The Stretch Shortening Cycle in Practice: A Five Stage Guide for Track and Field Coaches
Most coaches have seen it: the athlete who looks strong in the gym but feels slow on the track, or the jumper who can lift well yet seems to sink into the board and lose their pop. We often reach for more strength, more drills, more volume but sometimes the missing piece is not strength or effort, but spring. The stretch shortening cycle is the quiet engine behind sprinting, jumping and throwing, and it is easy to overlook because it happens in the split second where the body decides whether it will rebound or collapse.
The stretch shortening cycle is simply the rapid switch from absorbing force to producing force. A tendon and muscle unit lengthens under load, stores energy, and then releases it as the athlete pushes away. In running this happens every step. In jumps it happens throughout the approach, but is especially important in the penultimate stride and take off. In throws it appears in the fast sequencing of the legs, hips and trunk as the implement is delivered. When that switch is sharp and well timed, the athlete looks light and quick. When it is slow, they look heavy, even if they are very fit.
Stiffness, Speed, and Mobility
Coaches often talk about stiffness, and it can sound like a vague buzzword, but it is usually describing something you can see with your naked eye. Stiffness is the athlete’s ability to hold shape at the ankle, knee, hip and trunk so that forces travel cleanly into the ground and back out again. Tendons contribute by acting like springs that return energy quickly. Joints contribute by resisting collapse so the spring has something stable to work with. The best athletes are rarely stiff in the everyday sense. They are organised. They are strong enough to be supple, and coordinated enough to be quick.
Speed sits at the centre of the story because time is short. In sprinting and most take offs, there is not much opportunity to produce force. The athlete who can create and apply force quickly, with the right alignment, gets more out of each contact. That is why large countermovements and big dips can be counterproductive to good performance. They may feel powerful, but they often cost time, and time is the currency of fast running and elastic take offs. A good stretch shortening cycle looks like a small, controlled absorption and an immediate rebound.
This is also where functional movement matters in a practical coaching way. If the athlete lacks ankle range, they often struggle to strike the ground well and recoil cleanly. If they cannot control the trunk, force leaks into unwanted rotation or excessive forward lean. If they cannot hold single leg alignment, each step becomes a negotiation rather than a strike. Plyometrics, done too early or too hard, simply expose these gaps. Done at the right stage, they polish a system that already knows how to hold shape.
A gentle warning belongs here before I go further - “More Plyos” is not a plan. The aim is not to collect exercises but to build a progression that respects tissues and protects technique. When quality drops, the drill stops. When soreness becomes persistent, morning stiffness lingers, or an athlete begins to change their movement to avoid discomfort, the programme needs to step back. The best plyometric sessions often look underwhelming on paper because the coach is guarding quality like it is a rare resource, which it is.
For development coaches, the simplest way to teach this is as a ladder. You start by earning basic capacity and clean landings. You add isometrics to build tolerance and address early warning signs. You introduce low amplitude plyometrics to develop rhythm and stiffness without chasing height. You then increase speed through sprint exposures and more specific contacts. Finally, if the athlete is coping and mechanics stay sharp, you use higher intensity reactive work in small doses. This model is one way of keeping your athletes training and improving across their development years.
It is worth remembering that the stretch shortening cycle is not only about performance. Athletes who can absorb and rebound well tend to move with less waste, and that often means less strain in places that do not like being the backup plan, such as knees and lower backs.
Remember that your goal isn’t to make athletes “stiff” alone, but to make them springy, stable, and fast.
Stage 1: Start by Building Capacity
Stage 1 is where you earn the right to be elastic. Before you chase stiffness and speed, you build the basic capacity that lets an athlete absorb load without collapsing, and you teach the shapes that keep force travelling through the system rather than leaking out through noisy landings, soft ankles, or a wobbling trunk. For development athletes this is less about maximum numbers and more about consistent positions, steady progression, and tissues that can cope week after week.
A good Stage 1 block gives you three things. First, stronger calf and lower limb musculature so the ankle can behave like a spring rather than a shock absorber. Second, better single leg strength and control so running and take off positions hold under load. Third, reliable landing mechanics so the athlete can decelerate and re organise quickly, which is the start of every good stretch shortening cycle.
This stage suits almost every event group and can sit alongside technical work without stealing from it, provided you keep the emphasis on quality. The athlete should look tall through the hips, stable through the foot, and quiet on landing. If you hear slapping, see a deep sink, or notice the knee collapsing in, you have your coaching priorities for the week.
Training Ideas
Start with calf strength because the ankle is the front door of stiffness in sprinting and many jump actions. Loaded Standing Calf Raises bias the gastrocnemius and teach the athlete to produce force through a straight knee position that resembles running contacts. Seated Calf Raises bias the soleus, which contributes heavily to stiffness and endurance in repeated contacts. Both matter. The common error is bouncing through reps or letting the foot roll in and out. The athlete should move through a controlled range, press through the big toe area without gripping, and finish tall without the ankle wobbling. If you want a simple standard, the last rep should look identical to the first, just slower.
Split squats and rear foot elevated split squats are your workhorse for single leg capacity. They load the hip and knee in a way that transfers cleanly to sprint positions, take off shapes, and general robustness. You are not chasing a bodybuilding burn. You are coaching posture, alignment, and control. The knee should track over the toes, the pelvis should stay level, and the trunk should remain stacked rather than folding forward to escape the load. A slight forward lean can be fine if it is consistent and the athlete remains organised, but if the ribcage tips and the back takes over, you are no longer building what you think you are building.
Elevated Split Squat
Step ups are a quieter but very useful option, especially for younger athletes or those who struggle to control the bottom of a split squat. They encourage hip extension with a stable trunk and teach the athlete to push through the stance leg rather than launching off the back foot. Choose a box height that allows good alignment and a smooth drive. If the athlete’s knee collapses in or the pelvis drops, lower the box or slow the rep. This is good exercise for teaching athletes how to build the single leg shapes.
Trap Bar Deadlift
A squat pattern or trap bar deadlift pattern builds overall lower limb capacity and gives the athlete a stronger engine. The trap bar is often a sensible choice for development groups because it can be simpler to coach, distributes load well, and supports force production without demanding perfect barbell back squat mechanics on day one. The key is to keep the movement honest. The athlete should brace, maintain a neutral trunk, and move with control. Heavy work is valuable here, but heavy should never mean rushed technique. If the athlete cannot repeat the same posture for every rep, the load is too high for this stage.
Single Leg Step Off and Stick
Landing mechanics are the other half of Stage 1. The aim is to teach the athlete to absorb force with good alignment and minimal noise, and to hold enough stiffness that they do not sink and wobble. Snap down to stick landings are a simple start. The athlete moves from tall posture to a quick landing and holds. You are watching for quiet feet, knee tracking, stable pelvis, and a trunk that stays stacked. The hold matters. It builds ownership. Drop landings to hold are the next step, using a small height that challenges the athlete without forcing collapse. The coaching cue is simple: land soft and quiet, then stay still. If the athlete needs to take steps to regain balance, the dose is too high or the strength is not yet there, which is useful information, not a failure.
Single Leg Step Off and Stick progressions are valuable because running and most take offs are single leg problems. Use a low step at first. The athlete steps off, lands on one leg, holds, and resets. Here the foot is often the weak link. Watch for the arch collapsing, the ankle rolling in, or the knee diving inward. If that happens, the answer is usually not “try harder”. It is reducing height, slowing the landing, and adding foot control work until the athlete can maintain shape.
Short foot holds and controlled ankle pops are your small but important accessories. Short foot holds teach the athlete to create a stable arch without clawing the ground. You can coach this simply by having them spread the toes, then gently draw the ball of the foot towards the heel to lift the arch. It should look subtle, not like a cramp. Controlled ankle pops are a low level introduction to stiffness. Think of them as rehearsal, not plyometrics. The athlete stays tall and produces small, crisp rebounds without bending deeply at the knees.
To make this easy to apply, here is a clear menu of Stage 1 options a coach can choose from, depending on the athlete and the week.
For ankle and calf capacity, use standing calf raises, seated calf raises, and single leg calf raises with control. For single leg strength and alignment, use split squats, rear foot elevated split squats, and step ups. For whole body lower limb capacity, use a trap bar deadlift or a simple squat pattern. For landing and deceleration skill, use snap down to stick landings, low drop landings to hold, and single leg step off and stick. For foot control and stiffness rehearsal, use short foot holds, marching with short foot, and controlled ankle pops.
If you want a simple structure that fits most development squads, two strength based exposures a week and two short landing skill exposures is often enough. Strength work might include one calf exercise, one single leg strength exercise, and one whole body lift. Landing skill can be tucked into warm ups with very low volume, where the athlete stays fresh and you can coach positions.
Stage 2: Add in Isometrics
Stage 2 is the quiet work that keeps the spring healthy. If Stage 1 builds capacity and shape, Stage 2 helps the athlete tolerate load, hold position under stress, and keep training when tendons start to complain. Isometrics are not a magic fix, but they are a very practical coaching tool because they are simple to teach, they load the tendon and surrounding tissues in a controlled way, and they let you dial intensity without the chaos that sometimes comes with fast SSC work.
For development athletes, the main value of isometrics is twofold. First, they raise the athlete’s ability to handle repeated loading without losing alignment. Second, they give you a sensible lever when soreness spikes, training load increases, or the athlete is moving poorly but still needs some form of meaningful stimulus. In other words, isometrics often help you stay on track while you manage the bumps.
This stage is especially relevant for the Achilles and patellar tendon, which tend to be the usual suspects in running and jumping groups. The coaching aim is not to chase fatigue. It is to create a strong, steady effort in a joint angle that matches sport demands, without wobbling, cheating, or pain escalation.
A simple rule is that the hold should look calm. If the athlete shakes violently, grimaces, or shifts their hips and feet to survive the time, the load is probably too high or the position is too ambitious. Another useful rule is that discomfort should not climb across sets. A mild ache that settles quickly is often acceptable. Pain that builds, lingers into the next day, or changes mechanics on the track is not.
Calf isometrics are your first stop for athletes who struggle to hold ankle stiffness or report Achilles tightness. A mid range calf isometric against a wall is an excellent entry point. The athlete stands tall, foot flat, heel slightly raised, and presses into the ground as if trying to rise higher without actually moving. You want the ankle stable and the foot quiet, with the pressure spread and the arch supported, not clawed. If the athlete rolls in through the ankle or the heel drops, the stimulus shifts away from what you want. As the athlete progresses, you can move to a loaded calf raise hold. This is the same idea but with external load, held at a mid range height where the athlete can stay rock solid.
The single leg calf isometric hold off a step adds specificity and control, but it also increases demand, so it should be earned. The athlete holds on one leg with the heel raised to a mid range position. You are looking for a straight line from knee to toes, no ankle wobble, and a pelvis that stays level. Many athletes will try to rotate the hip or let the knee drift to find an easier spot. Your job is to keep it honest and reduce the intensity until the shape is stable.
For the knee and patellar tendon, the Spanish squat hold is a staple because it loads the quadriceps and patellar tendon with a stable torso and a clear joint angle. The athlete sits back into a squat position supported by a strap behind the knees, keeping the torso upright. You can coach this as a position that should feel like strong pressure through the thighs, not like a collapsing knee. Watch for heels lifting, feet turning out excessively, or the athlete folding forward. The more upright and organised they stay, the more consistent the tendon loading tends to be.
Isometric Calf Raise
The isometric split squat hold at mid range is a useful bridge between Stage 1 and more dynamic work. It looks like a lunge position held with the front knee around mid range bend. This is where you coach alignment and force through the ground. The knee should track over the toes, the pelvis should stay level, and the trunk should remain stacked. It is a very honest exercise because the athlete cannot hide poor stability once the seconds start ticking. Start with bodyweight. Add load only when the athlete can hold without shifting.
Spanish Squat (Isometric Hold)
Isometric Knee Extension
Wall sit variations are the simple, accessible option that most groups can do safely and consistently. They are not glamorous, but they can be effective when you need a predictable knee loading option, especially in team settings. The key is the knee angle. A deeper wall sit is harder but not always better. Mid range angles often suit tendon loading and allow better quality. Encourage a tall torso, even pressure through both feet, and steady breathing. If one knee dives inward, bring the feet closer or reduce depth.
Isometrics can sit on strength days as a primer, they can be used on lighter days as a tendon friendly stimulus, and they can be a temporary swap when plyometrics or sprint volumes are rising. They work best when the athlete still trains and moves well around them, rather than replacing everything.
Training Ideas
For Achilles and ankle stiffness support, use a wall based mid range calf isometric, then progress to a loaded calf raise hold, then to a single leg calf hold off a step.
For patellar tendon and knee capacity, use Spanish squat holds and wall sits, and progress to split squat isometric holds for more single leg specificity.
For athletes who need both, pair a calf isometric with a knee isometric in the same session, keeping total work sensible.
Stage 3: Simple Plyometrics
Pogos
Ankle Bounces
For development athletes, low level plyometrics are best understood as coordination training with a tendon bonus. You are teaching the athlete to meet the ground with pre tension, hold posture, and ‘reverse’ quickly. The goal is short contact time with a small, controlled bend, not a deep dip. When you get it right, the athlete looks light. When you get it wrong, they look loud and sinky, and the drill becomes a conditioning exercise rather than a stiffness exercise.
A simple coaching filter works well here. The contacts should be quiet and the athlete should stay tall through the hips. The feet should land under the body, not out in front. The bounce should look like it is coming from the ankle and the whole system, not from a big knee bend. If you see the knees collapsing in, the heels slapping, or the trunk folding, reduce amplitude, slow the rhythm, or step back to Stage 1 and 2 work.
Training Ideas
Pogos are the classic entry point because they are easy to organise and easy to coach. The athlete stays tall, legs relatively straight but not locked, and bounces lightly using the ankle as the main spring. The mistake is turning it into mini squats. You want minimal knee travel, quick contacts, and a steady rhythm. A useful cue is to imagine the athlete is bouncing on hot ground. They should be off it quickly without rushing the posture.
Fast Ladder Drills
Ankle Bounces are similar but even smaller, and they are excellent for athletes who struggle with control or are new to plyometric work. Think of them as stiffness rehearsal. The athlete aims for crisp, tiny rebounds and maintains a calm upper body. It often helps to place hands on hips and keep eyes forward to reduce unnecessary movement.
Line hops or Fast Ladder Drills are the simplest way to introduce quick contacts and lateral stability.
Rope skipping is a surprisingly useful tool because it gives natural rhythm and constraints. It is also a good option when space is limited. For development athletes, short bouts of skipping can build lower leg endurance and stiffness without the impact of higher intensity jumping. The technique matters. Encourage quiet contacts, tall hips, and minimal knee lift. If the athlete is noisy or drifting, reduce speed and rebuild rhythm.
Low Hurdle Jumps with Stick
Fast skipping variations sit nicely here because they resemble running rhythms and reinforce stiffness in a way that coaches can link directly to sprint mechanics. Fast A skip style patterns work well if the athlete can keep posture and avoid over reaching. The cue is to strike down under the hips with a quick rebound, not to lift high and hang in the air. You can also use quick skips for height if the athlete stays tall and lands quietly, but the emphasis remains on speed of contact rather than height of the jump.
Linear Hurdle Hops
Mini hurdle quick steps introduce stiffness and rhythm with a clear visual target. Set hurdles low. The athlete runs or skips through with quick contacts and stable hips, keeping the feet under the body. The common mistake is reaching for the hurdle, which creates braking and longer contact. The best mini hurdle work looks like the athlete is stepping down quickly rather than stepping over.
Low Hurdle Jumps with a stick and then a small rebound are a useful bridge between landing mechanics and continuous plyometrics. Start with jump, land, hold. This tests alignment and deceleration. When that is consistent, progress to jump, land, small rebound, land, hold. You are teaching the athlete that they can absorb and then redirect without losing shape. Keep heights low and the number of efforts small. Quality is the entire point.
Low Bounds with Mini Bounce
Low amplitude hops in place, both double leg and single leg, help you build event relevant stiffness without much travel. For a sprinter, they reinforce ankle stiffness and rhythm. For a jumper, they start to build single leg tolerance and take off organisation. For throws, they can support general elastic capacity and coordination without turning into a jump programme. The key is always the same: small amplitude, quick contact, stable posture.
Low Bounds over 10 to 20 metres are where the exercises begin to feel more like athletics rather than general fitness. This is still Stage 3, so the bounds should be controlled and submaximal with a focus on rhythm over distance. Encourage tall hips, stable trunk, and foot strike under the body. If the athlete over strides, they brake and sink. If they stay under and keep rhythm, the bounds become a clean bridge into Stage 4, where speed and specificity increase.
In practice, Stage 3 works best when it is short and frequent. It fits well in warm ups or early in a session when the athlete is fresh. It is also one of the easiest stages to overdo because it feels harmless. The tendon does not always agree. Keep contact counts sensible, choose only a few drills per session, and stop when the bounce loses its snap.
Stage 4: Speed and Specificity
Wicket runs
Stage 4 is where you start to match the speed and direction of forces seen in track and field. The aim is to keep the good shapes from Stages 1 to 3, but under faster contacts and more event like patterns. This stage tends to work best with low volumes, full recovery, and a clear focus on quality. If posture fades or contacts get loud, you reduce the demand rather than pushing through.
Long Jump A-Drill
For running based events, accelerations over 10 to 30 metres are a straightforward way to increase stiffness and rate of force application without long exposure. Keep recoveries generous so each effort is clean. Gentle hill accelerations can be useful for development athletes because they often reduce over striding and encourage better force direction, but the volume should stay low and the intent should remain controlled. Flying runs over 10 to 20 metres introduce higher speed contact demands. They should be introduced carefully, with long recoveries and an emphasis on relaxed posture and sound mechanics. Wicket Runs can sit alongside these sessions to support rhythm and foot placement, provided athletes do not reach for the wickets or lose posture.
Straight Leg Bounds
For jumpers, this stage is about transferring elastic qualities into approach and take off patterns. Straight Leg Bounds and alternating bounds can help build horizontal stiffness and rhythm when they are done with tall hips and foot strike under the body. Single leg hops over distance move closer to take off demands, but they should stay submaximal until the athlete shows consistent alignment and good landing control. Long jump penultimate drills and pop ups are useful here because they train the change in posture and stiffness leading into take off without the full cost of maximal jumps. Triple jump rhythm drills can be introduced with short run ups to protect quality while reinforcing timing and positions. Short approach take offs for high jump allow the athlete to practise take off stiffness and posture without the fatigue and errors that come with longer approaches.
For throws, the same principles apply, but the expression is different. Medicine ball throws are a practical way to develop speed of sequencing and force transfer through the legs, hips, trunk, and arms. The focus is on a clear order of movement and stable posture, rather than chasing maximal distance. Simple patterns such as scoop throws, chest passes, overhead throws, and rotational throws can be progressed by adding a step, then a small shuffle, then a more event like rhythm, as long as control remains.
In this stage, coaches usually get better results by choosing fewer exercises and doing them well. One speed exposure and one bounding or event drill exposure in a week is often enough for development athletes, especially when combined with ongoing strength work.
Stage 5: High Intensity Reactive Exercises
Stage 5 is high intensity reactive work. The contacts are shorter, the forces are higher, and small technical faults tend to show up quickly. This stage is usually a small piece of a programme rather than a main focus, especially for development athletes. The main job for the coach is to protect quality and manage load. You keep volumes low, give full recovery, and stop early if the athlete becomes noisy, sinks into contacts, or loses posture.
Drop Jump
Drop Jump progressions are a common entry point because they teach rapid absorption and reversal. They start with stepping off a low box, landing well, and then adding a controlled rebound once the athlete can hold alignment. The height stays modest and the goal is a quick, clean contact rather than a high jump. Depth jumps, where the athlete drops and immediately jumps for height or distance, should only appear when the athlete has strong landing mechanics, solid lower limb capacity, and a good history of tolerating plyometric loads. For many development athletes, depth drops with a small rebound are enough training stimulus for a long time.
Hurdle hops with rapid contacts and continuous higher intensity bounds add repeated reactive contacts. They can be useful, but they are demanding, and they need careful spacing in the week. The emphasis remains on tall posture, foot strike under the body, and consistent rhythm. When athletes chase distance or height, they often reach, brake, and lose the elastic quality you are trying to develop. Single leg reactive hops can be valuable for jumpers and sprinters, but only with strict quality. You keep the amplitude low at first and look for stable foot, knee tracking, and a quiet landing.
For speed work, max velocity sessions can be paired with a very low dose of reactive contacts when the athlete is coping well. This might mean a few short sets of hurdle hops or small rebound contacts after sprinting, but only if mechanics remain sharp and the athlete is recovering well between sessions. If you see posture changes in the sprints, you remove the extra reactive work rather than pushing through.
For jumpers, short approach take offs at higher intent sit well in this stage because they allow high quality take off contacts with manageable total load. The coach focus is consistent approach rhythm, a stable penultimate, and a clean take off shape. Volumes stay low and you avoid turning the session into repeated maximal jumping when the athlete cannot hold positions.
For throwers, near competition rhythm delivery work can be used to practise sequencing and rapid force transfer under higher intent.
