# Jumping while running vs jump on the spot **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 9, 2007, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074 "2007-08-09T22:40:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![rocksolid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@rocksolid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocksolid)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2007, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/1 "2007-08-09T22:40:09Z")
Which is the best way to achieve maximum height when jumping - running or jumping from stationary? When stationary, i would have thought it easier to squat more and therefore get more ‘spring’ value from the legs, i.e. using the full travel distance of the leg muscles and thus creating maximum upwards thrust. However i’m wondering if any of the horizontal momentum gets transferred into upward thrust when jumping while running or does it just stay as horizontal momentum adding distance to your jump? I know it’s easy to experiment - i have and it seems like six and half a dozen to me. I’m interested in the theory though, in principle is one way better than the other? Do others find both methods about the same for them? Is there a method to learning to jump higher? I have googled this but any relevant results wanted 200 bucks for their ‘secret system’. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2007, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/2 "2007-08-09T22:51:30Z")
As I understand it, olympic high jumpers run and jump not because the forward moment converts into upward momentum, but rather because it helps them twist their body into the right shape for clearing the bar. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/3 "2007-08-10T00:03:14Z")
Pole vaulters would have trouble doing it from a standing start - I see no reason why the components of the body can’t do a similar sort of thing - planting your legs and levering your weight over the top of them, or somthing like that ---
**Author:** ![rocksolid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@rocksolid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocksolid)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/4 "2007-08-10T00:27:59Z")
I think you are right about high jumpers, that’s why i didn’t assume that was the best way to get height because they \*need \* the forward momentum, if for no other reason than to clear the bar. Pole vaulting i don’t think is a good comparison to the human body. The way i see it is the forward momentum here is converted to upwards thrust through the pivot and flex of the pole. I can’t see how this relates to what happens to the human body although maybe i’m missing your point? _ETA - Actually, now i think about it, i do see what you mean. Like imagining the lower part of the leg as the pole and planting the foot is like the pole being planted in the socket (or whatever it’s called). So maybe the way to get more height is to get as low as possible with the lower leg as horizontal as possible emulating the pole vaulter?_ ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/5 "2007-08-10T00:40:01Z")
Don’t forget about the postures used by [long jumpers](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXRKzhBYmWg), who first must run before planting to jump. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/6 "2007-08-10T01:03:20Z")
For the simple answer, look at the Olympic records. A century ago, they had events for both standing and running jumps. **1900:** _Long Jump:_ Regular: 7.175 m Standing: 3.30 m _High Jump:_ Regular: 1.9 m Standing: 1.655 m **1904** _Long Jump_ Regular: 7.34 m Standing: 3.47 m _High Jump_ Regular: 1.80 m Standing: 1.60 m The standing records (all held by one man, BTW, Ray Ewry, who totaled 8 gold medals in three olympics) are consistently shorter than the running ones. The high jump is closer, but the long jump is no conest. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/7 "2007-08-10T01:07:10Z")
[QUOTE=RealityChuck] The standing records (all held by one man, BTW, Ray Ewry, who totaled 8 gold medals in three olympics) are consistently shorter than the running ones. [/QUOTE] That’s nice, but the OP is looking for maximum _height_. Those records (excepting the high jump) are _distances_. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/8 "2007-08-10T01:16:36Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] That’s nice, but the OP is looking for maximum _height_. Those records (excepting the high jump) are _distances_. [/QUOTE] Buh?! Do you even know what you are talking about? The long jump is measured by meters horizontal, the [high jump](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4yhE5KEPq0) is measured by meters vertical. (You know, distance traveled either up or forwards?) He gave records for both long and high jumps. What do you even mean? The post you quoted is perfectly cromulent. Check out this [high jump](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NucX4wrN_bU) video, it’s got a long start, but it does show several jumps eventually. Notice the posture on the freeze frame at the very start of the video? That is a classic high jump technique. ---
**Author:** ![rocksolid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@rocksolid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocksolid)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/9 "2007-08-10T01:21:05Z")
Well there you go, i had no idea such an event had ever existed, thanks **RealityChuck**. However, as QED says, i’m not interested in distance, i think long jump is a no brainer. I’m also dubious (though not entirely dismissive) about the relevance of high jump as it involves horizontal travel to clear the bar which may be clouding the issue. For the purposes of the OP, probably best to think about it in terms of simply trying to hit a suspended object with your hand or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/10 "2007-08-10T01:23:48Z")
[QUOTE=Zabali\_Clawbane] The long jump is measured by meters horizontal, the [high jump](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4yhE5KEPq0) is measured by meters vertical. (You know, distance traveled either up or forwards?) [/QUOTE] No shit, Sherlock. That’s what I said (you know what “excepting” means, right?). The long jump figures have no bearing on the OP; I have no issue with the high jump figures, since that’s what the OP is asking about. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/11 "2007-08-10T01:24:44Z")
You asked about running vs. standing in one place with regards to running. **RealityChuck** ’s post is very informative because it posts stats contrasting the two techniques. Perhaps you had better clarify and rephrase your question if you don’t feel that post answers it? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/12 "2007-08-10T01:26:27Z")
[QUOTE=Zabali\_Clawbane] You asked about running vs. standing in one place with regards to running. [/QUOTE] No. Let’s review: > [@The OP](#): > > Which is the best way to achieve maximum **height** when jumping - running or jumping from stationary? Get it now? ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/13 "2007-08-10T01:27:50Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] No shit, Sherlock. That’s what I said (you know what “excepting” means, right?). The long jump figures have no bearing on the OP; I have no issue with the high jump figures, since that’s what the OP is asking about. [/QUOTE] They asked about jumping, period. They didn’t specify traveling up, or forwards. In fact, their question seemed to imply they were interested in _both_ up or forwards since they mention running and how that can boost the jump. If they didn’t mean long jump, they should have specified. And as what they are saying now, why did the even mention running in the first place, if all they are interested in is standing in one spot to jump? The whole OP strikes me as very poorly thought out. I think **rocksolid** needs to clarify. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/14 "2007-08-10T01:30:05Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] No. Let’s review: Get it now? [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=rocksolid] However i’m wondering if any of the horizontal momentum gets transferred into upward thrust when jumping while running or does it just stay as horizontal momentum adding distance to your jump? [/QUOTE] There’s also this. And, as has been pointed out, for high jump you must also run to get the best results. The bar is the best way to meausure height, if it falls then you know the person didn’t clear the height, some part of their body didn’t go that high. So, clearing the bar is pertinent. ETA: And if you look at long jumpers you see they also travel in an upwards arc as well. So, good forwards momentum is necessary for best height whether it’s long jump or high jump. (Though it’s most noticeable for high jump.) ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/15 "2007-08-10T01:35:52Z")
[QUOTE=rocksolid] For the purposes of the OP, probably best to think about it in terms of simply trying to hit a suspended object with your hand or something like that. [/QUOTE] Why don’t you test it? Stand flat footed under a basketball backboard. Jump straight up and touch the backboard. Mark the spot. A little chalk on your hands will help. Then do the same running. See which is higher. I suspect you can jump higher if you run up. Here’s a wiki article. [Vertical jump - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_jump) It addresses the issue indirectly. > [@](#): > > **Common misconceptions about vertical jump.** > > The most common misconception about vertical jump is that the measurement displays the athlete’s ability to elevate off the ground from a run-up, contrary to from a standstill. The effect of this misconception is that many athletes will quite grossly inflate their vertical jumps. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/16 "2007-08-10T01:36:43Z")
In fact, I do believe that for standing high jump you must also clear the bar. (I am not positive how **RealityChuck** ’s event was run, not having seen it, but I bet it was like my experience.) While in track (I did long jump) we also trained for standing high jump and had to clear the bar. So, you won’t get away from the bar, r **ocksolid**. 😉 How else are they going to get a true meausure? The jump is too fast otherwise, the bar is the best way. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/17 "2007-08-10T01:43:53Z")
[Standing high jump](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=re2uLRmhVQk). Yes, they use the bar to measure for it. Notice how much lower it is for a standing jump? One girl on my team could standing jump her height, which was considered remarkable, (for High School) since she was five feet eleven inches tall. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/18 "2007-08-10T01:51:33Z")
[QUOTE=rocksolid] Well there you go, i had no idea such an event had ever existed, thanks **RealityChuck**. [/QUOTE] It was discontinued after WWI. There also was a standing hop, step, and jump (or triple jump as they call it now). Ray Ewry was the master of the technique, winning 8 gold medals (and two more in 1908, which isn’t officially recognized any more) – probably all the events where there was a standing jump. > [@](#): > > However, as QED says, i’m not interested in distance, i think long jump is a no brainer. I’m also dubious (though not entirely dismissive) about the relevance of high jump as it involves horizontal travel to clear the bar which may be clouding the issue. But both versions of the high jump were doing the same thing: clearing a height. The fact that the running version could consistently get 0.2+ m higher indicates that the extra momentum comes into play. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/19 "2007-08-10T01:56:03Z")
I don’t think there is a sport that involves jumping up to smack an object of a certain height with your hand. Thus, there isn’t really any data easily to hand for that. The data that is easily to hand is data on the high jump sport, which involves clearing a bar of a certain height to prove your body can be propeled that far up. ETA: Actually **RealityChuck** , they still have standing high jump contests at track meets, but not often. 😉 (Or maybe more often now, they didn’t often when I was in sports.) ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2007, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074/20 "2007-08-10T01:59:05Z")
[QUOTE=Zabali\_Clawbane] I don’t think there is a sport that involves jumping up to smack an object of a certain height with your hand. [/QUOTE] Nobody said there was. It was suggested as a reasonably accurate and repeatable way for the OP to test himself. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-while-running-vs-jump-on-the-spot/415074.md?page=2)