Kasey: 8 / 26 /50
Brad: 13 / 27 / 55
Annika: 8 / 26 /48
Jana: 8 / 26 / 49
Madeline: 8 / 27 /52
Alex: 8 / 25 / 47
Matt: 13 / 26 / 52
Jerome: 13 / 27 / 60
Mike: 13 / 26 / 53
Mollie: 8 / 27 / 52
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Monday, December 2, 2013
Workouts: 12/2, 12/3, 12/5, 12/6
12/2 At KC. Set a record for most women at an MSOE hurdle practice -- 6! Kasey, Nathalie, Mollie, Annika, Zuzka and Jana. Circles and swings followed by deadlifts (130-150#), rebound jumps, pushups. 4x 4-step power hurdles into 2 1-steps with runoff. 4x 4-step block starts into 22" hurdle. 4x 6-step block starts into 22"H. Also did some oppo work with 3x3 27s at 22' off 4-step power. Finished with band work.
12/3 At KC. Another record tonight -- most high jumpers at one MSOE practice --10! Kasey, Brad, Annika, Jana, Madeline, Alex, Matt, Mollie, Jerome and Mike. Everyone did standard warm up activities and then about 6 run throughs, some with scissors jumps. Shifted to some 8" ramp jumps off 4-step, 6-step and full approach. Most jumped 15-20x, working on plant angle and layout. Everyone had good jumps from time to time, and Mike had solid, consistent jumps with nice rotation every time. Jerome started finding his rhythm and plant angle later on and, of course, was up there around 7-0 on the bungee. Kasey moved her approach back a foot and that helped her speed through the turn. Looking for more consistent layouts. Brad only took a few jumps to avoid re-injuring his leg. Annika and Jana did very well for their first night with full-speed jumps. Jana was getting nice vertical and rotation around the bar at the end when she started to keep her head back a bit longer. Matt was similar. Once he started keeping the head back, he was able to improve his rotation around the bar and had some nice jumps. Annika was good when she brought the speed through the turn. Alex with a class at 5 didn't get as many jumps, but her approaches were consistent and the jumps she got were good. Mollie coming in after 5 didn't get as many jumps, either, but she also improved her layout at times and showed good consistency in the approach. Madeline had great rotation around the bar but will need to improve approach speed, which will help her lean into the turn more and avoid jumping into the bar. All in all, it was a very good night. We got a lot of jumping and made a few corrections. Finished off with some special exercises, including one-leg box jumps, rim jumps, stair jumps, medball ups (doubles and singles). Stretched.
12/5 At KC. Joe did circles, swings, stride drills, over/unders and a strength series with deadlifts (190), box ankle pops and elevated push ups. Hurdle walkovers, sideovers, skipovers. 6x6-step power hurdle into 2 1-step hurdles (33). Block work 4-step, 6-step, 8-step -- all at 27. 3x4H (-1 27) with ht splits around 1.15. Major points of emphasis were: alignment, posture, lead leg fold, lead leg cut down and left arm (lead) pulling back with elbow in. Made good corrections on those items. Will try to maintain those improvements at higher heights next time. Finished with band work and stretching.
12/6 At KC. Matt, Brad and Nate warmed up and then did walkovers, sideovers and skipovers (reg and oppo). Worked 6-step power with runoff. Worked blocks to 4-step (22), 6-step (27) and then 8-step (30-33). Band work. Stretching/rolling. Nate was much improved -- better takeoff point and hurdle mechanics as a result. Matt worked a bit on amplitude of arms off the line and turnover into H1. Brad worked on changing head position at "set" (looking back to feet) to avoid popping up on step 1. His reps were limited because of his previously injured leg tightening up. Good practice -- maxed out speed, hit the step and takeoff targets, and had good aggressiveness. Ready to move up a notch next time and add another hurdle.
12/3 At KC. Another record tonight -- most high jumpers at one MSOE practice --10! Kasey, Brad, Annika, Jana, Madeline, Alex, Matt, Mollie, Jerome and Mike. Everyone did standard warm up activities and then about 6 run throughs, some with scissors jumps. Shifted to some 8" ramp jumps off 4-step, 6-step and full approach. Most jumped 15-20x, working on plant angle and layout. Everyone had good jumps from time to time, and Mike had solid, consistent jumps with nice rotation every time. Jerome started finding his rhythm and plant angle later on and, of course, was up there around 7-0 on the bungee. Kasey moved her approach back a foot and that helped her speed through the turn. Looking for more consistent layouts. Brad only took a few jumps to avoid re-injuring his leg. Annika and Jana did very well for their first night with full-speed jumps. Jana was getting nice vertical and rotation around the bar at the end when she started to keep her head back a bit longer. Matt was similar. Once he started keeping the head back, he was able to improve his rotation around the bar and had some nice jumps. Annika was good when she brought the speed through the turn. Alex with a class at 5 didn't get as many jumps, but her approaches were consistent and the jumps she got were good. Mollie coming in after 5 didn't get as many jumps, either, but she also improved her layout at times and showed good consistency in the approach. Madeline had great rotation around the bar but will need to improve approach speed, which will help her lean into the turn more and avoid jumping into the bar. All in all, it was a very good night. We got a lot of jumping and made a few corrections. Finished off with some special exercises, including one-leg box jumps, rim jumps, stair jumps, medball ups (doubles and singles). Stretched.
12/5 At KC. Joe did circles, swings, stride drills, over/unders and a strength series with deadlifts (190), box ankle pops and elevated push ups. Hurdle walkovers, sideovers, skipovers. 6x6-step power hurdle into 2 1-step hurdles (33). Block work 4-step, 6-step, 8-step -- all at 27. 3x4H (-1 27) with ht splits around 1.15. Major points of emphasis were: alignment, posture, lead leg fold, lead leg cut down and left arm (lead) pulling back with elbow in. Made good corrections on those items. Will try to maintain those improvements at higher heights next time. Finished with band work and stretching.
12/6 At KC. Matt, Brad and Nate warmed up and then did walkovers, sideovers and skipovers (reg and oppo). Worked 6-step power with runoff. Worked blocks to 4-step (22), 6-step (27) and then 8-step (30-33). Band work. Stretching/rolling. Nate was much improved -- better takeoff point and hurdle mechanics as a result. Matt worked a bit on amplitude of arms off the line and turnover into H1. Brad worked on changing head position at "set" (looking back to feet) to avoid popping up on step 1. His reps were limited because of his previously injured leg tightening up. Good practice -- maxed out speed, hit the step and takeoff targets, and had good aggressiveness. Ready to move up a notch next time and add another hurdle.
Monday, November 18, 2013
Week 3 workouts
11/18 Annika and Jana joined Kasey and Nathalie tonight. Good group. Good practice. Started with circles and swings. Moved to a couple over/unders and moved right into 2 sets of 5 deadlifts followed by 5 hops and 10 elevated pushups. Hurdling consisted of walkovers, sideovers, skipovers; 4-step power; 4-step power + 1-step; 4-step power + 3-step (22); 8-step into 5-step (32). Most of the work was at 30. Some were oppo. Annika has some work to do on trail leg (getting loose and too far under); Jana had no major problems, just need to be a bit quicker off the hurdle and keeping a good line; Kasey had good arms with the right lead. The arms get away a bit on the left. Nathalie also had no major issues, running aggressively throughout the workout. Did some block introduction for Jana and Annika. Stretched.
11/19 Kasey, Alex, Mollie, Madeline and Matt worked run-throughs, some 4-step jumps and more than a half dozen full jumps at a moderate height with bungee. Looking pretty good on our approaches -- most important part of any jump.
11/20 Joe, Logan, Nate and Mollie hurdled. 6x4-step power + 1-step; 6x6-step power + 3-step (-4); 6x6-step to 5-step (4H +6). Mollie worked at 27. Joe and Logan at 33. Nate split time between 27 and 33. Everyone got some oppo reps. Stretched and/or rolled.
11/21 Zuzka did circles, swings and marching walk, jog, skip and run. Walkovers, sideovers, skipovers. 4-step power and 4-step +1 1-step and +1 3-step. One set of oppo. Tried a few 6-step powers into 3-step and then some block work, including a few 6-step starts over a 22. Nearly all the other hurdle work was at 27. Did better tonight with knee drive into, over and between. Trail leg is still too loose too often. Attack is getting better. Stretched. Joe didn't hurdle tonight, having done that last night. He went out to the field for some tempo runs.
11/19 Kasey, Alex, Mollie, Madeline and Matt worked run-throughs, some 4-step jumps and more than a half dozen full jumps at a moderate height with bungee. Looking pretty good on our approaches -- most important part of any jump.
11/20 Joe, Logan, Nate and Mollie hurdled. 6x4-step power + 1-step; 6x6-step power + 3-step (-4); 6x6-step to 5-step (4H +6). Mollie worked at 27. Joe and Logan at 33. Nate split time between 27 and 33. Everyone got some oppo reps. Stretched and/or rolled.
11/21 Zuzka did circles, swings and marching walk, jog, skip and run. Walkovers, sideovers, skipovers. 4-step power and 4-step +1 1-step and +1 3-step. One set of oppo. Tried a few 6-step powers into 3-step and then some block work, including a few 6-step starts over a 22. Nearly all the other hurdle work was at 27. Did better tonight with knee drive into, over and between. Trail leg is still too loose too often. Attack is getting better. Stretched. Joe didn't hurdle tonight, having done that last night. He went out to the field for some tempo runs.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Week 2 workouts
11/11 KC. Kasey and Nathalie did some circles and swings, over/unders and 2x4-5 DLs at 170# with 2x4-5 depth jumps and 2x10 elevated push ups. 6x4H 4-step power hurdles into 1-step hurdles. 7x5H at 27 -4. Some reps were oppo. Kasey shifted to right leg as preferred lead. Nathalie left. Finished with 2x8 dumbbell work: speed jerks, lunge walks, bench press and hip thrust. Stretched.
11/12 KC. Alex warmed up but had some pain in her lower leg and left to do the no-impact sprint workout and then get treatment. Kasey and Brad were next. Did some circle jumps and short approach work before full-approach run throughs. Both were getting good plants and rotations on the 4-step work. Kasey did a particularly good job of getting vertical and controlling that last step which sometimes gets too long. Approaches were mostly on the mark. Madeline joined in during run throughs before leaving for vault work. Jana and Annika arrived about 5:15, did most of the warm up work and then did some circle jumps, short approach jumps up on stacked mats, finishing with full approach work. So far, so good for them. Marks: Kasey 8/25/49, Brad 13/27/55, Annika and Jana 8/26/49, Madeline 8/27/52.
11/14 KC/VF. Annika, Jana and Zuzka did some warm up and deadlifts (~100#) and then went outside for another round of hurdle training. Started off with 4-step powers but at 27 this time. We also added a second hurdle with a 1-step. We worked oppo on both drills. Tried some 3-step at about 22' from the 4-step power, which went well and included more oppo work. Everyone made some good corrections, but as to be expected, there are inconsistencies. Zuzka overstrides somewhat, needs to maintain consistent knee drive and become more aggressive. Jana tends to get off her alignment but has good attack. Annika sometimes brings trail knee to low and swings out the lower part of lead leg, but sometimes she's good. Jana had some shin problems again despite the soft surface, so she shut down for a while. Went back inside for dumbbell series with push press, jump squat, step up, split squat and walking plate twist.
11/15 VF. Joe, Logan, Brad and Mollie warmed up with circles, swings and skips to strides. Worked preferred and oppo 4-step powers 4x and then 4x into 1 steps. Next, 6x6H (30"/36'). Brad strained his trail leg hamstring a few reps in. Everyone else finished out with 10 different partner bodyweight exercises and 4 different stretches.
11/12 KC. Alex warmed up but had some pain in her lower leg and left to do the no-impact sprint workout and then get treatment. Kasey and Brad were next. Did some circle jumps and short approach work before full-approach run throughs. Both were getting good plants and rotations on the 4-step work. Kasey did a particularly good job of getting vertical and controlling that last step which sometimes gets too long. Approaches were mostly on the mark. Madeline joined in during run throughs before leaving for vault work. Jana and Annika arrived about 5:15, did most of the warm up work and then did some circle jumps, short approach jumps up on stacked mats, finishing with full approach work. So far, so good for them. Marks: Kasey 8/25/49, Brad 13/27/55, Annika and Jana 8/26/49, Madeline 8/27/52.
11/14 KC/VF. Annika, Jana and Zuzka did some warm up and deadlifts (~100#) and then went outside for another round of hurdle training. Started off with 4-step powers but at 27 this time. We also added a second hurdle with a 1-step. We worked oppo on both drills. Tried some 3-step at about 22' from the 4-step power, which went well and included more oppo work. Everyone made some good corrections, but as to be expected, there are inconsistencies. Zuzka overstrides somewhat, needs to maintain consistent knee drive and become more aggressive. Jana tends to get off her alignment but has good attack. Annika sometimes brings trail knee to low and swings out the lower part of lead leg, but sometimes she's good. Jana had some shin problems again despite the soft surface, so she shut down for a while. Went back inside for dumbbell series with push press, jump squat, step up, split squat and walking plate twist.
11/15 VF. Joe, Logan, Brad and Mollie warmed up with circles, swings and skips to strides. Worked preferred and oppo 4-step powers 4x and then 4x into 1 steps. Next, 6x6H (30"/36'). Brad strained his trail leg hamstring a few reps in. Everyone else finished out with 10 different partner bodyweight exercises and 4 different stretches.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Avoiding food temptations
Fast and easy are two things that can get you into trouble with junk foods. When you are trying to lose weight, maintain a healthy weight or just eat healthier, think about what you are choosing to eat when you get hungry during the day. Instead of reaching for bags of processed and sugary foods, choose healthy items:
Cut-up vegetables: Slice them, bag them, eat them. Baby carrots, grape tomatoes, broccoli florets, sugar snap peas, pepper strips, etc.
Sauteed vegetables: Saute them in olive oil with chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, or a dash of turmeric. Refrigerate and use for side dishes or hot snacks (warmed in a microwave).
Cut-up vegetables: Slice them, bag them, eat them. Baby carrots, grape tomatoes, broccoli florets, sugar snap peas, pepper strips, etc.
Sauteed vegetables: Saute them in olive oil with chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, or a dash of turmeric. Refrigerate and use for side dishes or hot snacks (warmed in a microwave).
Soups: Make one or more of your favorite soups and store them in serving-size cups in the refrigerator. Have a cup as a pre-dinner appetizer, to take the edge off, or as a snack.
Steel-cut oats: If you’re worried about time, cook up one week’s worth of oats according to the package directions and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Emergency foods: Everyone needs good-for-you choices. Have some of this around: almonds, peanuts or walnuts; bags of pre-chopped fruits and veggies; apples; dried fruit; and edamame.
Steel-cut oats: If you’re worried about time, cook up one week’s worth of oats according to the package directions and store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Emergency foods: Everyone needs good-for-you choices. Have some of this around: almonds, peanuts or walnuts; bags of pre-chopped fruits and veggies; apples; dried fruit; and edamame.
If you have this stuff handy, you'll be less likely to grab the chips, crackers and other processed foods that aren't very healthy. All part of good preparation. Good for your body and your brain.
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Week 1 workouts
11/04 VF. Kasey and Nathalie did a couple sets of over-unders and 170# deadlifts. On soccer field, did leg swings, a couple strides and some slow lows. 6x3H 1-steps, 6x3H 3-steps, 6x3H 5-steps. 2x8 dumbbell step ups, push presses, jump squats, split squats, plate walks.
11/05 KC. Kasey and Alex jogged a couple laps, did a couple pickups and then our flexibility series (arches, codogs, bridges, abs, scorps), 2-arm skips, 3-pt line runs, pit bridges, backovers from high box. Measured full run and mid point off 10x RT. Jana, Zuzka and Annika joined us around 5 and got in on some short approach 6-step jumps to a sit on the pit and then a few more reps with a layout. Marks for Kasey: 8/25/49 Alex: 8/25-3/47
11/06 KC. Group meeting
11/07 KC. 11-7 lucky numbers? Maybe. Jana, Zuzka and Annika started learning how to hurdle today and made rapid progress. Did in-place drills, walking drills, wall drills, hit-hit drills, oppo work, slow lows and 4-step power hurdles at 22." Stretched quad, ham, calf and hip flexor. Long way to go but off to a great start. Jana aggravated some shin pain. Will proceed with caution. If anyone has shin pain, stop what you're doing. Get treatment and do alternative workouts with low or no impact until pain subsides.
11/08 VF. On soccer field with Joe, Logan, Nate and Brad. Warmed up with some circles, swings, skips and strides. Walkovers, sideovers, skipovers. Slowlow loops. 6x4 1-step, 6x4 3-step, 6x5 5-step -- all at 27", half with oppo. Dumbbell work: 2x8 step ups, split squats, jump squats, plate walks and push presses.
11/05 KC. Kasey and Alex jogged a couple laps, did a couple pickups and then our flexibility series (arches, codogs, bridges, abs, scorps), 2-arm skips, 3-pt line runs, pit bridges, backovers from high box. Measured full run and mid point off 10x RT. Jana, Zuzka and Annika joined us around 5 and got in on some short approach 6-step jumps to a sit on the pit and then a few more reps with a layout. Marks for Kasey: 8/25/49 Alex: 8/25-3/47
11/06 KC. Group meeting
11/07 KC. 11-7 lucky numbers? Maybe. Jana, Zuzka and Annika started learning how to hurdle today and made rapid progress. Did in-place drills, walking drills, wall drills, hit-hit drills, oppo work, slow lows and 4-step power hurdles at 22." Stretched quad, ham, calf and hip flexor. Long way to go but off to a great start. Jana aggravated some shin pain. Will proceed with caution. If anyone has shin pain, stop what you're doing. Get treatment and do alternative workouts with low or no impact until pain subsides.
11/08 VF. On soccer field with Joe, Logan, Nate and Brad. Warmed up with some circles, swings, skips and strides. Walkovers, sideovers, skipovers. Slowlow loops. 6x4 1-step, 6x4 3-step, 6x5 5-step -- all at 27", half with oppo. Dumbbell work: 2x8 step ups, split squats, jump squats, plate walks and push presses.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Relaxed running
Summer and fall training months are a good time to work on staying relaxed while running fast. Whether running your short accels, max velocity sprints in the 40-60m area or longer sprints, learning how to "let" the speed out rather than "force" the speed out is worth practicing. Make no mistake, you want to apply as much force as possible -- especially in starts -- but you need to do it smoothly.
You work and work to increase the strength you can apply in sprints, jumps and hurdles, but if you try to use too much of it, you jeopardize your performance. Maintaining good posture and technique while avoiding too much tension -- all while moving very fast -- is key. The fastest typically don't look like they're trying very hard.
We see this in our fly sprints. Many times, our fastest reps are not in the first couple when we may be trying our hardest. Sometimes, they are later reps when we're more tired -- but more relaxed because we're no longer trying as hard (too tired). We've seen it in meets, too. Sometimes it shows up when an athlete races well when ill, or running an event they don't typically run. In both cases, they may be more relaxed because they may not be as trying as hard as they do when feeling well or running their primary event. Figure out how to tap into that relaxation in practice and then apply it in races.
Practice running with rhythm and relaxation -- letting the speed come out. Don't push for what isn't there. Just go as fast as you can without forcing it. Think about running your reps at 90-95% -- just taking that little bit off so you can relax a bit. The longer the rep -- or race -- the more important this becomes. You'll also enjoy your practices more and get better results in your races.
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