Some sprinters are afraid to do GPP type work (i.e. 800, 600, etc.) during the autumn/fall for fear of losing too much speed. Even more importantly, I believe that any loss in speed can be regained fairly quickly after a MODERATE GPP. Leaving you with a stronger base for training.
Any thoughts?
NO 800’s EVER!!!
Please elaborate…
No 800m ever for 100m sprinters? Or all sprinters (i.e. 200/400)?
Also, do you have any opinion on speed/speed loss as it relates to the GPP?
Scarface i stay away from doing 8/6/even400s during GPP and even during the season.from a mechanical point of view its stupid.doing such runs can lead to habits of hips dropping,foot landing in front of cog and total downtime is way too much.you can achieve the same results from doing turnabouts which are very tough but as you progress they will get faster but slightly easier.
i just have something about a sprinter doing long runs and i just cannot see the purpose of it.its like using a dragster to do your shopping!
I have a copy of Mel Rosen’s yearly program. He has lots and lots of 800m in there for sprinters (even for 100m runners). Following his program during the GPP of my program 3 years ago I had at least one practice with 3 x 800m with very little rest. For University athletes in the USA, who are competing every weekend, it is important to have a ridiculously strong base so that the athlete can handle the volume of races. However, many athletes in similar situations (money meets every weekend), have done speed work all the way through the year with little to no medium intesity GPP type work, and have gone on to elite performances in the comp phase (see Speed Trap and also check out the new e-book comming out VERY shortly).
Is there a need to loose the speed at all during the GPP? Can’t speed be maintained throughout the General Preparation Phase, and then again increased during the comp phase?
Scarface Im talking about 100m sprinters, Goodpoint! What about 400m runners can they go up to 800m for tempo. I know Charlie has mentioned 600ms before.
Thanks for the info, Gents.
Herb: When you used the 3 x 800m in your program, did it have the desired effect of building a strong base?
We will never know because the last 3 years of my training were plagued by a toe injury. A toe injury! Ya! A TOE INJURY!!! Ended up forcing me into retirement.
Sucks…Sorry to hear that bro…Kinda shows how much luck and circumstances affect life.
But, you seem to still be young. Is the injury permanent? If not, don’t give up until you’re old and your body is truly diminishing.
Herb,
just chop it off and get a new one.
Originally posted by Dazed
[b]And 400’s and 500’s.What performing tempo over these distances does for an athlete who runs 100’s and 200’s is quite straight forward.
Dramatically improves vascular development.
Strngthens connective tissue and ligaments.
Helps an athlete develop rhythm, posture and helps ingrain firing patterns.
Toughens the Athlete mentally making shorter special endurance runs seem like a piece of piss.
Depending on how they are run develops lactate tolerance.
What does any of this have to do with running 100m or 200m? Nothing - if this is the only training you do. But we call this the General Preparation Phase, which means we are preparing the body for more specific training loads later in the training season. Better CV and lactate systems will improve the rate of recovery down the track SIGNIFICANTLY whether you do regular tempo or not.
The duration of the GPP phase is not long enough to start changing fiber types, infact you will find that there is a significant increase in diameter of the faster twitch fibers over this period (up to eight weeks). Any speed loss is a result peripheral nervous system changes and can be minimized by maintaining a decent weights programme. During this time if posture is emphasized then no adverse effect will cross over to sprint technique - yes it makes the reps a hell of a lot harder but it is worth it.
Tell me what is emphasizing speed work ALL year round going to do for your athlete? Most athletes will hit a plateau after around 8-9 weeks of speed and need a new type of training stimulus before they can start making gains again.
You seem so quick to use the “individualize” label, yet don’t appear to actually understand what it entails. [/b]
I liked your answer so much, that I added it to my discussion; I hope you don’t mind.
Dazed, I would like to exchange training ideas with you. I’m a pretty good 100m sprinter that’s ready to let my nuts hang and become more multidimensional…running events up to 400m.
Thanks!
Renaldo did miles of running for years…didn’t slow him down! Thoughts on those facts?
I didn’t know that…I too would be interested in finding out more.
Btw Clemson, that golden hair lady in your avatar sure looks great 
so does every other soccor player but how much faster would they be if they did proper training for speed?
In Response to the Dazed/ScarFace post.
I beilive speed work should be done all year round because speed is a skill(did charlie say this,honestly I don’t rember:confused: so sorry if I’m repeating what Charlie said, or if anyone else said this, are the same conversations people had in the past popping up on this site again or is it just me?)Speed isn’t just conditioning and strength it’s the skill to have the coordination to run fast and this skill needs to be practiced as much as you can without over training. Wayne Gretzky and Joe Montanna were really skillful at their sports but neither had incredible physiques and strength they were good players becuase they were so cordinated.
i think people get to involved with doing 800s/600s etc.don’t stray away from your trait,as in speed
The level three school invited Jean P to speak about his training methods…Dlive, whatyouknowaboutcrappytempograss?
Originally posted by Terminator2
In Response to the Dazed/ScarFace post.
I beilive speed work should be done all year round because speed is a skill(did charlie say this,honestly I don’t rember:confused: so sorry if I’m repeating what Charlie said, or if anyone else said this, are the same conversations people had in the past popping up on this site again or is it just me?)Speed isn’t just conditioning and strength it’s the skill to have the coordination to run fast and this skill needs to be practiced as much as you can without over training. Wayne Gretzky and Joe Montanna were really skillful at their sports but neither had incredible physiques and strength they were good players becuase they were so cordinated.
Where was it written that speed shouldn’t be performed all year around? In my post i said that EMPHASIZING speed all year round had no benefits. In addition to this I also stated that the the required firing patterns for sprinting would not only not be comprimised but could actually be developed if the longer runs during the GPP are performed correctly.
In fact it is likely that emphasizing speed all year round could have an effect adverse to what you are stipulating - a decrease in co-ordination or the learning of in correct firing patterns due to poor recovery and the physcological effects of an athlete performing similar work with out a wide variety of stimulus.
How about performing just 2-3 60m (or 30m acceleration and flying 30m) runs in warm up 1-2 times/week at 95-98%, if the athlete feels fresh enough? The more we neglect the speed we have, the longer it will take to regain and the harder it will be to improve upon. Maintaining decent speed conditioning will also help reduce injury risk when the main speed phase starts.
Originally posted by Richard Hand
How about performing just 2-3 60m (or 30m acceleration and flying 30m) runs in warm up 1-2 times/week at 95-98%, if the athlete feels fresh enough? The more we neglect the speed we have, the longer it will take to regain and the harder it will be to improve upon. Maintaining decent speed conditioning will also help reduce injury risk when the main speed phase starts.
I think the issue of injury prevention is the main reason for keeping in touch with speed work through out he year (although i still don’t see it as entirely necessary during a 6-8 GPP).
If weights and drills are done correctly during the longer training times then there is no reason for speed to be lost as the main negative impact that longer runs has on speed is in the area of recruitment (an area which can be altered quite dramatically).
The impact on fiber type its self, if it occurs at all in this phase, is minimal. There are several studies in the past year which show that fast twitch* fibers tend to increase in size over an 8 week period of both rest or aerobic activity, whilst during the same period of time slow twitch* significantly atrophy if in rest or performing largely anaerobic work.