Pretty good session today.
Both athletes did well today.
Falling/ rolling start 3x20m
3x10m blocks individualy
3x30m on signal Athlete X did with senior athletes Athlete Y alone.
150m, 120m Athlete X did in 18.0 coming of the bend tensed for 20m right arm started to move to the side to much but corrected technique in the further stages of the run. 120m in 14.3 nice and relaxed. I think that Wednesday session was still in the legs.
Athlete Y did 150m in 16.0 fastest so far this season. To be honest I think it could have been faster, Athlete Y is struggling a bit on the bend doesn’t know how to run it yet, btw was running on the lane four. After full recovery did 120m in 12.75 from lane six. Much more comfortable.
So yeah, couple warm days and guys were able to step up the gear.
Going to slowly tapering down over the next three weeks. We’ll see what’s going to come out of this experiment.
Countdown is ON.
Our last two sessions (Monday and Wednesday) were bit mixed.
Well, Athlete X did first controlled competition 300m at 39.0
Monday tempo, on Wednesday Athlete was looking bit flat planned session was 3x20m, 4x30 150, 200, 150
After first couple of runs I have abandoned the starts and then I have abandoned the last 150. So we end up doing more therapy, Physio exercises abs etc…
Athlete Y had a decent Monday session.
3x20m, 4x1h, 3x2h accelerations 1foot in @1m height were very good.
Touch downs 1h 2.47-2.56
5x5h 1foot in @1m height first three quite consistent runs and touch downs between 1.05/1.07sec.
Fourth one quite shaky.
Fifth 1.04-1.09sec.
Wednesday session was very good
We did
2x20m, 4x1h, 4x2h accelerations weren’t as fast as on Monday at least at the beginning. Got faster towards the end of the segment.
Moved to 3x12h, 2feet in @1m height.
Not as fast as last week. On average I can say that touch-downs were slower by 0.05sec. per hurdle from hurdles at 0.91m which we did in weeks leading to the last session.
Runs were between 14.34-14.46sec.
Thought could be bit faster, loosing bit of form on H10/H11.
Last season Athlete Y best over 110m U20 was 15.0, and for U18 14.3.
Our first comp this Saturday.
Wondering what the Athlete can really do?
14.07 into -1m/sec.
Not too bad time wise, however not particularly happy with the technical side of the race execution.
Bit flat in the warm-up, I think that Athlete Y was too nervous, definitely had too much fluids, lol lesson learned.
Shaky, I haven’t complained about lead hand, cause issue I believe was sorted, however it comeback during the race (when’s matter) broke H9.
BTW. on Friday Athlete Y did full warm-up and 2x20min, 3x2h and we finished the session.
Athlete X did.
3x20m, 4x30m blocks really well run.
Moved to longer runs
60m, 80m, 120m quite well executed.
Athlete Y, just learned (I am hoping that he has) hard lesson.
Leading race to the H9 by 0.2/0.3sec sat on H9 almost fall on his backside. Finishing 3rd behind winner (13.75) jogging through the finish line.
Lost concentration, he expected other hurdlers to be in front around H3/4 but they weren’t coming.
Finishing the race with 14.0
Today’s session went well.
Athlete X did couple falling starts,
Few blocks clearance and good 4x30m from blocks.
3x50m was nice and smooth.
Wednesday first comp for Athlete X. Hopefully we’ll have a good weather.
Athlete Y recovery.
Easy bike spin 18min.
Stretching, abs and gluteus activation.
Another comp on Wednesday I was considering for a moment doing also 100m but there is not enough time for recovery therefore I think 200m would be a better option.
13.76 with +1.1 wind.
Almost got it right, bit shaky H9 (I wonder why?) lol.
Then told me “I know that I can go faster”
That was second run, first one in 14.0 totally messed up start, clean run, but was left out in the blocks, crazy.
Athlete X did well too, low 11.9, 0.01 from PR wind +0.8m
Quite cold day 14C.
Monday, training went reasonably well.
Athlete Y started to change blocks settings without particular reason WTF?!!!
I had a go at him when I found that he actually did that at the competition.
Session was:
2x20m falling start
2x20m 3point start
6x2h
3x5h, 1foot in at 1m height.
Athlete X did recovery after competition wasn’t particulary pretty run.
12.0 into head wind with really poor start and transition.
Bruised ball of the foot.
Very good session today.
Athlete Y:
2x20m
6x2h
First two reps little bit reaching for the take off. However the following four were very good.
3x11h, 1 foot in, at 1m height. Focus on control and form, all touch-downs were between 1.03-1.08.
Athlete X
3x10m blocks
4x30m blocks
3x150m smooth.
Finished after second rep, ball of the foot started to bother a bit so there wasn’t any point of doing third rep.
Both athletes finished with abs, gluteus activation and stretching.
Very pleased with the session today.
We’ll be running three comps in the row over the next three weeks. With all the prep leading to national champs.
Weather condition for the past couple of weeks is so bad for this time of the year that one of athletes I coach said that it feels like conditions by the end of our GPP when we had to move to indoors.
Yesterday was 10/12 degrees, today bit colder then yesterday.
PRESSURE destroyed both athletes in the last comp (last Sunday)
Both of them are trying to run WJC standard.
Athlete Y leading race to H7, tensed up one small mistake, came second in 13.82 behind winner 13.68 where WJC standard is 13.65.
Athlete X was in good race thou.
Start was really, really good, at around 35m still with the rest of the group, at 40m looked to the side and literally got paralysed. Everyone one just moved away. like someone attached invisible parachute to the backside and the second part of the race is by far better then the start and drive, unfortunately not yesterday. Crazy. I have never seen that athlete running so technically poor.
The idea that they can run the standard is just too much for them to handle
Wow, oh wow.
Both athletes which this thread is based on coming back from national champs with medal.
Both gone through the rounds, both were improving from round to round.
Athlete X was running well. Finally. Maybe it wasn’t the fastest that the athlete run. But it was definitely one of the better executed runs, stepping up performance from heats to semi to final.
Really pleased.
Athlete Y did run personl best in heats.
Then he has run possibly the fastest 5h that I have seen him running.
Yet again leading race from the start skyed the hurdle five lost bit of form.
End up 0.01sec outside the standard. (winner 13.48 who was actually beaten last weekend by 0.14).
Athlete is bit devastated.
That’s the part of the game.
2 medals, great stuff. Always enjoy this thread to see the way training sessions are tailored to the way the athlete feels/performs on the day - rather than just reading from the spreadsheet.
Thanks a lot guys for your kind word.
To be honest I feel like I am ready for the end of the season which is in about eight weeks.
I am exhausted. Last Friday I have finished session, got home, crashed in my clothes on sofa and slept thirteen hours.
One of the most demanding season I have ever coached. Maybe because my group got bigger, maybe because tried to coach all other events along with sprinting, maybe because I am getting older (lol) or maybe because it is what it is and life of the coach if you are working elsewhere just looks like that fifteen hours straight all out and you are applying breaks for couple days in Christmas, Easter and during off season. Where off season is actually on doing some readings lol.
Even though we can say that season is reasonably successful, one thing still bothers me, the injury athlete X got in SPP I, it was f… avoidable.
Do what you know for sure, be open to new things but at the same don’t afraid to walk away.
Then just listen to your gut feeling.
Anyway couple comps left.
We’ll see what guys can do when the results don’t matter any more.
Getting ready to run couple comps in the next a few weeks.
Athlete X will run two comps back to back, little bit flat over the past few sessions my guess is that going to last few comps literally one after another and running rounds took a lot out the athlete.
I have decided that we’ll not be running nothing longer than 50m. So our last session was
3x10m
2x30m
2x50m
That’s it.
Athlete Y had one chance to run standard, overseas, unfortunately weather was rubbish even thou the forecast were promising.
However, it was good experience. Was able to run with guys from top 10 world rankings and manage to actually win the race.
We’ll be running couple more races over the hurdles, maybe in Italy. The rest will be flat.
I would like to have two 100m and two 200m runs by the end of the season.
Last week we did couple sessions.
One was only hurdles starts 4x2h, 3x3h
The other couple accelerations and 2x150m in 15.9 and 16.0.
I am already thinking about next season, the changes that I have to make, improvements in specific areas, etc…
Another competition done.
Looks like athlete X is falling from the cliff. Poor run. I think it’s time to finish the season.
No point of carrying on with mediocrity.
First 100m competition for Athlete Y.
Start and drive very good but then started to do some weird things, casting his feet forward. Tighten up. Second part of the race very, very poor.
At the end both of us weren’t particularly happy even thou Athlete Y run 10.8 in his first race with stomach ache.
Told me after the race “I know that I can go sub 10.6”
Athlete Y had a first 200m competition, the objective was to run the way we are running 150m and last 50m supposed to be relax without forcing the outcome.
Well, Athlete Y absolutely blasted 80m passing athlete who was outside lane after about 50m. Finished third in his heat with PR of 22.05.
Athlete who was passed running on the outside lane endup running 21.4.
Now you can imagine what was second part of the race like. Lol. Lesson learned. Improvement from last year 1.4sec in the first race over the 200m
Next (our last one) comp in ten days time over 1&2 we’ll see whether Athlete Y will be able to put runs together.
It’s tough coaching and changing all the things you feel are incorrect or wrong and adjusting and making progress all the time. I think you are doing a very good job.
Putting everything together takes a lot of time. The athletes need to have the right amount of success and the right amount of lesson learning not necessarily failure. Remember time and chance have to meet and sometimes it takes forever or so it seems.
I used to have great runs in practice but one of the issues in Canada is having enough opportunities to compete in decent situations. One you have the weather as a concern and next you have the numbers of people. Unless you are aware of these necessary components to the recipe for routine progress it’s tough to move ahead.