Workout: 12/26

12/26  At Kern Center. Joe warmed up and lifted 2x4x220, 2x5 long low hops, 2x10 elevated push ups. Did 6x3H 5-step 36/39, working on line running to improve lead leg tracking. Next, 5x2 block starts, still working on lead leg track as well as lead leg speed. Stayed up well on ball of foot into hurdles. Arm still a little wide on lead leg side and there's too much bend off hurdle but nice adjustments were made to improve lead leg mechanics. Finished with 5x3H up/back (-3 36), working on same things... while tired (1 min recoveries). Did 5 box exercises, shin exercises, stretching and rolling.

Workouts: 12/17, 12/18, 12/19, 12/20

These were the scheduled workouts for the three days I was at convention:

Monday
Warm up: Circles, swings, skips, strides
Lifting: 2x hurdle walkovers and over/unders; 2x 3x same weight as last time, 10x tuck jumps, 10x elevated push ups.
Drills: 4x3H 5-step (30s on blue marks). One rep on opposite leg.
Hurdles: 1x1H (30) falling start; 1x2H (30 -3) 3 point; 3x1H (30) blocks; 3x2H (30 -2) blocks. Briel 4-step, Kasey 3-step these.
Box exercises: 10x bridge, 10x each leg thrust, 10x squat, 10x each leg step up, 20x switch jumps.
Recovery: rolling, stretching, ice, etc.

Tuesday
Warm up: Circles, swings, takeoff skips, jump turns, strides, 3-point line runs, archbacks, backovers.
Short approach jumps: Pay attention to plant angle. 5x with bungee bar.
Runthroughs: 5x -- work on hitting mid-mark, maintaining lean through curve.
Full jumps: 3x at -6 best height; if you made 2 or more bars at -6, go up 2, if not, go down 2 and do 3x; optional 3 jumps at height of choice.
Recovery: rolling, stretching, ice, etc.

Wednesday
Warm up: Circles, swings, skips, strides
Lifting: 2x hurdle walkovers and over/unders; 2x 4x same weight as last time, 10x tuck jumps, 10x elevated push ups.
Drills: 5x4H 1-step (30s 8' apart); 3x3H 5-step (39s blue marks+base--1 base on H2 and 2 on H3).
Hurdles: 1x1H (39) fall start; 1x2H (39 -1) 3-pt; 3xH1 (42) blks; 3x3H (42) -1 for H2, -2 for H3) blks.
Box exercises: 10x bridge, 10x ea. leg thrust, 10x squat, 10x ea. leg step up, 20x switch jumps.
Recovery: rolling, stretching, ice, etc.

12/20  At Kern Center. Joe, Jon and Logan trained for 400H. Kept it fairly light and in trainers because of high intensity the previous day. Warmed up, did some hurdle drills with both left and right lead legs and then optimal hurdles -- quick run with hurdles at 27" and 35m (-2) between, working on a fast 3 steps into hurdle and fast 3 off the hurdle in an effort to minimize speed losses. Did 5 reps. Finished with 5x4H oppo on 7.5y spacing with 3-step at 30. Stretching and rolling.

Workouts: 12/10, 12/11, 12/12, 12/15

12/10  At Kern Center. Kasey and Briel warmed and then lifted (K 3x220, 1x220, 4x190; B 5x190, 1x220, 4x170), 3x5 tuck jumps, 3x10 push ups. Drills: slowlows, 1-step, 5-step. Block starts: side by side then 1H timed alternating with 2H 3- or 4-step (-1). Best times: Kasey 2.36, Briel 2.40. Briel had a hand-time in mid-1.60s for split. Kasey struggled on 3-step. Eight-step work to H1 consistency was better this week. Ended with 3x3H (30) up/back 5-step, box bridges and thrusts. Foam rolling.

12/11  At Kern Center. Did full run throughs and then regular jumps in 5-10 to 6-0 range. Finished with full approach box jumps with bungee in 6-4 to 6-10 range. 5 plyometric exercises followed: single-leg hops, low fast skips, stairs, single leg box jumps, pogos. Kasey and Alex did a similar workout (not plyos). Kasey jumped in 4-6 to 4-8 range. Alex around 4-0. Ramp jumps were in 5-0 to 5-6 range for Kasey and 4-6 to 5-0 range for Alex. Some very good jumping by all and nice adjustments. Kasey marks moved back to 48/24-6.

12/12  At Kern Center. Probably should have done something 12x on 12/12/12 -- but we didn't. We stuck with regular warm up and upped the weights to 2x4x310 for Andrew, Jonathon and Mike. Joe went up to 220. Included 8x tuck jumps and 10x push ups after each lift set. A couple of warm up accels and then a couple fly sprints. Everyone equaled or exceeded their previous bests. JA PR 9.23 mps, JB = 9.42, AB = 9.62, MC PR 9.14. Next, some 5x4 1-step hurdles and 3x3 5-step 39s. Then 1H falling, 2H 3pt and 4x3H block -- all at 42 -1. Ended with 3x3H up/back at -4 in trainers at 39. Mike had to stop after a couple 3H full speed reps with pain behind his knee. Jon had to stop a rep later because of pain in his foot -- the one that had an operation last year. Foam rolling.


Lots to like here, especially the consistent ball of foot positioning, including takeoff. Right arm swings back too straight and the alignment along the right side could be a bit better, but this is a good rep, and Jon has been consistent and clean on most of his reps.


Andrew does many things well. Lead arm swings across a bit too much, but it doesn't negatively impact his alignment. Knee drive is good into and over the hurdle. The big issue is the steps just before the hurdle where he's over striding -- as evidenced by the heel striking. We picked up on this during practice, and he had some better reps where he stayed on the ball of foot better. Will need to get stronger pushes in the middle steps to eliminate the need to stretch to get to the takeoff point for H1 and then go for a little more drive -- and maybe a little less quickness -- in the 3-step between hurdles. Everything else looks good.


Couple of things with Joe here. Didn't have a takeoff mark on floor, but Joe is reaching a bit and back on his heel at takeoff. Might be too close to hurdle. Had he been further back, the trajectory might have been better. Needs to keep the trail leg toe pointed upward. Slight drop caught the hurdle.


Almost didn't post this because it wasn't a good rep, and Andrew had better ones, but it again highlights the need to get more power and drive to get to the 7th and 8th steps without reaching and getting back on the heel. Problems on H1 carried over into H2. Also can see that lead arm hand in close toward chest and way over near the opposite shoulder.


There's a lot going on here. The lead leg isn't tracking very well, which is causing other problems. By tracking, we want the lead leg to come from straight back with lower leg aligned with upper leg and targeting the hurdle mark. Joe's leg is swinging a bit from the outside to the inside, which probably is causing the arms to go out to counterbalance, which, in turn, causes him to twist and make it impossible to stay square to the hurdle. Good news is that it isn't off too much. Once the lead leg starts tracking better, he can have an easier time in getting the arms in and staying squared up.

12/13 At Kern Center. Kasey helped teach Nate how to hurdle -- and did a good job. Nate picked it up fairly quickly -- at least the basics. Did slowlows on both legs and then some close-space 3-steps, again working both legs. Next, reps at relative spacing for 19-step pattern. Kasey literally got off on the wrong foot -- so the first hurdle was messed up for a while. After I figured out that was happening, things went smoothly for her. Nate was rough, of course, but was able to attack well and maintain rhythm. All the work was at 27. Shins were sore, so we stayed in trainers and kept the rep number down.

12/15  At Kern Center. Jonathon came in, warmed up, did some 1-step reps over 4 and then tacked on 3H 5-steppers in combination. Did a warm up 1H from falling start (39) and 2H from 3pt. Finished with 1-2-3-4 (-1 42). Very crisp and quick throughout. Foam rolling.

Workouts: 12/3, 12/4, 12/5, 12/6

12/3  At KC. Kasey and Briel warmed up and lifted (Kasey 3x220, 1x220; Briel 5x170, 4x170), did Russian box jumps and 3-count push ups. Did a couple of flys (K 1.15, B 1.21). Next, 3 contrast starts over H1 and 21m flat. Went on to block starts -- 5xH1 and then down to H2 in a couple of feet, with Briel working on 4-step and Kasey 3. Finished with 4 box exercises and stretching/rolling.

12/4  At KC. After Mike and Carson warmed up, Carson took about 10 jumps in the 5-6 to 5-9 range. Moved the start point back to get peak of jump over the bar. Early attempts were getting dragged off behind knees. Later attempts showed good adjustment. Mike split time with vault. Early attempts were into bar, but he made an immediate correction, improved the vertical and had some easy clearances in the 5-7 to 5-10 range. Alex and Kasey were next. Alex was working on getting more consistency in the run up, staying on ball of foot, leaning into curve and finding some arch. Rotation in getting back to bar was good, along with a perpendicular clearance. Most jumps were taken in 3-6 to 4-0 area. Kasey gained some better consistency in hitting the mid mark and that helped with the jumps. Plant is still too parallel, but she held the lean into the curve better later in the session and had some nice clearances. Need to work on the plant and getting a tighter curl, but the run up is looking good. Took most jumps in 4-4 to 4-8 range. Videos below weren't the best efforts of the night -- everyone had some better jumps than shown here. Still a chance to see some things.


Biggest issues here are a takeoff step that's too long and leaning into the bar before leaving the ground. Mike made some good adjustments on subsequent jumps.


Carson does a lot well here. Nice plant angle, arm position, keeping head back on arch. Maybe leaning toward bar a bit early, but there's not much not to like there.


Kasey runs a good turn but then takes that last step so she ends up nearly perpendicular to bar and that contributes to the lean toward bar right off ground. Probably would help to keep the arms running a little longer and then pull them back on the penultimate step. Arch back looks good. Biggest thing to do first is to keep the hips at 45 degrees rather than 90 degrees -- which can be set up by getting the plant angle improved.


Good job here by Alex in getting that plant foot at the correct angle. Leaning in before leaving ground, though. Left leg drives up well but never gets rotated to front, so that leg goes over nearly sideways. The arms are going straight up -- no block -- and the upper body never arches back so the hips cannot rise.

12/5  At KC. Mike, Andrew, Joe and Jonathon had a very good practice. Strength: 2x4-5x280 (Joe 190), Russian box jumps, 5-count push ups. Drills: 5x 2H slowlows (27), 4H 1-step (30), 3H 5-step (42). High-speed hurdles: 1-2-3-4-3-2-1 (-1 42). Hand-time splits were quite consistent and fast for this early in the season. Mostly in mid-1.2s to 1.3. Foam rolling.

12/6  At KC. Logan, Joe and Andrew did 400H training. Warm up, some slowlows, including oppos, and then some reps on both legs over 3H 5-stepping on 33s. Main event was 10x 3H at 7-step relative spacing on 30s -1 covering the west straight. Logan worked on 17 equivalent while Joe and Andrew trained at 15. Walked remainder of lap for recovery. Did all on preferred lead leg. Everyone did well. Foam rolling.

Workouts: 11/26, 11/27, 11/28

11/26  At KC. Kasey and Briel warmed up, lifted 2x 5 deadlifts (Kasey 220, Briel 170), 4x box jumps, 10x mini push ups, 5x L+R step ups. Worked block starts next and then 2x 30m accels. Bests: Kasey 4.86, Briel 5.14. 5x1H starts (27, 30). 5x4H 5-step (30). 4 box exercises. Stretching and recovery on their own.

11/27  At KC. Practiced in two shifts. Both men and women did the same workout. Circles, swings, skips, strides, 1-step rotations, archback, backover, 3pt line runs, run throughs, short approach jumps, full jumps with bungee bar. Carson did some box drills, gym ball arches and stretches. Adjusted marks: Carson 14-6/26-6/53, Mike 14-6/23-6/52, Kasey 10/23-6/46, Alex 10/24-6/48.

11/28  At KC. Logan, Mike, Jonathon, Joe and Andrew trained together. Started with warm up and deadlifts -- most at 240; Joe at 170. Also did 5x depth jumps and 5x 5-count push ups. Did a couple practice starts and then 2x30m accels. Bests: Joe 3.89, Andrew 3.92, Logan 3.98, Mike 4.11, Jonathon 4.35. Next, 2x9.14m flys. Bests: Andrew .95 (9.62), Joe .97 (9.42), Jonathon 1.00 (9.14), Logan 1.03 (8.87), Mike 1.05 (8.70). Next, 5x1H and 5x2H. Took a few ht splits. Everyone had some in the 1.2s (most reps were at 39 -- 36 for Logan). Finished with 4 box exercises and stretches.

Workout: 11/19

11/19  At KC. Joe came in to get some hurdle work. Did regular warm up and then lifted 2x5x170 along with box jumps and elevated push ups. Did some wall drive, rope and medball starts before some 3-pt starts. Did a few slowlows and some 5-step 42s before starting block work. Started at 30 and worked up to 42. Made some good improvements on block exits and had good reps through H1 when 8-count was used. Finished with box exercises (bridges, thrusts, step ups, squats), stretching, rolling.

Starts

Starts are critical in building momentum for a great race. Study this and then come to practice and incorporate it into your workouts. 

First, keep in mind that the object is to get to the finish line as fast as you can, which doesn't always equate with being first out of the blocks. The start and acceleration phase is designed to overcome inertia and build momentum to help you reach maximum velocity efficiently and maintain it effectively to minimize deceleration in the later portion of short sprint and hurdle races.

Many times, you will watch a race where it looks like someone got out quick only to fade toward the end. When you see that, you may think they had a great start but didn't have good enough conditioning to finish. More likely, though, the athlete had a poor start. How can that be if they got out fastest? The reason is that he or she was quick but not powerful, failing to generate enough momentum to minimize the deceleration later in the race. Another way to think if this is a bit like a car spinning its wheels in the snow -- wheels are turning fast but the car isn't getting anywhere very fast.

To increase momentum, you need to generate large impulses. If you want to get technical about it, impulse = force x time. So, you need to be explosive enough to create large forces and apply them for a relatively long time. To do this, you need the right block set up and an understanding of what needs to happen. Here we go.

1. Set the front block two shoes from the start line and the other three shoes from the start line. Hurdlers may need to adjust this backward or forward, depending on leg length and takeoff point for hurdle one.

2. Set the block angle at 45 degrees for the front block and 45 degrees or slightly more for the back block.

3. Place the rear foot on the back pedal with about 1/2" of the big toe on the track.

4. Place the front foot so the big toe is on the track about an inch. This stretches the plantar fascia to create a stretch reflex for a faster, more powerful push.

5. Position the shoulders directly above the hands.

6. Use fingertip support to help position the shoulders higher, to raise center of mass to make it easier to get the hips in optimum position as acceleration begins.

7. At set, move the hips straight up -- don't lean forward or backward. The front leg should be at 90-100 degrees for strong push. If this angle is less, it adds time in reaching full extension. If it's more, you generate less impulse and may exit at a higher angle. Shin angles will be close to parallel and about perpendicular to the pedals.

8. Pre-load the glutes, hamstrings and achilles by applying pressure to the pedals, which allows you to apply more force when the gun fires and leverages stretch reflex, particularly on the achilles. You should feel the heels wrap over the top of the pedals of a typical block (some pedals are taller than others). Note: if you roll forward at set, you lose some this pre-loading and may fall out of the blocks.

9. At set, take a deep breath and hold it until crossing the first hurdle -- or about 10-11 strides into a sprint race. Don't think about the gun. Focus on movement.

10. At the gun, push hard off both blocks, though the front leg pushes for a longer time. This avoids falling out to the side, which can happen if you just pull the back foot off the block. Pushing off the back block also sets up a stretch reflex that helps that leg move faster on that first step.

11. Also at the gun, lift the chest and head so it is aligned with the spine. You are looking for extension (straight line) through the ankle, knee, hip, spine and neck, as the hips extend up and forward just as the foot leaves the front block.

12. Push back through the shin and extend the hip -- don't bend the waist -- stay in line. About 45 degrees as you exit the blocks. Might be a bit higher for less powerful athletes. Maybe a bit lower for more powerful ones.

13. In the first few steps, you are pushing back and down. Don't reach forward or rush things to be quicker. You want to maximize push and power to gain momentum and acceleration.

14. When the foot leaves the surface during acceleration, your heel recovery should be low. In other words, it should not come up very high in the back (like a butt kick). This wastes time in getting back to the ground for the next push and uses the hamstring rather than the glutes.

When you start, think about it like you are pushing a very heavy object. You want your feet way back as you use a steep angle to apply more force than you could if your feet were right under your hips.

Weekly highlights: 11/12, 11/13, 11/14

11/12  At KC. Briel and Kasey did standard warm up then 2x5 deadlifts -- Kasey 220, Briel 200 (which was too heavy -- lighter next time), 2x5 hip hops, 2x10 push up jacks. Did step ups on box, bag kicks and 5x1H slowlow loops. Did 5x1H from 3pt, working on start mechanics, stride pattern to H1, drive for five and then stepping up head first into the hurdle at 22/27 inches. Next, a couple fly sprints. Bests: Kasey 7.59mps, Briel 7.20. Then, 5x4H 1-step 27s, 1/2-space 27s, 5-step 27 to 33. 10x hip thrusts, hip bridges, box squats.

11/13  At KC. Kasey, Kelly, Mike and Carson warmed up with circles, swings, strides, takeoff skips, 1-step rotators, 5x arch backs in pit, 5x backover, circle runs (22' diameter), circle runs with jump. Spent considerable time working out approach marks. After doing that, we did about 10 full approach run throughs and made some minor adjustments. Took a scissor jump and then about 5 jumps at low height and then a couple at higher heights all with bungee bar. Estimated height about 5-8 to 5-10 neighborhood for Carson and around 4-6 for Kasey and Kelly. Accomplished what we after in getting marks for approach and some fairly consistent run throughs. Marks (out from standard/step 5/starting point): Carson - 15/26-6/52; Mike - 15/23-6/52; Kasey - 10/20/46; Kelly - 10/25-6/47-6.

11/14  At KC. Andrew, Joe and Logan warmed up with circles, swings, strides and hurdle mobility. Lifting was 2x5x220 (Joe 130), 4x5 hip hops, 2x10 push up jacks. About 10x slowlow loops with some oppos and 4x5H 1-step + 1 oppo set. 5x1H block starts. 5x4H elevators (36 to 42; Logan 27 to 36). Ran late, so no additional strength work or group stretch/roll.

Weekly highlights: 11/05, 11/07, 11/08

11/05  At KC. Briel, Kasey and Kelly did warm up: circles, jog, swings, strides, hurdle walkovers and over/unders. Strength: 2x5 deadlifts (170), 2x5 squat jumps, 2x10 elevated pushups. Hurdles: cycling, drive, step ups, trails, leads, in place, walkover, slowlow. Worked on knee drive and head first entries. Next 1-step  drill, 1/2-space drill. Shin exercises. Stretching.

11/07  At KC. Mike and Andrew did standard warm up and lifting (2x5x260 deadlifts, 2x5 squat jumps, 2x10 elevated push ups). Worked some mechanics with cycling, wall drive, step ups, trail and lead legs, walkovers and slowlows -- emphasizing head first entries. Next, 3-pt starts over H1 (27-36). Then, 5x4H 1-stp, 1/2-space, 5-step. Did a couple reps of each drill with oppo. Did 10x hip bridges, shin exercises, stretching and rolling. For first night on hurdles, things looked good at times -- though understandably inconsistent.  Kasey came in for the late shift and trained with some of the high schoolers. Lifted, drilled and did accelerations and then multiple reps over H1, working on getting a consistent 8-step rhythm with left leg lead. Trail leg got a little loose at times. Ran a best fly sprint of 1.12 (7.59 mps).

11/08  At KC. Kelly did standard warm up and lifting. Did some wall drills and then some bag kicks. Did lots of walkovers and jogovers. Then, 1/2-space 3-steps. Next, multiple reps over 22s and then 27s, working on 8-step pattern, takeoff point and lead leg cut down. For only the second day ever on hurdles, progress was rapid. Later, Logan came in to train with high school group, doing standard warm up, some wall drills and lots of slowlow up/backs. Worked entry position (head first), knee drive and a few other aspects to improve hurdling efficiency. Did 3x fly sprints, posting a best of 8.96 mps -- in trainers. Finished with some hip bridges and foam rolling.

Naperville: Emily closes out stellar MSOE hurdling career

5/19  At Naperville. On a sun-splashed 80-degree day with a light tailwind, Emily hurdled to a 15.35 for fourth in her heat and 13th overall, notching the second-fastest time in her career. Tailwind in this one was just 0.9 mps, compared to 2.4 a week earlier when she ran her PR 15.18. Good luck to Emily as she embarks on further academic and athletic pursuits in Iowa.

Weekly highlights: 5/14, 5/16

5/14  At Marquette. Emily worked 2 sets over 4H (30 R) with extended 10-step start; 6H (30 -1) with a 5-step (+13) into H4; 8H (30 -2) with H5 removed and a 7-step (+14) into H6.

5/16  At Marquette. Emily did 5x circuit (stride drill>walkover>step ups>slowlows>stride/sprint). 3 sets over 3H (33 -1) and 5H (30 -2). Worked out of blocks, attacking with heel, accelerating for 6 steps off last hurdle, applying more force into the track. Ran out the remainder of 100 after H5 on last set. Better practice than on Monday when lack of adequate rest was an issue. Reps in this workout were more consistent and a faster. Splits were typically sub-1.2 -- right on target for sub-15 race pace. A few drifted into low 1.2s.

North Central: Emily grabs school record in 100H; regains NAC mark

5/12  At Naperville. Emily got a good start and a 2.4 mps tailwind to grab a PR 15.18 school and conference record in Naperville, finishing sixth overall in a tough field. Jim held a 16-stride pattern through the 400H as he cruised to an easy 59.55. Might be more there, but he may need to take a few steps out to go faster. Weather was great -- as were the performances.

Emily 15.18 (6th PR SR CR)
Jim 59.55


Emily's record run.

Weekly highlights: 5/7, 5/9

5/7  Emily and Jim started prep for Friday's meet at North Central College. After warm up drills, Emily did 2x 6H (30 -3) and 8H (30 -1), resting one minute per hurdle run. Jim did 2H-3H-4H-3H-2H, working first on seeing if 15 steps were possible and then finishing out with a nice series of 16-step reps, with splits in 4.4-4.6 range -- most about 4.5. Stretched.

5/9  Emily practiced in the Kern Center, doing a few slowlows and then working a ladder: 1H (33) 2H (33 -3) 3H (33 -2) 4H (33 -1) 4H (30 -1) 3H (30 -1) 2H (30 -1) 1H (27). Splits were all in the target area of 1.2 or a little better. Starts looked good (see below). Worked as usual on keeping the lead foot pointing up, not forward, and ripping the trail leg through. Whole workout was precise and quick. After Emily's workout, Jim went to MU. After a few up/backs, progressing from 30 to 36 at increasing speed, he did 7H, 5H and 3H, all targeting 90-95% of race pace. He did that. First rep was about .2-.3 off race pace splits. Second was about .1-.2 off pace, and third was right on pace for 58. Stretched. Weather was great. Makes you wish the season was longer.

Performance list

2012 Performance List
400H
Jim Franke 59.04
Tim Lang 60.52 (#6 all time)
Tom Monteverde 62.69
Jonathon Anthony 62.98
Mike Cosentino 65.29
Aaron Rick 69.15
Carol Cayo 75.13
110H
Mike Cosentino 16.58 (#3 all time)
Tim Lang 16.69 (#4 all time)
Jonathon Anthony 16.77 (#5 all time)
Aaron Rick 17.72 (#10 all time)
100H
Emily Dieringer 15.18 (#1 all time)
Mollie Zuberbier 18.58
60H 
Mike Cosentineo 9.12
Tim Lang 9.13 (#3 all time)
Jonathan Anthony 9.45 (#5 all time)
Emily Dieringer 9.49 (#1 all time)
Aaron Rick 9.55 (#6 all time)
Jim Franke 9.57 (#7 all time)
55H 
Mike Cosentino 8.32 (#2 all time)
Tim Lang 8.46 (=#3 all time)
Emily Dieringer 8.60 (#1 all time)
Jonathon Anthony 8.66 (#5 all time)
Aaron Rick 8.80 (#8 all time)
Jim Franke 8.93 
HJ
Nate Verdun 6-4.75 (=#1 all time)
Mike Cosentino 6-4 7.5 (= #1 all time)
Joe Klimowicz 5-10.75
Jerome Rhodes 5-7.75 (#9 all time)
Dan Franke 5-7 
Jim Franke 5-7
Mollie Zuberbier 4-8.25 (#4 all time) 


NAC performance list


2012 Scoring
75 Emily Dieringer
46 Mike Cosentino
43.5 Nate Verdun
32 Tim Lang
28.5 Joe Klimowicz
25 Jim Franke
17 Jonathon Anthony
16 Tom Monteverde
12 Mollie Zuberbier
10 Carol Cayo
02 Aaron Rick

NAC Championship: Emily wins all-events award

5/5  At Chicago. Emily scored 32 points and won the all events individual in the women's competition. Included in that performance was a PR 15.40 100H (2nd), PR 26.19 200 (1st), PR 12.73 100 (2nd) and 9-5.5 pole vault (3rd). Another in a career of outstanding performances for Emily. Our other champion was Mike, who returned from a long layoff for mono to win the HJ, equaling Nate's school record 6-4.75 and setting a NAC championships record. Starting at a relatively low height because he hadn't jumped since the indoor season, Mike had a few misses along the way and took a high number of jumps (10) but still managed to win a very tight competition. As a group (6 events), we came up with 35.5 of our combined teams' 136 points. Also hitting the scoring column were Nate, who contended for the title with Mike until he re-injured his knee; Jim, who had a season's best in 400H; Jonathon and Tim, who ran season's best 110H times, with Jonathon becoming the fifth member of the sub-17 club. Mollie and Tom also had season's bests in their respective hurdle events.

Emily 15.40/15.59 (PR SR 2nd #2 all time)
Mollie 18.58 4-4.25
Mike 6-4.75 (PR =SR CR1st)
Tim 16.69/16.98 (PR 7th #4 all time)
Jim 59.04 (4th)
Tom 62.69
Jonathon 62.98 16.77/16.77 (6th #5 all time)
Nate 6-2.75 (T2nd)

Complete results

Tim and Jim at hurdle 3 in 400H.

Jonathon en route to a 400H PR.

Mike missed this one, but he made a lot of other bars enroute to his title.


Nate was on his way to another great performance before a knee injury took him out of the competition.


Emily's start in the prelims when she set her 15.40 PR.


Jonathon and Tim -- bookends in the 110H final.

Weekly highlights: 4/30, 5/1, 5/3

4/30  Tim, Emily and Mollie trained at MU. Did 2x8H reps (R -1 -2 -2 -2 -3 -3 -3 one at regular height, one -3"). Also did a few reps over 2H. Everyone worked on some different elements but common themes for each: Tim worked to stay up tall and the ball of the foot into H1 and made an adjustment in block spacing that seemed to help. Also worked on keeping hips square, which is easier when getting to the takeoff point without reaching for it. He hit splits in 1.2s and 1.3s. Emily worked on a quicker lead leg and keeping her ankle flexed rather than pointing the toe. Lead leg was quick but there was still some toe pointing. She hit splits in 1.1s and 1.2s. Mollie continued her progress on staying off her heels and driving her knees more aggressively into the hurdles. When she did that, she hit splits in the 1.3s and 1.4s. When she didn't, she added the fourth step and ran in the 1.5s.

5/1  Nate and Mollie came out to MU for HJ. Nate's 5-step distance was 35-9. Looked for consistency there along with takeoff point and angle. Made jumps in 5-8 to 6-2 range. Kept the volume of jumps fairly low -- around 7 to 9. Mollie worked on taking off a little further away so she could reach her peak over and not past the bar. Moved back to 50, and it worked out well. Stayed away and made some nice jumps in 4-3 to 4-7 range but had some clearances among her jumps that had a lot of room around the bar. Tom did his 400H work. Worked a progression of back and forth 1H reps on turf and then did reps over 5-3-2, targeting race pace. On the 5H set, he ran splits around 5.3 but then picked it up for the 3 and 2 sets, running those segments in the 4.7 to 4.9 range, just the pace needed for a 60-second effort on Saturday.

5/3  Jerome practiced HJ, making some PR jumps at 6-0. Mike jumped after PV, taking a few run throughs, some warm up jumps around 5-8 and then working up to and clearing 5-11. Stopped there. Rain kept hurdlers in Kern. Jim, Jon and Tim did a couple starts and then about 5 reps at relative spacing for 16-step pattern.

Weekly highlights: 4/23, 4/24, 4/25, 4/26

4/23  Aaron returned to action, and Tim -- still a bit sore from Saturday's meet -- worked out with him at MU. Did a brief warm up involving circles, swings, strides, bench step ups and slow lows -- working on entry mechanics. Moved right into 2x12H. Focus was on entry mechanics and late-race endurance. Hurdles were set at -2 at 36-39-39-39-36-39-39-39-36-39-39-39-36-39-39-39. Ended with a lap on turf, skipping end lines and striding sidelines. Stretched.

4/24  Joe, Nate and Mollie went out to MU for HJ practice. Took about 9 jumps, starting at opening height and then going up from there and working at the "sticking" point until jump 7 and then working down until a bar clearance. Was nice to jump outside for a practice for a change. Joe cleared bars from 5-6 to 5-8 and took multiple attempts at 5-9. Nate was pretty sharp and cleared bars at 5-8 5-10 6-0 6-2 and took a few at 6-3 before finishing out at 6-1. Mollie started out at 4-4 and got at least one bar at 4-6.

4/25  Emily and Mollie practiced some step-down, toe-up, knee-up on a stationary hurdle and then over some low hurdles. Kept that going into full-speed reps. 4x2 (-1.5 33) and 2x4 (-2ed/-3mz 30). Emily also worked on a quicker first step off the block and driving the heel to the hurdle rather than pointing the toe. Emily hit splits around 1.17. Mollie had some in the 1.2s but also had some in 1.3s. She was working on knee drive and staying off the heels as well as making a good attack into hurdles. She did that well on several reps -- major improvement but at -3, there's a way to go before that can be done in a race. So, we worked at regular spacing adding a fourth step. Mixed results there because she was getting too close. Sort of between the 3-step and 4-step worlds. Later reps got better with 4 steps, but we did very few of those.

4/26  The Tim and Jim show was on at MU. Cold and breezy but sunny. Did some work on hurdle entry mechanics and then 1x6H, 1x4H, 1x2H targeting race pace. First rep was about 64 pace. Second and third reps were about 60 pace. Finished with some oppo reps on turf. Good practice despite the chill temps.

St. Norbert: Emily gets 100H PR

4/21  Battling her IT band and swirling winds, Emily a PR 15.56 in finishing second at St. Norbert. Nate's knee caused problem again, but he still managed 6-2 for second. Mollie also had a good day at HJ, clearing 4-6 and getting a good jump on her final attempt at 5-8. Tim and Tom had solid performances in 400H. Headwinds hampered Tim in the highs, but he battled all the way to a third-place finish.

Emily 15.98/15.56 (2nd PR)
Tim 17.44/17.83 (3rd) 61.74 (5th)
Tom  63.60 (7th)
Mollie 19.54 4-6
Nate 6-2 (2nd)

Complete results

Tim's qualifying race.

Emily does a great job pushing the hip into the hurdle. Now, we need to get that lead leg foot pointing upward (similar to St. Norbert hurdler at left).







Nate at 6-2...


Mollie at 4-4...


Tim in finals...

Workouts: 4/16, 4/17, 4/19

4/16  Tim trained at Kern Center. We worked on entry mechanics and then did 5x1H (33>42). Next, 2x4H (36/39 -1). Went back to 3x1H. Had trouble hitting the takeoff point on H1, but a race situation and a slight tailwind will take care of that. On the times Tim hit the mark, he was in good position to drive the lead knee into the hurdle and get off the hurdle quickly. He posted hand-time splits around 1.25 on those reps. When he was well behind the takeoff, the lead leg was left hanging too long and slowed down entry and exit to the hurdle -- as well as hitting a couple, which impacted hurdles that followed. However, hitting the takeoff point shouldn't be difficult in race conditions, provided the conditions are right on race. We'll get a few block starts on Friday to work this some more.

4/17  Jerome, Nate, Joe and Mollie were jumping. Did about 4 run throughs, 4 short approach jumps, 4-5 full run jumps and 4 box jumps. Focused on plant angle, quick last steps, knee drive, staying away and dropping the hips slightly on penultimate to get better vertical speed. Mollie jumped with bars in 4-4 to 4-8 range, Joe and Jerome 5-6 to 5-10, and Nate 5-8 to 6-0.

4/19  Tim, Jim, Tom and Jon worked 400H in Kern, primarily by taking 2x1H (33) at race space and then 8x3H at relative space for each hurdlers stride rhythm. Tim worked 15s, Jim 16s, Tom and Jon 17s. Jon stayed around and did some oppo work -- which got very good in last 5 reps. Great practice despite being stuck inside.

Tom takes 2nd in 400H at Wisconsin Lutheran

4/14  Tom was our lone group member racing in this meet, getting a season-best time and second-place finish. Everyone else was out of town for break.

Tom 63.04 (2nd)

Workout: 4/11

4/11  Mollie worked out in the Kern Center for highs. Our focus was to step down on takeoff and step up and get "on top" of the hurdle to improve entry and exit. And it was working well. Timed a few splits -- all in the 1.2s -- much faster than typical 1.3s and 1.4s. We had them pulled in a couple feet, but it was much better hurdling. No sitting back, no straightening up. Nice lean. Need to keep that going. Got over about 30 hurdles total. Finished with a set of kettlebell exercises and foam rolling.

Workouts: 4/3, 4/4

4/3  Nate, Joe and Dan practiced HJ. Started with 3x run-throughs, short approach jumps emphasizing knee drive, full approach jumps at opening height, full approach jumps going up 2 inches on makes and down an inch on misses starting at -4 season best, full approach jumps at jumper's choice height. Shot some video to take a look at foot plant, knee drive, arm drive and clearance rotation.

4/4  Mollie, Leah, Carol and Jim came out to MU. Mollie and Leah did some low/slow reps and then 4x5H (-3 -3") in trainers. They did a few more reps over a couple hurdles to work on a couple technical issues. Jim and Carol did 400H work: 1x8, 1x4 and 1x2. Jim hit splits within a couple of tenths of target (hitting 4.7s) and Carol within .3 on early segments (around 6.0). Later segments lagged considerably (mid-7s).

Carroll meet: Cold but 400H go 1-2-3!

3/31  Temperature never got beyond 43 degrees. On the plus side, Jim got a win and a sub-60 performance in the 400H. Tim was not far behind in second, and Tom got a season best in his third-place finish. Nate and Joe had solid days in HJ, though it ended with a knee injury for Nate as he attempted to equal his PR. IT band got the best of Emily. Aaron was able to compete but the lack of training to protect his shins showed its effect. Jonathon had other commitments and did not compete.

Nate 6-2.75 (2nd)
Joe 5-8.75 (5th)
Mollie 18.63 (7th) NH [5-3]
Jim 59.38 (1st)

Tim 60.38 (2nd) 17.23 (4th)

Tom 63.27 (3rd)

Aaron 72.89 (6th) DQ
Carol 75.13 (5th) [8 5.7 6.0 6.2 6.5 6.9 6.9 7.4 6.9 7.1 7.3]

Emily INJ

Jonathon DNC

Complete results

Mollie...



Tim and Aaron...

Workouts: 3/26, 3/27, 3/28, 3/29

3/26  Tim trained highs. Did a few easy reps over 3 42s and then 2x1H (42) and 2x4H (42/39). Ran some very good splits in 1.2 to 1.25 range (-1.5 spacing). Worked mostly on knee drive into and between hurdles with good effect -- less banging and quicker entries and exits. Finished with 4x4H up/back (-3).

3/27  Nate, Jerome, Joe and Dan trained on their own with HJ -- some run-throughs, u-turns, full jumps (-4) and some box jumps.

3/28  Emily tried to train -- couldn't -- more IT and knee pain. Went for treatment. Mollie and Leah continued, doing a few easy reps over 33s, working on knee drive into, over and off hurdles. Continued to work that over 2x1 and 2x4 (33/30 -1.5). Mollie got all 3s, Leah mostly 3s. Finished with 4x4 up/back (-3). Mostly 3s, a few 4s. Leah fell on last rep, banging a knee on the track.

3/29  Men's 400H practice at MU with Jim, Tim and Tom. Cold and windy. Not the best for this workout, but we did 4x4H, working on race pace. Jim aimed for a 58 pace (splits in 4.5 to 4.7 range for early hurdles); he was hitting splits in 4.5-4.9 range. Tim aimed for sub-60 pace (4.6-4.7) and ran 4.5-4.9. Tom aimed for 64 (4.9-5.1) and hit 5-5.6. Step patterns were inconsistent, some extra steps taken at times -- and Tim left a trail of blood on some hurdles. Next, 3x3H on turn with short recovery and a 100m run to the finish on last rep.

3/30  Warm up, stretch.

Leaning vs. bending

We've talked quite a bit about lean vs. bend lately. Here are some images that help show what we're talking about. All of these shots are about 6 inches after takeoff.

Here is David Oliver, fastest U.S. hurdler. You can see the full extension he gets. Lots of lean without nearly any bend. When you see guys like this hurdling, you get the impression of a bend when you see them on top of their lead leg as they cross the hurdle, but it's just continued lean, which starts right here. This provides tremendous power into and off the hurdle.

Here is Jonathon. Shin angle is pretty good. Not much different than Oliver, but then you see the hinging at the knee because the hip was not pushed forward. He tries to compensate for that by bending slightly. You also see the  lower leg escaping on the lead leg, which also forces the lead arm to extend more than needed to compensate for the swinging lead leg. A better leg action may be all that is needed to correct this. You can push the hips forward when the lead leg straightening out this soon.





Here is Brandon. He's a high school hurdler -- and was a big bender. He has improved since this was shot last year, but this bend is extreme. You lose a lot of push into the hurdle when folding into the hurdle. To his credit, he's doing a great job of keeping the lead leg tucked under, but the bending causes several problems. Bend reduces takeoff power because push off is more upward despite the illusion of lean created by bend. When lean is reduced, you have slower clearances and getaways. Insufficient lean also stresses the hip flexor and hamstring, which also may lead to lateral arm action to compensate for fatigue, weakness or inflexibility in those areas.

Here's Kevin. He was a lead foot swinger, too. But he has a decent lean here and is pushing the hip forward pretty well. Not bending; just not fully extending at knee joint. With better lead leg action, he might have been able to get a lean like Oliver.

Bottom line: triple extension in ankle, knee and hip contributes to better force vectors for more power and faster clearances and getaways.

Note to women: This doesn't apply as much in women's hurdles because the lower height requires less lean. Slight lean is needed -- but again, don't bend.

400H splits

Posted race splits for Carol and Jonathon. Starting this week, we will start working on hitting some target times in practice in preparation for upcoming races (provided we can get outside).

Here is what a 60 would look like (with calm weather):
7.2  4.6  4.7  4.8  4.9  5.1  5.3  5.45  5.65  5.8  6.5

You can work out your own target splits with these percentages of the race time:
12.2  7.7  7.8  8  8.2  8.5  8.8  9.1  9.4  9.7  10.8

For now, I suggest these as target times (I can bring splits to practice):

Jim and Tim 59
Tom and Jon 64
Aaron 67
Carol 72

These are about a second or two better than your previous best this season. Once you do that (or faster), we can keep moving it down. This is to give us some feedback for practice purposes.

Ripon meet: Nate soars to another record

3/24  Nate set school and conference records with his winning jump at 6-4.75 at Ripon. He also had some very close attempts at 6-6.75 (2.00m). Temperatures in the high 50s with light winds also contributed to some other good performances. Emily hurdled to a PR and conference record 15.68 to win her specialty -- with a zero on the wind gauge. Mollie jumped a PR 5-8.25. Jim had a solid win in the 400H, which was noteworthy mostly because he ran a 400 less than an hour before the hurdles.

Nate 6-4.75 (1st PR SR CR)
Joe 5-7 (4th)
Mollie 4-8.25 (3rd PR #4 all time) 19.03 (6th)
Dan NH (5-5)
Emily 15.68 (1st PR CR #2 all time)
Jonathon 17.15 (3rd #5 all time) 65.13 (3rd)
[7.2 5 5 5.1 5.4 5.65 6 6.4 6.4 6.3 6]
Jim 60.82 (1st)
Carol 75.74 (3rd) [8 5.75 5.9 6.1 6.6 6.7 7 7.5 7.1 7.1 7.5]

Nate's best attempt at 6-6.75...



Mollie's 4-8.25 PR...



Emily's 15.68 PR...



Jonathon's entry to H1...

Workouts: 3/19, 3/20, 3/21, 3/22

3/19  Nate and Jerome did a circuit at MU with plyometrics, med ball throws, body weight exercises and some  pickups and stretching all on the turf. On the track, Tim, Mike and Aaron had a good day on the hurdles. Started with some slow speed 33s, working on forward lean and knee-up, toe-up. Moved into a few warm ups over 42s over 2H and then 3x 2H at 42 (-1). Mike and Tim ran splits around 1.2 and Aaron in mid- to upper 1.2s. Went 6 hurdles next, first set at 42, second at 39 (-1.5) -- first set splits were around 1.3 average. Set of 39s were better -- Mike and Tim back in the low 1.2s, Aaron around 1.3. Finished with 5x110 on turf with walk back recovery.

3/20  Nate, Joe, Dan and Mollie worked HJ. Started with some short-approach reps and moved into run-throughs and full jumps -- a couple at starting heights and then 6 jumps at -2" season best. Then took optional jumps at requested heights.

3/21  Emily came out to work some highs. Warmed up, did some easy 3-step and then 4x2. Shut down because of soreness from Monday's sprint workout and a knee that was bothering her. Mollie arrived later and did the 4x2 (-2 33) and then 2x6 (-2 33/30). Held her 3s throughout. Had some nice splits on the shorter reps in the mid-1.2s. Longer reps ranged from mid-1.3s to upper 1.4s. Jonathon did a split workout, running  a couple reps of 2 and one of 4 (1.25 - 1.35 range). They ran into a slight breeze. Worked on getting lead leg down and lowering the arms. Tom, Jim and Carol ran 2x6H (-1 30) and then 3xH6-7-8 (short rec). Tom ran splits in 4.9-5.9 range; Jim 4.7-5.3; Carol 6.0-6.8. Worked on finding rhythm, attacking hurdles and staying relaxed. Jonathon did one 6H rep and then 3xH6-7-8. Splits ranged from 5 to 5.5. Good consistency but some shuffling into hurdles to stay on right lead -- need to be more aggressive and be willing to go oppo when needed. Carol made some improvements in lead leg mechanics and had some nice reps in the turn. Tom, Jim and Carol had a fairly wide split range. Splits will drop off a little as you go along, but only about a tenth or two early. With these times and a race Saturday, we should be able to start mapping out some target times for training and racing. For now, the mission is to stay in rhythm, attack hurdles and stay relaxed while moving fast.

3/22  Aaron did the same 400H workout -- 2x6H, splits ranging from 5.0 - 6.0. Held 15 through 4 or 5 hurdles on left with good technique. Did some change downs to right for 16s at H4 or 5 and got better on the oppo in later reps. Also did the 3x3 turn hurdles with short recovery, with splits in 5.3 - 5.8 range. Finished with some 3-step oppo work at 33 on turf. Shins held up.

Workouts: 3/12, 3/13

3/12  Emily, Tim, Aaron and Mike hurdled at MU. Leah worked out a Kern. Not sure about others. At MU, we did a few 5-step warm up reps over 2H at regular height, then 4x1H, working on stepping up with knee drive and toe up -- no bending. Then, 4x7H (-3' -3"), working on the same things. Emily ran 3x100. Finished with some plyos: single-leg hops (10y), speed bounds (20y), high skips (50y). Important to stretch and/or roll after practice. When we have time, we can do the stretching at the track. If not, do it  back at the Kern or when you get back to dorm/apartment. Doesn't matter when you stretch as long as you get it done, though it's best while you're still warm.

3/13  Joe, Nate, Dan, Mike and Mollie did backovers, short approach takeoffs, run throughs, ramp jumps, opening height jumps (-6 max) and quality jumps (-4 max). Ramp jumps were pretty impressive, Nate going 7-0, Mike and Joe going 6-7, Dan 6-0, Mollie 5-4 (ok, there was a little sag, but fun to see the high flying).

Workouts: 3/5, 3/6, 3/7

3/5  Jonathon: 10x 3 7-step 33s at 15-relative spacing over 40m followed by 80m jog, 40m walk.

3/6  Joe, Nate and Dan jumped for 45 minutes -- an endurance jumping session aimed at bringing more speed to the approach and planting at the correct angle. Jerome had to leave at 5, so he didn't get as many jumps, but we squeezed the curve a bit more, bringing him in to 14 feet to help his plant and rotation. Mollie didn't arrive until 5, but she had some nice jumps, holding her lean into the curve and staying away from the bar on the plant.

3/7  Emily, Tom, Tim and Carol ran at MU. Not enough hurdles out there to do all we wanted, but we improvised and got done what we needed to do. Emphasis was more on technique and endurance. Emily did 8x 5H (-3" -3'), then 3x110 fast but relaxed. Tim and Carol did 4x5H and then joined Tom for 2x 1-2-3 walk to 4, run 5-6-7. Then, 2x start at 7 and run 8-9-10 + finish on last one.

UNF meet: Mike, Tim set PRs; Nate gets outdoor record

3/2-3  Mike and Tim set 110H PRs on Friday. Emily ran both 100 and 100H -- converted 80%. On Saturday,  Nate got bars at 6 and 6-2, tying the school outdoor record. Opening height was higher than PRs for both Jerome and Joe. First 400H race of the year had mixed results, but Tim got a PR.

Mike 16.58 (PR #3 all time) 65.29
Tim 16.83 (PR #4 all time) 60.52 (PR #6 all time)
Aaron 17.72 (#8 all time) 69.15
Tom 66.10
Jim 60.26
Emily 15.92
Mollie 19.93
Joe NH
Nate 6-2 (SR)
Jerome NH

NAC Indoor: Emily, Nate get titles, records

2/25  Quite a day for Emily, broke her school and conference in 60H prelims and then obliterated it in the final. She also was named outstanding female athlete, having won PV and 200 as well. Nate had a great debut, winning the conference HJ title and breaking the record Mike set just two weeks ago, setting up our 1-2 finish. We also had some PRs and a number of scoring performances.

Emily 8.72/8.60 (1st SR CR MR PR #1 all time)
Mollie 4-7.5 (8th) 10.34
Nate 6-3.5 (1st SR #1 all time)
Mike 6-1.5 (2nd) 8.35/10.34
Tim 8.67/8.46 (4th = PR #3 all time)
Jonathon 8.67/8.66 (7th PR #5 all time)
Aaron 8.80 (PR #8 all time)
Jim 9.30
Joe 5-9.75 (T8th)
Jerome 5-7.75 (#10 all time)
Dan 5-5.75

Complete results

Videos:



Mollie's clearance at 4-7.5. Leaning in a bit at takeoff and snapping too soon, but her approach was good and she had enough lift to get it.



Nate's best attempt at the NAC meet record.



Emily setting her school, meet and conference record. Not much more to do here other than driving that lead  arm more forward and back than across.



Tim and Jonathon in the first section of the finals. Tim gets a little sideways and twisted at times; Jonathan has some "long" arms.

Workouts: 2/21, 2/22

2/21  Nate and Jerome joined the group, following their basketball season. They joined Joe, Dan, Mike and Mollie for tonight's practice. Started off with some circle runs, backovers, run throughs, scissors jumps, full jumps a few inches below best height and then a few jumps either higher or lower, depending on success at early jumps. Many of the jumps were at challenging heights to get a look at some higher bars. Mike and Nate took a few at 6-0 or higher. Joe had some in 5-8 to 5-11 range. Jerome worked around 5-6 to 5-8. Dan in 5-4 to 5-5 area, and Mollie took her jumps around 4-4 to 4-5.

2/22  All hurdlers except Jim were on hand to go 3x3 compressed 3-step warm up, 1-2-3 (-1) and then 2x4H (-1) and 2x1H+finish. Good, crisp workout with quickness and sound technique for most the reps. High jumpers did hurdle mobility, lifting (step ups, hip bridges, jump squats, high pulls), 5 laps ins/outs, stretch/roll.

Early days of hurdling

An early hurdle race. (No, that's not me.)

Hurdles came from the game of English shepherds jumping over sheep pens, which were about 10 yards apart and 42" tall.  or the first hurdles races in England around 1830, wooden barriers were placed along a stretch of 100 yards. Later, in Oxford and Cambridge, the race was standardized to 120 yards with 10 42" hurdles. France changed the race to 110 metres in 1888.

The massive hurdles of the early days were first replaced in 1895 with somewhat lighter T-shaped hurdles that runners were able to knock over. However, until 1935, runners were disqualified if they knocked down more than three hurdles, and records were only recognized if the runner had left all hurdles standing. In 1935, the T-shaped hurdles were replaced by L-shaped ones that easily fall forward if bumped into and therefore reduce the risk of injury.

The current style of stepping over hurdles rather than jumping was first used by Alvin Kraenzlein, a guy from Milwaukee who won the event in the 1900 Olympics.

The 110 meter hurdles have been an Olympic event since 1896. Women ran it occasionally in the 1920s but it wasn't until 1932 that it became a regular event in the Olympics. 

 1928 Olympics.

University of Wisconsin women's hurdle race.

Jonathon, Aaron get PRs at UWM

2/18  Didn't make the top 8, but Jonathon and Aaron had good preparation for their 60H race and came away with PRs of 9.45 (#5 all time) and 9.55 (#6 all time), respectively. Joe finished 4th in HJ at 5-10.5, just .25 under his season best.



Aaron and Jonathon start to first hurdle. Just floating out past the hurdle a bit. Something to work on next week.

Complete results

Emily honored by NAC again

Getting redundant but no less great. Emily took female athlete of the week honors in the conference again with her great performance at Platteville in the hurdles, vault and 200.

Workouts: 2/14, 2/15

2/14  Jim rested his ailing shins, Mike rested his ailing hamstring. Joe, Dan and Mollie jumped. Did u-turns, scissors jumps, high height bungee jumps, box bungee jumps.

2/15  Jim, Tim, Jonathon and Emily worked hurdles. Started with some fly sprints: Tim 8.79 mps, Jim 8.96, Jonathon 9.05, Emily 8.12. Next, some easy 3x3H at regular height (-3 spacing). Then, 3x1 start times (Jim 2.14, Tim PR2.19, Jonathon PR2.21, Emily 2.16. Ended with 3x3H split times (Tim PR1.32, Jonathon PR1.29)

Block clearance

Check out the block clearance here. Very little heel pick up, just stepping over the ankle and nearly dragging the toe on the second step. Excellent extension in the front leg on push out.

Emily wins 60H at Platteville

2/11  Emily hurdled to a PR and broke her own school record with a 9.49 win at UW-Platteville (along with a PR 26.59 win in 200). Mike also hit the record book with his 6-2.75 mark for 2nd in HJ, beating the mark of Alex Raver set in several previous years. He also scored in the hurdles along with Tim. Joe continued a season of strong performances with another good day in HJ, finishing 5th. Jonathan had a good debut in the 60H.

Emily 9.56/9.49 (1st #1 all time)
Mike 6-2.75 (2nd #1 all time) 9.15/9.12 (5th)
Tim  9.17/9.13 (6th #3 all time)
Jonathon 9.48 (#5 all time)
Aaron 9.71 (#8 all time)
Jim 9.60 NH
Joe 5-10.75 (5th)

Complete results


Jim and Jonathon in prelims. Jim's leaning back a bit on entry and exit, which slows things down. Big, wide sweeping arm is causing shoulder rotation at landing, causing an unneeded twist. Keep an aggressive attack angle and keep the shoulders forward at landing. Lead arm needs to move forward and back. Jonathon looks pretty good for a first race, just sitting back a bit coming off the hurdle. Positioning and alignment is good.


Tim and Aaron in prelims. Tim is overstriding a bit, which explains the flat-footed slapping we sometimes hear. Aaron is leaning back a bit at first hurdle and the lead arm is wrapping much too far to his left, causing some twisting coming off the hurdle. Landing has some backward lean. Need to keep shoulders forward and   aggressively drive the lead leg back and down to the track under the hip.


Mike makes a great attempt at 6-4.75. Had the hip height. Didn't quite hold the bend long enough. Had he been able to invert instead of folding, that bar would have been cleared. Excellent lean into turn.


Tim and Mike in finals. Tim is out well. Mike is sitting back on takeoff and trail leg is getting through a bit too early. Need a more aggressive attack angle and not rush the trail leg. Get a good split into hurdle and focus on lead leg speed not trail leg speed.


Emily overcomes an early deficit to take command in this race.

Workouts: 2/7, 2/8

2/7  High jumpers did circle runs, circle runs into scissors, full approach ramp jumps and full approach jumps. Emphasized leaning into turn, blocking (with ramp), clearance mechanics. Most got more than a dozen jumps. Dan's hamstring kept him out. Mike split time with PV. Jim, Joe and Mollie did all their jumps.

2/8  Jim, Tim, Jonathan and Emily did 3x3H extended 5-step; 1-2-3-2-1H progression; 2-3x extended starts over 3H; 2-3x 4H (-H2). Emily posted a PR 8.62 mps fly.

2/9  Aaron did a workout similar to what the group did yesterday but with fewer reps to protect the shins. Also worked on the lead arm, trying to get it to track more forward and back than side to side. Good session. Attacked the hurdles well. Had some splits in mid-1.2s ht.

Emily takes 3rd NAC athlete of week award

Emily was named Northern Athletics Conference female track and field athlete of the week for the third time this season. The only week she hasn't won was the week she didn't compete. That's how good a season she is having. Well deserved again, setting a conference and school record in the 55H as well as getting second in 200 and third in vault. Add a Raider of the Week award as well.

Lines and angles

It's always a good idea to study videos of others doing your event. Below is a clip of a high jumper that demonstrates that straight line from left ankle, knee, shoulder and head. Stop it on the plant and you will see that. Also note how much lower that left shoulder is than the right (staying in the turn), and while the foot is fairly close to the bar, see how far away the head and shoulders remain from the bar at the plant. You also will see where the plant foot is pointed (back corner) and how hard it plants, blocking against the speed of the run and vaulting the jumper upward. Those steps leading into the plant have a classic, low heel recovery. Also note how he keeps his head back on clearance.

Parkside: Emily breaks record; multiple PRs

2/4 At UW-Parkside.

Great day for hurdlers. Emily broke the school and conference record in the 55H, knocking about a tenth off her previous PR with an 8.78 to win the event following her 8.98 prelim. She broke Catherine Chappell's record set four years ago -- almost to the day. Mike ran a PR 8.32 and 8.41 prelim, finishing 3rd. Tim made the final, finishing 7th with 8.72/8.73. Aaron returned to the track and posted a PR 8.83, good for 7th on MSOE's all-time list. Jim made the list, too, posting a PR 8.93. In HJ, Joe had a strong performance, equaling his season best of 5-10.75, good for 2nd. Dan only managed 5-3, but that was good enough for 5th.

Emily 8.98/8.78 (1st #1 all time)
Mike 8.41/8.32 (2nd #2 all time)
Tim 8.72/8.73 (6th)
Aaron 8.83 (#7 all time)
Jim 8.93 (#10 all time)
Joe 5-10.75 (2nd)
Dan 5-3 (5th)


Emily's start -- on her way to a record-breaking performance.


Tim and Mike in prelim. Major braking forces on Mike's getaway step. Note how far in front it lands ahead of hip. You can see shock going right up the leg from the braking action occurring.


Joe demonstrating how to bend it.

Workouts: 1/31, 2/1, 2/2

1/31  I was ill, so I didn't make HJ practice. Worked run throughs and ramp jumps off full run, working plant and clearance.

2/1  Mike and Jim worked extended 5-step technical runs over 3H. Jim worked on tightening the trail leg with good success. Mike worked on extending the trail leg more to the side and getting the lead leg down sooner. We also did some work on start mechanics. Worked 1-2-3-2-1-2-3-4 and then 4x1. Emily worked 3x3H extended 5-step, 1-2-3-2-1 and then 3x3H (extended start) and 3x4H (-H2). Mollie did the 5-step work, attempted some extended 5-step but then we switched to a 9/4-step rep before returning to some 8/3-step reps over 2-3H.

2/2  Jonathan and Tim did some extended 5-step over 3H. Tim worked 1-2-3-2-1 and then 4-3-2-1, focusing primarily on squaring up and attacking from a taller position, ended with a couple reps over 39 to focus on faster rhythm. Jonathan progressed well, having been out for as long as he has. Got some benchmark times on max velocity (8.5 mps), 30m acceleration (4.34), H1 start (2.21), H split (1.32). Had some nice ht splits (-1) around 1.2. Excellent conversion between top speed and split time (89%). Worked in some block technique. Hurdle mechanics were solid.

Emily named NAC track athlete of week again

Emily was recognized by NAC for her outstanding performance at UW-Whitewater in 60H, pole vault and 200. She picked up a couple of third place finishes and a fifth in a large and competitive field. (She sat out the Dubuque meet this weekend to give someone else a chance.)

Dubuque: Mike again nears HJ mark

1/28  Mike had another day of running between pole vault, high jump and hurdles. Despite passing his jumps at 6-0.75 to go hurdle, he returned for a couple of jumps at 6-2.75, resulting in near misses. His clearance at 5-10.75 was still good for 7th. Dan cleared at PR 5-7. Emily missed bus. Tim was a no show.

Mike 5-10.75 (7th); 8.53
Jim 5-5; 12.13 (fell)
Dan 5-7 (PR = #9 all time)

Complete results

Workouts: 1/24, 1/25

Cutting back this week to allow for additional recovery.

1/24  High jumpers worked through a pre-meet warm up, starting at 5-0 and continuing until 3 misses at the final height. Joe and Mike cleared 5-10, Jim cleared 5-6 and Dan 5-4. Mollie started at 4-0 and cleared 4-4. Everyone took about 9 jumps total.

1/25  Jim, Tim, Mike, Emily and Mollie trained over hurdles doing pre-meet warm up, including 3x3 5-step, 1-2-3-2-1 and then 1x4 (-1). Everyone had good reps. Ht split ranges: Emily 1.2-1.3; Jim 1.25-1.35; Tim 1.25-1.3; Mike 1.25-1.3; Mollie 1.4-1.5. Aaron did a shin-friendly workout instead. Stretching, rolling.

PR practice metrics

In order: short fly (meters per second); 30 accel; H start; H split (auto times).

Mike Cosentino: 9.05; 4.05; 2.04; 1.27
Aaron Rick: 8.85; 4.23; 2.21
Jim Franke: 9.14; 4.32; 2.18; 1.43
Tim Lang: 9.55; 4.03; 2.21
Emily Dieringer: 8.41; 4.63; 2.08; 1.29
Mollie Zuberbier: 7.65; 4.92; 2.25; 1.43

Retired
Kevin Diederich: 9.86; 3.88; 2.02; 1.20
Eric Hein: 9.40; 4.33; 2.20; 1.39
Karly Nehls: 7.94; 4.85; 2.19; 1.34

Emily, Tim make 60H final; Mike scores again in HJ

1/21 At Whitewater. Men finished 2nd of 13, women 7th of 10.

Emily 9.72/9.82 (3rd)
Tim 9.21/9.35 (7th)
Mike 9.42; 6-0.75 (T4th = #3 all time)
Jim 9.57 ; 5-7 (=9 all time)
Aaron 11.93 (fell)
Joe 5-8.75

Complete results

Emily...



Aaron and Jim...

Emily named NAC women's track athlete of week

Emily was selected Northern Athletics Conference Student-Athlete of the Week for women's indoor track and field for her performance at the Private College Invitational this past Saturday in Kenosha. She won the 200 in 27.08 and placed second in 55H at 8.91 and was sixth in pole vault at 3.03 meters.

Carol also was named NAC Student-Athlete of the Week, but in women's basketball, for her performance during the past week of action. She had two double-doubles on the week and grabbed her 1,000th career rebound in a win over Rockford last Tuesday. She will rejoin the track team following completion of the basketball season. Never gets any rest. She also was a member of the tennis team.

Workouts: 1/16, 1/17, 1/18

1/16  Aaron warmed up but hurting shins limited him to some no-impact interval work on aerobic equipment. Mike had some soreness but that dissipated during the workout. Ran 3x3H xtended 5-step at 42; ran 1-2-3-2-1H 42; ran H1-3 xtended start (39 R); ran H1 (-H2) to H4 (39 R); ran 3x4H up/back (39 -3); stretch/roll. Splits were in 1.05-1.23h range (39 R). Target is sub-1.25.

1/17  Jim and Joe warmed up and did 6 RTs. Jim worked in 5-3 to 5-5 range; Joe worked in 5-5 to 5-7 range with full approach. Did 6x 6-step jumps working on some technical issues. Finished with some box jumps and step ups. Stretching/rolling.

1/18  Tim and Jim did full warm up with 3x3H xtended 5-step and 1-2-3-2-1H (42), then 4-3-2-1H (-1 42). Finished with 3x4H up/back (-3 39). Tim posted ht splits in 1.2-1.3 range. Jim 1.3-1.4. Emily did the same (33 but 30 up/back). Mollie worked nearly all reps over 2H (-3 to -1, some at 33, some 30). Emily's ht splits were around 1.2. Mollie around 1.3.

Emily gets fast start to indoor season at Carthage

1/14 Opening day. Always exciting and unpredictable. Emily had quite a day, missing her PR by just .02, running 8.99/8.91 for 2nd in a quality field in 55H. On the men's side, Mike had a rough outing, banging through H3 and H4, leading to a 4-step H5 and 9.32. Aaron ran a clean race, managing 9.44. Men's HJ pulled in 6 team points, with Mike leading the way with a jump of 6-0 3/4 (= #3 all time) for 5th, narrowly missing a school record height at 6-2 3/4. Joe was 7th at 5-8 3/4. Dan had a good first-ever HJ competition, clearing 5-5.

Complete results


Mike taking a too long plant step into takeoff. Getting that step quicker will help get more vertical and less travel.


Joe leaning in a bit on this one but shows that great rotation and curl around the bar on this clearance.


Emily shows great technique and consistency here.


Dan jumping at 5-7. Jumping toward bar but a pretty good attempt for first meet ever high jumping.

Workouts: 1/9, 1/10, 1/11

1/9  Tim and Aaron did pre-race warm up and then 2x4H (one at 42, one at 39, both -1). Next, 3x2H (42, 42, 39) and then 1x1H. Finished with 4x4H up/back 3-step (39 -3) 45 sec rec. Hurdle stretches. Tim's starts were 2.21/2.22a; Aaron's 2.28/2.26a. Hurdle splits were in 1.2-1.3h for both.

1/10  Dan, Jim, Joe and Mollie jumped. Worked pre-meet warm up, including 5x RT, 3x short approach jumps and a couple opening height jumps. Did about 3 more at opening height and then about 3 at +2. Jim went to LJ, Joe took about 3 at +4 (5-7). Dan at 5-5. Mollie worked in 4-0 to 4-4 range off 11-47 mark. Dan took a bunch of short range, 3-4 step popovers to work on a quicker last step. Also worked on dropping the head back a bit more.

1/11  Jim did pre-race warm up and then a few extra reps from blocks to H1 and then 4H at 42 (-1). Trail leg and overall fluidity through hurdles was much better than last week. Emily worked a pre-race warm up and then 3x3H xtended start (30 R) and 3x4H (-H2 30 R). Better hand-time splits were around 1.2. Mollie's first hurdle workout consisted of a few reps over H1. Also worked on starts out to 5 steps, all hitting the mark, and then 6 steps, coming up 4 to 8 inches short of the mark. More work on that next time.

Workouts: 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6

1/3  HJ. Worked on pre-meet warm up. After RTs, took a few short approach jumps, working on plant and layout. Took up to a dozen full approach jumps, beginning at starting height and then going up 2" on makes and down 1" on misses. Packed away pit and then did 3x10 step ups with 7k medball on each leg, working in some box drop jumps / hops.

1/4  Emily's warm up included pre-race prep: 3x3 33 xtended 5step; 1H (std), 2H (3pt -1), 3H (blk -1), 2H (blk R), 1H (blk). Then 4-3-2-1 (30 -1). Ended with 4x4 3step (30 -1). Targeted splits in 1.2 -1.25 ht range. All were in 1.2-1.28 range.

1/5  Jim, Tim and Aaron did pre-race prep similar to Emily's but not the up/backs. Jim's ht splits ranged from 1.29 to 1.39; Tim 1.23 to 1.33; Aaron 1.25 to 1.43 -- a bit uneven. Looking to make things more consistent toward the fast end of those ranges. Aaron ended with kettlebell lifts / box jumps. Jim and Tim will lift Friday. Foam roll.

1/6  Mike did the same workout, including up/backs. Ht splits on 42s were in mid- to high 1.2s. Splits on 39s were about the same, except for a particularly good one in 1.16, a much better attack. Ended with stretching/rolling.