Long Jump Approach Calculator
Step pattern and board contact from approach speed.
About this calculator
Long jump distance is overwhelmingly a function of how fast you're moving when your foot leaves the board — this calculator starts from your maximum sprint speed and works forward through the whole chain to a predicted mark. It first knocks your top speed down to a realistic board speed (97% of max, since almost nobody sprints faster at the board than in open running), then subtracts a further 1.2 m/s takeoff conversion loss to get true takeoff speed, since converting horizontal speed into a partly-vertical takeoff always costs some velocity. That takeoff speed is split into horizontal and vertical components using your takeoff angle, and projectile motion (accounting for the height the center of mass drops from takeoff to landing) gives flight distance, to which the model adds a fixed 0.30 m for how far your foot lands behind your center of mass at the board and 0.60 m for how far your legs reach out ahead of your center of mass on landing.
Along the way it also derives your average, penultimate, and final stride lengths — the penultimate stride is modeled 10% longer and the last stride 15% shorter than average, matching the well-documented "long-short" pattern elite jumpers use to lower their center of mass before takeoff — plus an estimate of vertical takeoff force in body weights. The biggest lever by far is approach speed and takeoff angle; small errors in either compound through the whole projectile calculation. Because several of the offsets (speed loss, board offset, landing gain) are fixed constants rather than personalized biomechanics, treat the predicted distance as a solid approximation for comparing technique changes, not a lab-measured guarantee.
Inputs
Results
Predicted Jump Distance
7.56 m
≈ 4 adult heights
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter Approach run distance, Number of approach steps, and Maximum sprint speed.
- Set Takeoff angle, Body height, and Body mass.
- Review the Predicted Jump Distance result.
- Use Flight Distance (m) and Speed at Board (m/s) to inform your decision.
How the result changes with Maximum sprint speed
| Maximum sprint speed | Predicted Jump Distance |
|---|---|
| 6 | 3.99 m |
| 7.13 | 5.01 m |
| 12 | 10.91 m |
What each input means
- Approach run distance
- Total approach run distance (elite: 35-45 m, beginners: 20-30 m).
- Number of approach steps
- Total steps in approach run (elite: 18-22, beginners: 12-16).
- Maximum sprint speed
- Your top sprinting speed (elite: 10-11 m/s, HS: 8-9 m/s).
- Takeoff angle
- Takeoff angle (elite: 18-24°, higher = more vertical).
- Body height
- Athlete height for COM calculations.
- Body mass
- Athlete body mass.
What each result means
- Predicted Jump Distance
- Estimated total jump distance from board to landing.
- Flight Distance
- Horizontal distance travelled during flight phase.
- Speed at Board
- Estimated approach speed at the takeoff board.
- Takeoff Speed
- Effective speed after takeoff conversion loss.
- Vertical Velocity
- Vertical component of takeoff velocity.
- Horizontal Velocity
- Horizontal component of takeoff velocity.
- Flight Time
- Time spent airborne.
- Max COM Height
- Peak height of centre of mass during flight.
- Avg Stride Length
- Average stride length during approach.
- Penultimate Stride
- Second-to-last stride length (longest stride).
- Last Stride
- Final stride before takeoff (shortest stride).
- Takeoff Force
- Average vertical force at takeoff in body weights.
- Step Frequency at Board
- Step frequency during final strides.
- Approach Run Time
- Estimated time for the full approach run.
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersApproach run distance = 38, Number of approach steps = 18, Maximum sprint speed = 9.5, Takeoff angle = 21 = 6 input(s) provided
- Calculate Predicted Jump DistancePredicted Jump Distance = flightDistance + boardOffset + landingGain7.56 = 7.56
- Calculate Flight DistanceFlight Distance = vx * tFlight6.66 = 6.66
- Calculate Speed at BoardSpeed at Board = sprintSpeed * 0.979.22 = 9.22
Engine last updated . Checked against 2 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the calculator subtract a fixed 1.2 m/s from board speed before computing takeoff velocity?
That 1.2 m/s is the takeoff conversion loss — the speed you inevitably shed converting horizontal running speed into a takeoff with a vertical component, since the plant leg has to redirect part of your momentum upward rather than forward. It's applied as a flat constant to every input combination, so it doesn't personalize to your technique; it represents a typical loss seen across jumpers rather than a measurement of yours specifically.
Why is the penultimate stride longer and the final stride shorter than my average stride length?
The calculator models the penultimate stride at 110% of your average stride length and the final stride at 85%, reproducing the well-documented 'long-short' pattern elite jumpers use in the last two steps before takeoff. Lengthening the second-to-last stride and shortening the last one lowers the center of mass just before the board, setting up a more effective upward drive at takeoff.
How does the 0.4 m landing height drop affect my predicted distance?
Flight distance comes from solving projectile motion for the total height difference between takeoff and landing — the calculator adds a fixed 0.4 m landing-height drop on top of your takeoff center-of-mass height, since your legs extend forward and your body descends slightly lower than takeoff position when you land. A larger total height difference extends flight time (via the projectile equation's square-root term), which increases horizontal distance even at the same launch velocity.
Why are the board offset (0.30 m) and landing gain (0.60 m) fixed constants rather than calculated from my inputs?
Board offset accounts for how far your foot lands behind your center of mass at takeoff, and landing gain accounts for how far your extended legs reach out ahead of your center of mass on landing — both are body-position effects that are hard to derive from speed and angle alone, so the calculator uses typical fixed values (0.30 m and 0.60 m) drawn from biomechanics literature rather than modeling your specific technique. They're added directly to the projectile-computed flight distance to get total predicted jump distance.
Does Body mass change the Predicted Jump Distance or Takeoff Force?
No — Body mass is collected but doesn't currently affect any calculated output. It's used in computing the vertical takeoff force (mass times vertical velocity, divided by contact time), but Takeoff Force is then expressed in body weights by dividing that force by mass times gravity again, so the mass cancels out of the result. Predicted Jump Distance and every other output are driven entirely by approach distance, steps, sprint speed, takeoff angle, and body height.
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