A-March
The A-March teaches the core positions of the sprint cycle at a pace slow enough to own them. It grooves tall posture, an aggressive knee lift with a dorsiflexed ankle, and an active downward strike beneath the center of mass. Use it early in a warm-up before running fast, and as the entry point before progressing to the A-Skip and A-Run.
- Equipment
- Body Weight
- Type
- Cardio, Functional
- Browse by muscle
- Rectus Femoris, Tibialis Anterior
- Browse by movement
- Gait Drill
- Target
- Rectus Femoris, Tibialis Anterior
- Secondary
- Gluteus Maximus, Biceps Femoris, Semitendinosus
- Tertiary
- Gastrocnemius Lateral Head, Gastrocnemius Medial Head, Upper Rectus Abdominals, Abdominal External Oblique, Erector Spinae
How to do it
- 1
Stand tall with a slight forward lean from the ankles, arms bent to ninety degrees.
- 2
March forward by driving one knee up to roughly hip height while pulling the toes up toward the shin.
- 3
Keep the stance leg long and the hips tall; do not let the pelvis collapse or the chest fall.
- 4
Strike the ground actively with the ball of the foot directly under your hip, not out in front.
- 5
Drive the opposite knee up as the first foot lands, matching arm swing to leg action.
- 6
Continue for the prescribed distance, staying rhythmic and controlled rather than fast.
Tips
- Think 'knee up, toe up, foot down' as a three-count for every step.
- Keep the ankle locked and dorsiflexed; a floppy, plantarflexed foot is the most common fault.
- Stay stacked over your hips; reaching the foot out in front turns the drill into braking.
- Match arm and leg cadence so the drill rehearses whole-body sprint timing.
Variations
Common mistakes
- The lean comes from the waist rather than the ankles, so the chest drops in front of the hips and the driving knee has nowhere to go.
- The stance leg bends and the hips sink a little lower with each step, which turns the drill into a walking lunge and loses the tall position it exists to teach.
- The march speeds up until it is a jog with high knees, which hides every fault the slow pace was there to show you.
- The foot gets placed on the ground rather than driven into it, so what you rehearse is a soft landing instead of the quick strike the drill is about.
- Arms creep up past the chin and the elbows open out of their right angle, so the arm action stops resembling anything you would do at speed.
Frequently asked
- How many A-marches should a beginner do, and over what distance?
- Count steps rather than meters: 10 to 12 knee drives per leg, twice through, is a full dose and covers about 15 meters each time. It goes after easy jogging and before anything involving a hop or a sprint. Three times a week is fine, because the limit here is concentration rather than fitness. Once the steps look the same without you thinking about them, move on to the A-skip rather than marching further.
- How do I make the A-march easier or harder?
- Easier: do it on the spot without traveling, or hold a wall or a pole so balance is not part of the task, and slow the count until knee up, toe up, and foot down are three separate beats. Harder: pause for a second at the top of each knee drive, then move on to the A-skip, which adds a hop between steps, and later the A-run. Ankle weights are the one thing to leave alone, since anything heavy on the foot ruins the quick strike you are building.
- What is the A-march for, and when is it not worth doing?
- It is the entry point to the whole A-series: tall hips, a knee to hip height, a cocked ankle, and a foot that lands underneath you, all at walking pace. Because there is no flight phase, nothing punishes a clumsy landing, which is exactly why it is the right place to learn the shape. Runners and field-sport athletes use it before fast work. If you already skip cleanly it has little left to teach you, and it was never conditioning or strength work, so it will not stand in for either.
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