HS Short Sprinter's Training Journal

March 6

Squat 5x5x205,215,225,225,225
Drop-Catch RDLs 5x5x45,65,75,75,75
Bench Press 5x5x150
Lat Pulldown 3x10,100,110,110
abs- 400 reps

March 8

Full Body Weights 2x10ish by 16ish exercises @ ~50%
nothing really heavy or taxing

March 11

Squat 5x5x205,215,225,235,245
Drop Catch RDLs 2x8
Seated Gm 2x10
DB Reverse Lunge 2x6+6
abs- 200 reps

30 seconds is way too little. Need at least 60 seconds, preferably 90 seconds if you want to go with the typical protocols. I’m surprised you got 45 push-ups on your first set and 11 on the second to be honest. My strength to weight is much better and, if I haven’t been doing depletion push-ups, I’ll usually only be able to do 45-60 or so the first set out and get to 80-100 within 2-3 weeks or so. With 90 seconds rest, I never got more than 22 or 23 push-ups on the 2nd and 3rd sets, usually well below that.

Yes, I get its 60-90 seconds now, are you saying that 11 is good or bad?

Too late now but I would have went up to 8-10reps for 1-2 weeks after your indoor season.

I considered that but I didn’t want to overdo the hypertrophy because my legs are much bigger than they are strong, also 5x5 is more volume than I have been doing and I dropped the intensity as well so although I am not doing the typical 3x10 accumulation phase, 5x5 is accumulation for my situation.

Yes, 5x5 is great in accumulation esp if you are using short rest periods 90sec, 3 sec pause squats, or 1 1/4 squats. I’m kinda old school it seems different doing 3x10 vs 6x5 or 3x3x60 vs 3x180’s…

I agree with you it is different, I started with 2- 2.5 minutes rest (not quite 90sec) but also I wanted the effect of 5x5, with more emphasis on strength but also some muscle mass gains, than of 3x10 with more emphasis on muscle mass gains.

11 is fine and to be expected with such short rests–I am more surprised by 45 to be honest. You might not be touching chest.

I don’t remember my exact form but it was good, full range of motion, maybe an inch or two from having the chest touch the floor at most. I don’t cheat on reps to try to inflate numbers.

I don’t know maybe you’re surprised because this is the first time I’ve done depletion push ups but I usually do push ups as a warm up for bench and during general strength circuits so its not a completely new movement.

Also I am short (only 5’ 6") so if my numbers seem off based on my strength to weight ratios (estimated bench 1.44 BW) maybe i have a leverage advantage or something.

March 13

Squat 3x8x205,225,225
RDL (Slow Tempo) 3x6
3a. Bench Press 2x6x150
b. Lat Pulldown 2x10
c. DB Shoulder Press 2x10
d. DB Upright Row 2x10
abs- 200 reps

My season with my school team begins on Monday, and my first meet is on the 29th I think. For outdoors I am going to try to have a better attitude about training with the team, I think believing in what you are doing will go a long way. Also right now my fitness sucks basically all the qualities needed for sprinting are low right now (besides my strength in the weight room). I am expecting poor times at the beginning of the season but they should improve drastically as my fitness, speed and SE fall into place.

March 15
Wasn’t allowed to do anything because my physical was too old, i think they lost my most recent one or something. I was fine with sitting out, it will allow me to ease into this week more.

March 16
Dysfunctional Weight Room*
2x (Hell Week Circuit** + ~550m Jog)

*Dysfunctional Weight Room is exactly what it sounds like, I didn’t get anything worthwhile done
**Hell Week Circuit is a circuit with 15 stations each lasting about 30 seconds and they are a mixture of abs, bw exercises and low intensity plyos

March 17
I did community service during practice time, so I lifted on my own after.

Squats 4x5x205,205,215,215
Bench Press 4x5x150,150,140,140
Hamstring Curl 2x10
RDL 2x10
Lat Pulldown 2x10
Shoulder Press 2x10
Seated Row 2x10
abs- 400 reps

March 18
1x Hell Week Circuit
2x Suicides

abs- 200 reps

First week of track is always like this, its as a team but then we split up into more specific groups, I think and hope that that will start tomorrow.

March 19

(100m,200,300), (300,200,100) R: 200m Walk/5min

This was brutal and ugly. My first rep was good, second rep was decent and after that they were all ugly. There is no practice on Saturday, Sunday and then Monday my coach wants to do a brutal workout, like something completely over the top, he said like 3x600m but I am not sure if that’s what we are doing. I’m toying with the idea of doing real speed work (similar to a GPP Speed workout) on Sunday along with weights and then working with the Javelin coach on Monday because I would also like to try Javelin and I know I need some actual running fast.

March 22

Javelin Technique
Core Workout (~200reps)

Squat 4x5x225
RDL 2x10
Shoulder Press 2x10
Pull Up 2x6,8
abs- 200 reps

I ended up playing ultimate Frisbee on Saturday so I decided not to try and squeeze a speed workout in. I’m not sure, but it appears like the sprinters at my school have a new coach, its a young guy right out of college, who ran at my high school and graduated in 2005, who ran 1/2/4 his most impressive PR is 21.87. During the indoor season he was kind of the assistant coach but it appears like he has taken over writing the workouts and being with us while we do them, they ended up doing a 600m Breakdown. He treats things like that as the important workouts, but i guess if the program includes everything then it doesn’t really matter what mentally is viewed as more important, only time will tell, hopefully he includes speed work too.

March 23

2x (Jog, Walking Lunges, Forward Skips, Walking Lunges, Backwards Skips, Walking Lunges) ~50m Each
Ab Series(240 reps)

March 24

1 Mile Jog

March 25

Weights with Team (I did Upper + Core and skipped Lower stuff)
4x200m @ 31
2x20m Submax

March 26

Hill
20m, 40m, 60m, 40m, 20m
8x60m
20m, 40m, 60m, 80m, 60m, 40m, 20m
4x80m, 4x40m
*estimated differences
Rest: Jog Back/ Few Minutes

I think this was supposed to be a “speed workout” :confused: hahaha. It ended up being good general conditioning, I never got moving fast simply due to such short rests. I didn’t have any lactic build up so I’d consider this pretty close to extensive tempo. If its nice out this weekend I might try to fit in some speed work since it doesn’t appear ill be getting any with the team.

I was supposed to have a meet Monday but it already got canceled and I might have one Thursday. Luckily I have a lot of meets so those will help me race into shape (build speed and specific endurance). I will be doubling a lot mainly a combination of two of these: 100m, 200m, 4x1 but I am also planning on doing some shorter stuff as a semi workout before the race in my warm up to help fit some speed work in (a few 30s or 40s). Does this sound good, or should I stay away from this? Thanks

What do you mean semi workout?