.

Stand on the foot to be EXERCISE worked, with a stretch band around both knees. This time, hop and then roll through the foot so your heel touches, before driving back up off the floor. The idea is to keep the knee over the foot throughout the hopping and to ensure you land on the ball of the foot before lowering through the foot, with control. Key point: the aim is to be as quiet as possible by controlling the impact. Repeat 12-25 times for three sets, if you can. You can make each of these tougher by having the band under increased tension while hopping.