hit the ground running

Idioms  

1. Seize an opportunity; begin at full speed. For example, As soon as the front office gave its approval for the new department, we hit the ground running. The origin of this term is disputed. It may come from troops dropped into a combat zone, from stowaways jumping off a freight train as it nears the station, or from Pony Express riders avoiding delay when they changed mounts.

---

Example Sentences

Hungary's economy is in a deep slump, and Magyar and his team know they will have to hit the ground running.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026

The Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani has hit the ground running in spring training in an effort to ramp up to pitch without restrictions before leaving camp for WBC obligations with Team Japan.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2026

Both gold and silver futures hit the ground running in early trading, but pared gains as the day advanced.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

Rosenior admitted when he was hired that he needed to hit the ground running to silence the critics who claimed that he would be a yes-man for the Chelsea hierarchy.

From Barron's • Jan. 25, 2026

“We’ll be in our meeting room, putting together a list of new Dewey decimal numbers from the Bibliomania cards so we’re ready to hit the ground running when the doors reopen at ten tomorrow morning.”

From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein

Related Words

• begin
• inaugurate
• initiate
• launch
• take up