The Ancient Greek Long Jump – One Giant Leap For Mankind

Have you ever wondered how ancient Greek athletes managed to develop such perfect physiques without fancy gym equipment and trendy Hollywood-style diets? I have. In fact, I've spent a long time searching for their secrets. And I think one of them has been discovered ... painted on a vase!

Paintings of the ancient Greek long jump have been found preserved on ancient pottery, and these pictures show that it was originally done very differently to the modern version. When I read a scientific article about this discovery, I immediately became enthralled with the exercise. It seemed such a shame that it was allowed to become almost extinct, and I started experimenting, trying to recreate what it must have been like.

As shown, in the ancient version, the athlete took no run up before the jump. Instead, he dropped to a squatting position while swinging his arms back and down. He then launched forwards, swinging his arms up and forward as he jumped. And unlike today's version, the ancient Greek long jump didn't consist of a single jump. The idea was to perform several jumps, such that the landing from one jump immediately became the take-off for the next. With a bit of practice, I managed to get the hang of it.

A closer look at the painting shows that the athlete used to hold stone weights in his hands. These were called halteres, and are believed to have assisted with propulsion. I started doing the same thing, but using modern dumbbells. I found it to be a great way of giving an all-over body workout.

I also started doing jumps with light weights as part of my cardio training. I found that alternating between 30 seconds of ancient Greek long jumps and 30 seconds of recovery makes a demanding, but excellent, form of high-intensity interval training.

My conclusions were that although the ancient Greek long jump has been virtually forgotten, it is still an incredibly effective exercise, and I've integrated it into my Apollo Program. Of course, like any "new" exercise, it's best to start slowly, perfecting the technique before trying for distance or using weights. And always get your doctor's approval first.

(Article and video for information purposes only. Consult your doctor before undertaking a new physical activity.)