Week 22 workouts

3/30 MU. Joe, Spencer, Chris, Matt, Kasey, Des and Jess were there. We rushed a bit to beat the rain (nearly) and the La Crosse team, which came back out just after we left. Warm up was quick -- a lap jog followed by 3x1H up/back at about 10-20-30 meters. Main part of workout was 3x first three hurdles (115m) cruising (140m) into an attack to H7-8-9 (70m) on 8-10 min recovery. Most were near pace for first three, which was tough into wind and later rain, despite pulling them in a bit. Attack on final three was good, everyone was clean through those.

3/31 KC. Alex was the lone early starter. Worked some backovers off box and some short approach ramp jumps before taking a lot of fulls over 4-10 bungee. Levi had a sore ankle but took a few jumps around 5-10. Nate took his jumps around 6-2. Jerome around 6-7. Kasey around 4-10 but had some knee issues that cropped up last week. As part of "high jump appreciation day" guest jumpers Joe, Matt, Des and Jess did some backovers off the box and then some 4-step jumps. Matt and Des were doing pretty well. Joe and Jess, well, they're good hurdlers. Des stuck around and did some fulls around 4-4. Hurdlers did power circuit.

4/2 MU. Joe, Chris, Matt and Jess were out on this great day with mid-60s and sun and wind at our backs. Warm up of turf jog, hurdle mobility, leg swings, 50m stride-jog-pickup, 15m accel, 2H turf hurdles at close spacing. Main part of workout was 3x10H at decreasing spacing (-1, -2, -3) with 10 min recovery. Everyone made 3s, and we had some good technical improvements on some reps. Main emphasis, though, was just to maintain consistent rhythm and stride pattern throughout.

Week 21 workouts

3/23 KC. Hurdlers did a circuit.
16x Jumping jacks

08x Squat jacks
Hurdle mobility (alternating, same leg L+R, side L+R, over/under L+R)
08x Russian box (4 L + 4 R)
08x Glute-ham raise
04x Trap-bar deadlift (moderate weight)
08x Box drive (switching legs for height)
??x Max push ups (as many as you can do)
08x KB step ups (4 L + 4 R, moderate to light weight)
04x Tuck jump
08x KB swings (moderate weight)
08x Scissor jump (4 L + 4 R)
08x KB goblet squat (moderate weight)
04x Squat jump
08x KB single-leg deadlift (4 L + 4 R, light weight)
04x Lunge jump (4 L +4 R)
08x KB lunge walk (4 L + 4 R, light weight)
04x Standing long jump
08x Plank jacks (plank position, legs out/in)
08x Scorpion (4 L + 4 R)
08x Bends (down dog; baby cobra)

Chris and Matt did some technical work on high hurdle issues. Progress was good on 36-inch hurdles run at moderate speed on women's marks.

3/25 KC. Jess, Des and Levi trained early. Joe, Matt, Chris, Spencer late. Warm up consisted of 50-50 jump rope, skips and swings. 3x3H at -5. 4x4H (-3" height w, -1' spacing m). 1-2x H1 for 400H. 5x3H relative spacing followed by 80m jog and 40m walk. 3x8-10 KB series: swings, split squats, step ups. Stretch/roll.

3/26 KC. Spencer, Nate, Jerome, Kasey and Alex jumped. Did a couple rounds of 3 short approach jumps to work on some technical issues and then carried that into 3 rounds of 3 fulls. Kasey and Alex were jumping at 4-6, 4-8, 4-10 on their respective rounds, Kasey clearing 4-10 twice and Alex coming very close once. Spencer worked at 5-8. Nate's rounds were 5-10, 6-0, 6-2. Jerome jumped 6-2 then 6-5.

3/27 KC. Joe, Matt, Levi, Des, Jess, Becki and later, Spencer practiced high hurdles. Warm up of circles, swings and high-knee work. 3x3 (-3" -4') 3-step. 3x1 starts with 15y finish. 3x4 (-3"w, -1' men). 3x5 bench and reverse leg press. Stretch/roll. Becki worked on the side, learning basic hurdle technique. Everyone had some good reps, continuing to make some progress on fixing some mechanics.

Memphis: Great weather, great performances

3/21 Memphis, TN. Joe had two great hurdle races and the team turned in 8 all-time top 10 performances at the Rhodes Invitational, which included a large number of teams, including some DI athletes. Jerome had the group's top finish with a 3rd in HJ (6-6). Joe had a 4th in 110H (15.43) and 5th in 400H (56.47). Joe's 400H race had great distribution, within a tenth for each hurdle split and only one oppo, holding 15 though turn and changing down on H8. Weather was 60s, overcast with almost no wind.

Jerome 6-6 (3rd) 4 jumps
Joe 15.43 (4th), 56.47 (5th)
Kasey 4-10.25 (T14th) 5 jumps PR 75.70 (15th #5 all time)
Alex 4-4.25 (T33rd) 4 jumps
Jessica 74.44 (13th #4 all time) 17.52 (14th #4 all time)
Matt 18.57 (16th) 62.91 (18th)
Desarae 19.57 (24th) 78.13 (18th #8 all time)
Levi 16.82 (9th #8 all time) 5-10 (17th =#10 all time) 57.80 (10th #5 all time)
Spencer PR 5-10 (19th =#10 all time) 6 jumps 17.73 (14th) 66.72 (23rd)
Chris 19.07 (17th) 60.16 (14th #8 all time)

Other events: Joe, Matt and Chris joined Cody in 4x1 (45.11). Des and Jess joined Adriana and Kathryn for 4x1 (55.07). Alex 200 (33.60). Levi JT (132-4). Spencer JT (109-8).

Default workouts

When you need to train on your own, use these workouts:

High jump - Kern Center

1. General warm up (swings, strides, skips, etc.)
2. General ground work (takeoff skips, circle runs, pop turns, etc.)
3. Pit exercises (arches, backovers, flips, etc.)
4. Short-approach, focused jumps (plant angle, attack, layout, etc.) (3-6x)
5. Run throughs (3-6x)
6. Full jumps (6-9x)
7. Flexibility

High hurdles - Kern Center

1. General warm up (swings, strides, skips)
2. Sprint warm up (pick ups, accelerations)
3. Hurdle drills (5 step, 1 step or ½ space quick 3s)
4. Hurdle speed (starts over 1 to 4 hurdles)
5. Hurdle conditioning (up/back or quick turnarounds)
6. Stretch and roll

400 hurdles

Kern Center

1. General warm up (swings, strides, skips)
2. Sprint warm up (pick ups, accelerations)
3. Hurdle warm up (1H up/back of increasing run-in distance)
4. Hurdle race modeling (10x3H relative spacing* -- walk around recovery)
5. Hurdle conditioning (5x up/back 2H at random spacing, 1 min rest, relaxed speed)
6. Stretch and roll

* Set hurdles on black marks labeled 15, 17 or 19, depending on your pattern.

OR

Viets Field (take 4 plastic hurdles out to field)

1. General warm up (swings, strides, skips)
2. Sprint warm up (pick ups, accelerations)
3. Hurdle warm up (3x 1H up/back of increasing run-in distance)
4. Hurdle race modeling (3-5x 2H up/back close to regular spacing)*
5. Hurdle oppo work (3-5x 4H -- 7-8 steps apart for 3-step)

* H1 3 steps past second dark line; H2 3 steps in from third dark line. Start at white endlines.

Circuit

1. 50-50 Jump rope (or imitation jump rope - 50 double leg, 50 alternating leg)
2. Hurdle mobility (alternating, same leg L+R, side L+R, over/under L+R)
3. 08x Russian box (4 L + 4 R)
4. 08x Glute-ham raise
5. 04x Trap-bar deadlift (moderate weight)
6. 08x Box drive (switching legs for height)
7. ??x Max push ups (as many as you can do)
8. 08x KB step ups (4 L + 4 R, moderate to light weight)
9. 04x Tuck jump
10. 08x KB swings (moderate weight)
11. 08x Scissor jump (4 L +4 R)
12. 08x KB goblet squat (moderate weight)
13. 04x Squat jump
14. 08x KB single-leg deadlift (4 L + 4 R, light weight)
15. 04x Lunge jump (4 L +4 R)
16. 08x KB lunge walk (4 L + 4 R, light weight)
17. 04x Standing long jump
18. 08x Plank jacks (plank position, legs out/in)
19. 08x Scorpion (4 L + 4 R)
20. 08x Bends (down dog > baby cobra)

Week 20 workouts

3/16 MU. Great weather. Upper 60s, breezy. Warm up of jog around turf, hurdle mobility, swings, up/back hurdles at 5, 10, 20, 30. H1, H2, H3, H4 at race pace. With hurdles into wind, we pulled them in 2-3 feet. Targeted paces: Joe 56, Matt and Chris 60, Jess 70, Des and Kasey 74. Nearly everyone was at or near pace and patterns were fairly consistent. 4x3H on turn at regular space. Some of those reps had some oppos and other issues, but the reps got better at end. Stretched. Joe and Matt ran 15 pattern, Chris 17, Jess and Kasey were 18 and Des 19.

3/17 KC. Alex, Spencer and Nate jumped in the early shift with Jerome, Kasey and Levi jumping later. Early group took 8 jumps in 2 up, 1 down format. Late group got about 6-7 jumps. Jerome worked on a bent drive leg and cleared 6-3 with this new technique that should enable him get a better vertical along with better rotation around the bar and less travel. Going to take some time to adjust to this. Spencer used his arms -- all the time -- and got a couple 5-8 bars. Nate got a 6-1 bar and Levi 5-9, finding a bit more speed and consistency on the ground. Still jumping in too much, but the groundwork is getting better. Kasey got a couple 4-9 bars and Alex had a good go at 4-8.

3/18 KC. Levi and Holly were in early. Joe started late. In between, Spencer, Matt, Chris, Des and Jess trained together. Warmed up with 50-50 jump rope, hip mobility, skips and strides. 5x4H 5-step of increasing height as reps progressed. 2x2x4H quick turnaround reps (30 women, -1 men). Outside on turf for 3x75y max velocity reps. 3x4-5 bench press and reverse leg press. Stretch/roll. Jerome did default circuit.

DIII Nationals: Jerome finishes tied for 10th

3/15 Winston-Salem, NC. Jerome opened at 1.94, clearing on his first jump, and also made 1.99 (6-6.25) on his first jump before missing three times at 2.04 (6-8.25), which would have had him in the mix for the top 8. First one at 2.04 was best, which wobbled off after he landed in the pit. One below was the final jump at 2.04.

Week 19 workouts

3/9 VF. A little more snow on the field than we would have liked, but temperature was near 50 and little breezy. Warm up included joint rotations, skips, strides, back and forth hurdle. 3xH1 +w. Set up some target times but emphasis was getting to takeoff on preferred leg. 3x2H down and back with about 20m run in, working on stride pattern between hurdles -- also with target times but with the wind, trainers and turf, we were lucky if we were close. Those who had been running high hurdles indoors definitely had a bit of an edge on hurdle technique. Some had good oppos. Finished up with 3x4H 3-step oppos at 8 yards men, 7 yards women. Inside, kettlebell swings, goblet squat, single-leg deadlifts, lunge walk, step up. Plyometric double-leg hops, single-leg hops, high skips, long skips. Stretching -- down dog, child's pose, baby cobra, wall calf stretch, inverted hamstring stretch.

3/10 KC. Alex and Spencer started at 4. Kasey, Jerome and Levi around 5. Individual warm up and then some work on technical issues. Spencer worked on arm drive, Alex holding takeoff angle (not turning on ground) with quicker arm drive, Kasey strengthening her arm drive and shortening the curve (moved back a foot), Jerome maintaining plant angle and stronger vertical, and Levi running more upright with knee drive and more speed. Some did some short approach work, some did bungee bars and some did some regular bars around opening height to a few higher bars.

3/11 KC. High hurdle training with Joe, Levi, Chris, Spencer, Matt, Jessica, [x] and Desarae. Warm up included jump rope, hip mobility, skips and strides. Drill work included 3x3H 3-step and then 3x7H speedbuilders up to -2 spacing (30/39). High-speed work was 3-4x4H at -1 (30/42). Strength and power work included band hip thrusts, lead and trail leg cycles. 2x6-10 KB hip thrusts, speed jerks, split squat w/elevated front leg, scissors jumps (unweighted). Stretch/roll.

Carthage: Jerome moves to #7 in DIII

3/6 Kenosha. Despite illness, Jerome solidified his position as a national qualifier by jumping 6-9.75 on his first attempt and winning the event. He started at 6-4, making that height as well as 6-6 on his first jump. One miss at 6-8 before clearing that height. After the 6-9.75, he tried three jumps at 6-10.75 with a couple close ones. Joe ran 55H, going 7.98 in prelims after hitting the fourth hurdle, coming off sideways and going into H5 off line. In finals, he hit H1, losing some rhythm and hitting a few more after that, finishing 5th in 8.05. Went for broke, just couldn't react quick enough at the first hurdle to handle the extra speed, which likely brought him too close.


Jerome's jump that qualified him for DIII nationals.


Spectacular crash in this one. Fortunately, Joe was not involved.

3-year-graph of Joe's 60H races

Converting 55H to 60H, here are all the indoor high hurdle races Joe has run in the past three years -- evidence of how much he has done to improve his race.

Week 18 workouts

3/3 KC. Joe, Levi and Jerome trained while most others were home on break. Jerome and Levi did high jump warm up and backovers, followed by run throughs, a few scissors jumps and some full jumps. Levi then joined Joe who completed his warm up. Together, they did tandem starts over 1-2-3-4 at regular height and in a foot. Joe ran hand-time splits consistently in low 1.1s.

NACC: Title for Jerome, record for Joe, lots of PRs

2/28 Kenosha. Raiders came up big in high jump at hurdles at the 2015 NACC indoor championships. Jerome started at 1.93 and had first-jump clearances there and at 1.98 and 2.03 (6-8) before trying 2.07 where he had three good attempts, especially the final one. Joe tied the MSOE 55H record with his PR 7.72 in the final, which was 3rd in a tough field. Other place winners included Nate, who had virtually no practice but managed a tie for 4th in HJ with his 6-2 jump. On the women's side, Kasey and Alex both jumped 4-9.5 for 3rd and 4th, respectively. Jess picked up a 5th in 55H with her PR 9.34/9.39, and Matt an 8th place with his PR 8.70/8.50.

Jerome 6-8 (1st) 6 jumps

Joe 7.88/7.72 (3rd SR #1 all time)

Kasey 4-9.5 (3rd) 8 jumps

Alex 4-9.5 (4th PR #6 all time) 12 jumps
Nate 6-2 (T4th) 9 jumps

Jessica 9.34/9.39 (5th PR #3 all time)

Matt 8.70/8.50 (8th PR #6 all time)

Desarae 9.95/10.05 (9th PR #7 all time)

Levi 8.78 (10th) 5-10 (11th #10 all time)

Spencer 8.99 (11th) 5-8 (13th PR) 5 jumps

Chris 9.21 (13th)

Other events: Joe won 200 (22.65). Jess, Des and Kasey teamed up with Adriana to run a school record 4x4 (Jess 30.7/34.7; Des 30.8/36.5; Kasey 32/36.3). Logan took 5th in 200 (23.84) and 8th in 400 (53.84). 

Complete results


Joe's record-tying 55H


Matt's #6 all-time 55H


Alex's #6 all-time HJ