Training tonight was done on the new re-laid track.
It was an Intensive Tempo session 4 x 150m at 85% with 3 minutes rest. Athlete went 23-23-23-20
Finished with a weight session
Deadlift - Trapbar 1 x 5 x 70-80kg (pb for athlete)
Push Up 1 x 12+10
Mr Miyagi Plank 2 x 20 sec
Yesterday athlete did a technical hurdle session, basically hurdle drills. Filmed every rep, and reviewed every rep - some things to work on
Today was meant to be a short hurdle rhythm day, but it was a bit too wet so decided the risks outweighed benefits. So did a spec end intensive session
Aim was 3 x 250m in sub 40, with 8 minutes rest. First two reps were 42 seconds, so changed the last rep to 210m
Then went into gym and did a glute/hip session
Hip Circuit
a. Cat/Camel
b. Fire Hydrants
c. Bird Dog
d. Clam Shell
e. Bridging
f. Bowler Squats
Total circuit = 100 reps
Power Runner 2 x 8 x 40 kg each leg
Split Squat to step up box 2 x 3 each side
Been a bit quiet typing up the training athlete.
So a bit of a catch up
Note date is dd/mm/yyyy
3/05/2016 Ext Tempo and Resistance Session
4 x 4 x 100m + 10 Push Ups + 10 Squats; 100m walks/reps
1 KB Swings 5 x 10 x 20kg
2a Arabseques 3 x 6 x 10kg
2b One Arm Farmer Walks 3 x 20m x 20kg
5/05/2016 Speed Endurance and Resistance Session
No Session - due to hamstring soreness (he heard his hamstring tendon as a 16 year old - so 27 years ago - and never healed and treated it properly)
10/05/2016 Speed and Resistance Session
2 x 10mA, 15mH, 10mA; 4 minutes rest
2 x 20mA, 20mH, 15mA; 4 minutes rest
1a. Deadlift - Trapbar 1 x 8-6-4 x 70-75-85
1b. Good Morning to Step Up 2 x 2 es x 15
2a. One Arm Rotational Press 2 x 15 sec x 3cm Band
2b. Deadbug 2 x 6 es" 180 Hamstring still a bit tight- felt in 1b.
12/05/2016 Intensive Tempo
5 x 120 in 17-18 sec; 2 minutes rest (aim - to run at relaxed speed)
1a Box Jumps 3 x 3
1b KB Swings 3 x 5 x 20kg
2a 2 Way Hip 2 x 10 each position and each leg x 18 + 39
The running was equivalent to a 56-58 second 400.
Athlete sent me a message, and the guy who joined in, sent me a message that they couldn’t believe how sore their hamstrings are. The other athlete hasn’t felt like that in a couple of seasons - when he last ran well
Has anyone used flossing/compression bandages for high hamstring issues?
Is it possible the volume of speed/IT/spec end is a bit high for the athlete at the moment ? Given he is in a comeback phase. Perhaps a period of more typical GPP with 2-3 sessions per week of tempo/hills/short accs to build up first.
I also run Masters events (am older than your guy) and I find the riskiest efforts are long sprints of around 100m -150. Too high an intensity for too long. Anything further and I am in relaxed 400m technique, shorter and I can hold form.
I have never tried flossing/compression. Recent research suggests that the sweilling/inflammation response should not be suppressed since it is the bodies natural healing response. FYI this is now being postulated in medical treatment for stroke victims. So I guess its a question as to how compression works for the post inflammation stage. Versus contrast showers, foam rolling, self massage, external massage. I can see a potential benefit of compression in that it provides a longer term (eg overnight) period of continual treatment, less effort and cheaper than some other protocols. But I guess this is best answered by someone that has used it in anger.
Thanks oldbloke, I have taken your advice on hand and have been looking at modifying sessions
Sunday athlete did a hurdle session - 6 runs over 4 hurdles working on alternate lead leg.
Yesterday was an Extensive Tempo session
10 x 90m Run with sled and 90m Run; 90m walk rest, followed this with
1a. Power Runner 2 x 12 x 60kg
1b. Hanging Leg Raise 2 x 6
2a. Deadlift - Trapbar 1 x 3 x 90-95-100kg
2b. Push Ups 1 x 18-15-14
Been a while posting, due to major work deadlines and ill health
19/05/2016 Spd End + Resistance
3 x 2 x 70m (acc 10m); walk/reps, 8 min/set Note - Struggled backing up reps. Cadence and power output
24/05/2016 Specific Speed
5 x 2 x 100 in 14 sec; walk back/reps, 4 minutes/sets Note - Had a training partner
26/05/2016 Speed + Resistance
4 x 30m Sleds x 7.5kg; 3 minutes
2 x 40m Sleds x 5kg; 4 minutes
1 x 50m Sled x 2.5kg
1a. Deadlift - Trapbar 1 x 5 x 70-80-90
1b. Push Ups 1 x 25-12-10
2a. Reverse Back Extension 1 x 12-8
2b. Straight Arm Pulldown 2 x 10 x 2cm" 250
31/05/2015 Ext Tempo + Resistance
8 (90m Med Ball Throws + 90m Run); 90m Walk
4/06/2016 Speed Endurance
3 (150 + 2 x 30); walk back/rest, full recovery/sets
7/06/2016 Speed + Resistance
3 (2 x 50m); 2 min/reps, 8 min/sets
Deadlift 4-3-2 x 90-100-110
Short Step Split Squat 2 x 6 x 20
Push Ups 1 x 20-11
Straight Arm Pulldown 2 x 6 x 18" 300 Did 2 sets of Push Ups to failure yesterday
9/06/2016 Endurance 300-250-200-150-100; 250-200-150-100m walk
We have stopped the hamstring issue, by dropping a technical hurdle session.
Athlete is improving as fast as they would like, or myself, for a competition slated in October. Likelihood is we will drop the competition to give us another six months to develop speed, and capacity
Athlete was away this weekend for his two son’s rep field hockey games, so wanted a session.
I stuffed up volume, as I initialed want him to do 1600m but got him to do 3200m. The session he did was 4 x 4 x 200m; each 200m was done every 1 minute (so if he ran 40 he had 20 seconds rest) with 5 minutes walk between sets. Session should have taken 31 minutes or so plus warm up and cool down
Athlete had a quite week, due to a number of reasons. Work, soreness, and heavy rain meaning training on grass was out of the question.
Sunday (19/6/16) we did some hurdle work, concentrating on the first two hurdles in 400m H. Was managing 15 strides easily, but he has issues with the rhythm, stopping hurdles, and not being active/agggressive enough over the hurdle.
Last night he did
3 x 60m; 20m Run In, 20m Hard, 20m Hold; 5 minutes rest, then hit the gym
Deadlift 3 x 3 x 90-90-90
KB Swings 3 x 10 x 16-16-12
Sumo Squat Stretch 3 x 5
Push Ups 1 x 20-12
Straight Arm Pulldown 2 x 6 x 18
Interested in your views on strength for masters.
Do you have a preference for pure strength development with heavyish weights. Or using an approach of more dynamic lifts such as KB swings and driving movements. Perhaps combining the dynamic lifts with mobility related strength work. An example I have tried is replacing a bar squat with a KB goblet squat - lighter weight but greater range of movement, more dynamic and less liable to injury from poor technique.
I have always been weak in the weights room and with age related stiffness in hips and loss of elastic strength have started to do more dynamic stuff.
Or maybe I am overcomplicating and both should be combined.
Good question oldbloke,
This athlete has never done serious weight room work. So I am not teaching him any olympic lifting, and have made a decision to only use two exercises that we will go ‘heavy’ on. These are Deadlift and Bench Press, and at the moment he isn’t doing Bench Press as he won’t until he can do 30 push ups.
To be honest, I am just looking at what do we want most as we train three days a week - and have 20-25 minutes a session (that is max time) for weights. So I we are trying to get his posterior chain developed so he doesn’t break down.
As to your question. I think an older athlete has other issues, so max strength is probably less important but it is dependent on the athlete
Thanks, that makes a lot of sense for your athlete`s circumstances.
I have struggled to find training recommendations for masters athletes that provide variations on the typical training protocols used by younger runners. How to modify speed, tempo, types of strength training etc.
Tonights session was 3 x 150 then 2 x 120 with 2 minutes rest. The 150’s aim was 21, and the 120’s was 16-17
His times are as follows;
150 - 21.0
150 - 20.6
150 - 21.6
120 - 18.5
120 - 18.6
We did no weights as there was no point pushing his fatigue anymore.
Old bloke, my basic philosophy is reduce volume in gym. But it depends on the athlete, for instance my volume is probably a little less but rep range is lower (I don’t tend to go past 6 reps, but as younger athlete that may have been 12 reps)
Maybe a good rule is half the volume, and see what happens?
Athlete sent me a message the next day
'Haven’t felt that lactic in 25 years, when I did my last 400m Hurdles race, but feel pretty good.
The weekly schedule is Friday and Saturday are off days, and Sunday is a technical day. This weeks Sunday session was a short hurdles session.
In essence this means he does drills over hurdles, his long hurdle sessions are more rhythm based.
The plan this week is as follows;
Tuesday: Extensive Tempo session
90m med ball throws + 180m run; 90m walk rest - do this 9 times
Then Weights session
Thursday: Speed Endurance Session
2 x (2 x 30m + 1 x 150m); turnaround/reps; full rest/set
then weights
Sunday: Long Hurdles
Athlete did the week I described above, didn’t do the Thursday session as well as I would have liked but so be it. The most pleasing element of the Thursday session, was he looked good form wise (it was noted by a number of people)
This weeks plan is as follows;
Tuesday - Sub Max Speed + Resistance (1 or 2 exercises) 4 x 45m + 35m; 35m/reps; 5-8min/sets
Thursday - Intensive Tempo + Resistance (1 or 2 exercises) 300-250-200-150-100m; 250-200-150-100m walk rest
48-40-32-24-16 sec
Sunday - 400m Hurdle Rhythm Session
Training tonight with some achilles soreness, we have kind of been managing it but tonight just couldn’t going so terminated track session. So we went into the gym
Session was made up as we went
Been a while since I have updated the journal.
We had 4 weeks off running due to achilles, athlete doing too much because he wanted to get ready for a comp. My fault for allowing this.
We spent 4 weeks, training on the bike and in the gym but more importantly getting the athlete to change mindset.
He is 43 with a full time job, started a new university degree, two teenage sons, and a wife. We needed to make athletics his fun time, not his sheep station aim.
We have done that, and he is slowly moving forward with his training. Has done 3 running sessions in 11 days, 1 too many, but will have a 5 fives off running before next one.
He is capable of running a reasonable 100m, but would not be able to do much for 2 weeks.
Currently the program template is something like this
Day 1 - Running (alternate speed based and endurance at speed based)
Day 2 - Weights
Day 3 - Hurdle work
