Wicket Drill — Wide Spacing: A Complete Guide
Quick Intro
Wicket Drill — Wide Spacing is a stride-length drill performed by running the wicket drill pattern with hurdles spaced further apart than standard, encouraging a longer stride length and greater hip extension on every stride. It’s an easier step of Wicket Drill, and it’s dosed by reps run through the widened line.
Equipment Needed
Wicket Drill — Wide Spacing needs a set of mini hurdles used as low wickets, spaced further apart than the standard drill’s own spacing to encourage a longer stride.
Why Wicket Drill — Wide Spacing Matters
Reaching for a longer stride between each widened gap asks the glutes (gluteus maximus) and front of the thigh (quadriceps, rectus femoris) to extend the hip more fully than a shorter stride would require, while the hip flexor (iliopsoas) drives the trailing leg through a bigger range on every cycle. The back of the thigh (hamstrings, biceps femoris) controls the leg through that longer reach, and the calf (gastrocnemius) with the deeper calf muscle beneath it (soleus) handle ground contacts that come further apart than in the standard pattern. The shin (tibialis anterior) lifts the toes clear on each landing. Speed is the main demand, though a lower one than at the standard spacing, since a wider gap trades some of the standard drill’s faster turnover for a longer, more deliberate reach.
When to Do It
This version fits well as a dedicated stride-length building block, best used before tightening the spacing to work on frequency instead. It works well early in a session, once a general warm-up has the hips ready to reach into a fuller range on every stride.
Anyone new to wicket-based drills should confirm comfort with the standard Wicket Drill spacing first, since this version asks for a specific, unfamiliar reach that’s easier to learn once the basic concept of matching a fixed spacing already feels natural.
Getting Ready
A few build-up strides at increasing pace, deliberately reaching for a longer stride than usual, prepare the hips for the specific demand this spacing requires. A slow walkthrough of the widened line, focused purely on landing at the target spot in each gap, confirms the spacing feels achievable before adding speed.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. The setup. Stand at the start of the widened wicket line in a relaxed running stance.
2. The entry. Begin running into the line at a controlled pace, extending the stride fully to reach each target gap.
3. The reach. Drive full hip extension on every stride to cover the wider spacing, rather than rushing the legs through a shorter, quicker pattern.
4. The finish. Continue the extended stride pattern through the last wicket and several strides beyond it.
How Many, How Often
Wicket Drill — Wide Spacing is dosed by reps run through the widened line, judged on how fully the hip extends on every stride.
| Level | Where you’re at | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | New to stride-length work of this kind | 3 to 4 reps at a controlled pace, focused on reaching each target gap with full hip extension. |
| Intermediate | The extended stride feels natural and consistent | 4 to 5 reps at a quicker, more race-like pace. |
| Advanced | Comfortable with full extension at speed | 5 reps at close to full sprint effort, or move to Wicket Drill — Tight Spacing to shift the focus toward stride frequency instead. |
Reaching full hip extension on every stride matters more here than fighting the spacing with a shortened, rushed step, since the whole purpose of this version is building a longer, more powerful stride pattern.
Modifications and Variations
Wicket Drill — Wide Spacing has one harder step.
Wicket Drill, the standard spacing this version builds toward, tightens the gaps back to the standard distance, trading the longer reach for a faster, more frequent stride turnover.
Progression path: this widened version builds stride length and hip extension first, then the standard Wicket Drill spacing returns to a faster turnover once that extended reach feels natural, with Wicket Drill — Tight Spacing pushing frequency further still.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Shortening the stride to fight an uncomfortable spacing. Cutting the reach short instead of extending fully into each gap defeats the entire purpose of using a wider spacing in the first place. Trusting the wider gap and reaching to match it is what builds the longer stride this version is meant to train.
Overreaching well past the target spot. Stretching for more distance than the spacing calls for turns a controlled stride-length drill into an awkward overstride. Extending fully but still landing at the intended target keeps the pattern both safe and effective.
Rushing the cadence and refusing to commit to a slower, longer stride. Trying to maintain the standard drill’s quicker turnover while running a wider spacing usually means missing the target gaps entirely. Slowing the cadence down to match the wider spacing is what makes the longer reach achievable.
After Your Set
Reaching into a longer stride repeatedly loads the hips and hamstrings more than the standard drill’s shorter, quicker pattern. A standing hamstring stretch, hinging forward from the hips with one heel resting ahead on a slight lift, eases the back of the thigh after the extended reach. A kneeling hip flexor lunge, sinking the back knee toward the floor while pressing the hips forward, releases the front of the hip after the deeper extension this version demands.
Going Deeper
This version pairs naturally with longer sprint work done later in a session, since a longer, more powerful stride built here transfers directly into covering ground faster over distance. It also works well as a periodic check-in on stride length even after moving on to standard or tight spacing, since a stride that’s quietly shortened over time is easy to miss without a dedicated wide-spacing session to reveal it.
Progress here tends to stall when the stride length improves early and then plateaus well short of what the spacing is asking for. That’s often a sign hip mobility, not raw leg strength, is the limiting factor, and dedicated hip flexor and hamstring mobility work tends to unlock further stride length faster than simply repeating the drill.
Someone new to this version generally needs several sessions before the wider spacing feels natural and unforced, and builds toward a longer, more confident stride over the following few weeks as hip extension range improves.
How to Know You’re Improving
- Every stride reaches the target gap with full hip extension, not a rushed shortening
- The stride length holds steady from the first wicket to the last
- The pace can increase without the stride shortening back toward the standard spacing’s rhythm
- A longer, more powerful stride starts showing up in open sprint work as well
Full hip extension held through the entire line, not just reaching each gap somehow, is what marks progress here.
Muscles Worked
- Iliopsoas (the deep hip flexor, swinging the thigh through a bigger range to reach the next mark)
- Gastrocnemius (a calf muscle, driving through a longer push to cover more ground)
- Biceps Femoris (a muscle at the back of the thigh, lengthening as the stride reaches out)
- Gluteus Maximus (the largest glute muscle, extending the hip further behind the body on each stride)
- Rectus Femoris (a front thigh muscle that crosses both the hip and knee, carrying the leg through a fuller swing)
- Tibialis Anterior (a muscle along the front of the shin, setting the ankle for a long reaching contact)
- Soleus (a deeper calf muscle beneath the gastrocnemius, holding a stiff ankle through a drawn-out stride)
FAQ
What does a wider spacing add over the standard drill? Wider spacing removes the standard drill’s faster turnover and forces a longer stride and fuller hip extension instead, a specific quality that’s hard to isolate any other way (see Why It Matters above).
Is it a problem if I can’t quite reach the target gap at first? It’s common at first, and slowing the pace slightly while focusing on full hip extension tends to close that gap faster than rushing through with a shortened stride (see Common Mistakes above).
What should I move to once this spacing feels comfortable? The standard Wicket Drill spacing returns to a faster turnover, and Wicket Drill — Tight Spacing pushes stride frequency even further, both worth exploring once the wider reach feels natural (see Modifications and Variations above).
Is this run slower than the standard drill? Usually, yes. A wider spacing trades some of the standard pattern’s faster turnover for a longer, more deliberate stride, so the run is a little slower while it builds stride length (see Why It Matters above).