Bosh and Klomp are famours for their book ‘Running - biomechanics and exercise physiology in practice’ which is though provocing and ground breaking. They have qeuestioned some old beliefs (low hips during running, feet eversion, lactate threshold, motor abilities, power work…) which I like the most.
They have also huge fans of ‘special strenght work’ and single leg strength work.
I thought their book was awesome…until the last two chapters (practical stuff…drills/plyos/weights). Maybe it’s the translation but I thought alot of that stuff was really questionable. Reminds me of the great European sprint drill masters who run 10.6.
Maybe I just didn’t understand/comprehend what they were saying there(take like 4 sentences to say a-skip). I think the DVD may help me there.
The DVD is excellent in terms of providing you with a good understanding of mechanics and the factors that affect performance from a biomechanical perspective. However, due to thier philisophical outlook (biomechanics is “the only” thing that matters) thier training consists of a massive number of plyometric exercises. As a result a lot of thier athletes are continuously injured. I suggest understanding their model but exercising caution in regards to how you implement the drills etc in your training.
taking a shot here: Who the heck are Bosch & Klomp? One guy coaches Tora Harris and jumpers, the other guy is a mid-distance coach? What athletes have they produced? Any sprinters since their book seems centered around sprinting?
How do the biomechanics work for you once you’re injured? How are biomechanics perfected if the number of drills pretty much guarantees that you’ll be wiped out before sprint work can pull all the diverse pieces together?
The DVD is basically the book in video format. The contents of the book are:
Mechanical anatomy and basic principles of motion.
Energy supply.
Running technique.
Training and adaptation.
Teaching the running technique.
6 Power training for running…
What really makes the DVD stand out is the quality of the video footage - check out the website for some prieviews. Sure the guys aren’t Ben Johnson but the footage allows you to see what is going on and is the level of detail of explanation is quite high (enough for anyone upto therapist level). I’m sure there are other ways of explaining it all (charlie’s explanations are a great alternative) but it’s still enlighteningl.
So the first 3 sections are very good indeed. Sections 4-6 are also useful (the models are obviously very good at plyos and highly co-ordinated) but it is just overkill in my opinion.
I think many of us could think of plenty of drills.
These two, are like Michae Yessis and his book “explosive running” where-by there is this huge emphases on taking apart each factor of the stride and trying to improve each componenet with bungee cords attached to the ankles etc… for lots of differant exercises.
Tried some, didn’t make me faster. The only thing that made me faster was returning to a more simple approach. These people are just theorists in my opinion. Some of it should work (in theory.)
Charlie, they explained that during max velocity some athletes may ‘sit’ (have lower hips due more knee flexion along with more hip flexion during stance phase) and some may have high hips. Both techniques are ok if the foot is directly under the hips during initial contact. The hip heigh is determined by athletes leverage and muscle charateristics.
I especially loved their ‘don’t fix if ain’t broken’ approach in explaining feet external rotation during acceleration. I suggest you get the book Charlie. Worth a look…
I agree with TC that the first couple of chapters are awesome (explaining muscle functions during runnning and running technique), but when it comes to exercises, I can name I few I could/would use.
Also, B&K explained that during max velocity running (terminal velocity), the push-off leg should NOT be completely extended cause this can induce ‘long axis rotation’ which should be fixed with the overstriding and thus breaking of the speed.
I loved some stuff, and I didn’t loved some stuff in the book. But anyway, it is a must read
I have the book and the DVD but my comments were about the DVD as its been some time since i read teh book. I agree totally with duxx, its worth reading but not gospal.
Great book with a lot of precious insights about efficiency of the system,elasticity,and reactivity.
I am not familiar with the exercises they seem to suggest,or with their programs,hence I cannot comment.
I agree; a great book. Probably the best on running I ever laid hands on.
The excersises in capter 5 & 6 are a pool of possibilities, that you as coach can choose from. Nowhere in the book I read that you should do them all frequently. Coaches should make these choise themselfs. A must read.
There are probably 50 pages with 2-3 to a page. Its all the usual stuff (A, B Skips) differnt plyo exercises and also variations in rhythm and stuff with arms out and overhead plus with poles across shoulders. Really too many to describe just get teh dvd if you want to see them all…
