Javelin Technique: The Block Leg

Dan Labbadia
Feb 12
3 min read

In the Javelin, a strong block leg is something that a lot young throwers aspire to have, but is it really necessary when you are throwing below the 80m mark?

Lets get into it.

Thomas Rohler Javelin throw olympic champion RIO 2016 block leg — Thomas Rohler Olympic Champion RIO 2016

One key aspect to note is that energy transfer itself is the most important aspect of throwing. and often times throwers who are just starting off, may be putting too much time and effort into a straight block leg, but have no idea how to even conceptualize how to do it. Plenty of throwers can throw 60-70m with a bent block leg, so if you are just starting off and throwing below 60m, chances are pretty high you should just focus on rhythm, relaxation, physical preparation, and hip shoulder separation. I have talked about hip shoulder separation a lot in my other blogs and YouTube videos but the key here is that you can achieve 95% of energy transfer by having good hip shoulder separation / layback even if your block leg is bent.

Jordan Davis wins D2 NCAA title 2022 Javelin throw — Jordan Davis wins 2022 National Championship with a bent block leg. 72.85m

In this blog we will cover how you conceptualize the block and the technique behind it. Many throwers will just stick their leg out and expect it to just happen, that’s not how it works. It is the entire block side that is actively blocking. Once you are physically capable of holding a block, and understand what you should be doing, you need to progressively overload approach speed and length to be able to handle the block at competition intensity. We will go over a few drills to help you be able to do that and achieve your goal of hitting a stronger block.

The technical aspect of the block is extremely important. In order to have a good block you need to know what you are doing and how you should be trying to accomplish it. You should have a passive throwing arm (relaxed arm) and an active block arm that is reaching out, then uncoiling at the time of the block, (flexing the lat, and staying firm) creating an entire side block, (foot, leg, hip, oblique, shoulder, arm) rather than just a block foot or block leg. This will prevent your body from blowing through, bending your knee, and positioning itself to the side after the block leg hits the ground.

CENTER OF MASS

Keeping your center of mass “Stacked” is also an essential part of having a strong block. If your center of mass is too far forward, you will collapse your chest, causing your leg to bend, and if you are too far back, it will throw off your upper body alignment, causing you to miss the point and spend too much time on your back foot, and potentially hit the back side of the javelin on the ground.

DRILLS TO IMPLEMENT

While focusing on the lower half it is essential to implement these concepts into drills, without throwing an actual javelin. It is much easier to focus on your block leg, and back hip, without throwing a javelin because often times throwers get too worried about throwing through the point, and their arm slot, that when they start a session off with the intention of having a lower body focused day, they often stray from their goal if something with their upper body is off. Using medicine ball, javee drills, and manual resisted drills is essential to practicing a better block.