Understand how things played out
The first weeks into spring break I considered GPP. Once meets started, meet days on Tuesay would be similar to KK’s 350, 300, 250, 200, 150, 100 day since kids often ran 4 races, a combination of 100, 200, 400s) Saturday meets were 1-2 races as in the past kids got burned out from excessive racing both Tuesday and Saturday. Saturday I expected kids to run quality runs as competition was high. Knowing they only had one race did lead to SB or PRs on weekend races. I left Thursday for the 200+200 type workouts and 4x150 as I felt they needed extra work on finishing the 400m. Since I only had 3 quality days a week, I had to rotate these.
Race modeling took place during taper. I think for better 400m runners, we would do more of this during the season, even if just 1-2 runs over 100m at race model pace working on technical positions.
During taper, we stayed away from lactic. Prior to regionals, we had a huge race stimulus as kids did either 100, 4x200, 4x100, 200 or 100, 4x200, 4x100, 4x400, or 4x200, 400, 200m, 4x400.
State finals was a big success for the girls running 4:03 for a school record (60, 61, 61, 61 splits). The boys placed 4th, and could have been better if a runner had been 100%, but was likely 90%.
Uncharted territory
Two girls planned on running summer track for the AAU circuit, with national finals here in town, require little travel, just a 60 mile drive to two meets. The first meet was 4 weeks after state finals. State finals were June 1, AAU qualifers were June 29. In conversation with KitKat, here is what transpired:
Q from ESTI:
“”In 4 weeks they have national qualifiers in which they would need to run a slight bit faster to advance. What would you recommend for those weeks? A mini gpp with mini transition? If gpp, what phase to focus on?
Or just repeat transition work for 3 weeks and taper?
Following the qualifier they will have 4 more weeks until nationals. Meets will be limited in these 2 months and those available will likely be low level.
They have run 26.2 and 26.9 and 60.0, 60.0. Qualify requires about 58-59 which should be possible.”
[b]A: from KK
Difficult to advise from afar. Will GPP help this deep I to the season. It’s only like 8 weeks to nationals ?
I’d be assessing individual needs. Some may benefit from a block of intensive tempo, but others may need to improve speed reserve so the answer there is short and long speed with good recoveries followed two weeks out by more race modelling and then into a little taper. But better to be underdone than overcooked.
Try some descending sets: 80, 60, 40, 20 x 2 and maybe on another day a mix of sled, high skips, and then build ups sprints to 80m. That’s good for power and forcing them to look for stride length by getting air time rather than extending their contact time and never approaching g triple extension anywhere near the torso.
For mixing short and long speed to simulate the feeling and symptoms of the last half of a 400m, try 3 or 4 x 60m off 30sec all rolling starts then another 30sec “rest” before a flying 150 or preferably 200m. A couple of sets of that has benefits all round.[/b]
The week right after state finals was a big distraction week as we had prom, graduation and year end school stuff. We managed to get in a few sessions: Here is how I structured the next 3 weeks:
Monday: 80 60 40 20 sets x 2 this week
Tuesday: tempo
Wed: 4x60+200 for 2 sets (recommended vs 2x200+200 to help increase turn over. 2x2x200 would be better suited for a short strider who needs to lengthen)
Thursday: tempo:
Friday: schedule sled/skip/sprint day but scheduled 4x150 with jog alk jog rests because of schedule conflicts, they did this on their own
The following week was the same, except Friday we did the sled skip sprint set. It was quite hard.
The 3rd week we had to do 4x150 again due to schedule issues.
The taper week going into the race I was in France. Here is the sessions I prescribed them:
Monday 2x80m at 95%
Tuesay: 4x50 race model on turns
Wed: tempo:
Thur: 1x60m at 95%
Fri: warmup
Sat: race (was pouring rain, so bad kids ran with eyes closed often) Girls ran terrible. One advanced to nationals in the 400m
The last phase of training
Off until Wed July 5 when I returned.
Fri: July 5 300, 200, 150, 100 (fast and relaxed, near max speed, 15 min recovery)
Sunday: 2x2x200 (chose this to give her confidence since the last 3 weeks were mostly short stuff and no races. 29.3, 29.3 (rep 1 into wind). 31.2, 29.3 ( rep 1 into wind)
Tuesday: 80-60-40-20 x 2, we also did a few EFE and some technical work using a drill I picked up from PJ in France.
Thurs: 4x150
Saturday: 300, 200, 150, 100
Tues July 16: 2x2x200 (no record of times, but I beelive this was our last 2x2x200 and she ran all of them in 29s, even negative splitting the last 200m.
Thursday: 80-60-40-20 x 2 plus technical work before
Saturday: 300-200-100
Taper notes from KitKat
[i]While it is vital to set up the opening 100 to a timed schedule, it is just as important to work the other corners including the whip into the home straight.
I usually started a build up run 80m before the critical stage of the turn and then work maybe for 50m around the bend.
So to rehearse through the 200 start zone, start 70 or 80m up toward the 300 start and build a head of steam into the 200 start and maintain through to the water jump.
The whole idea is to rehearse the mechanics on the turns: the key point of emphasis is achieving something close to triple extension on the left leg as it is under extreme pressure on each bend. The athlete must run “tall” - minimizing contact time will maximize impulse. Running with a very bent left knee is like driving a car with no air in the tyres.
Similarly I emphasize two things in the opening 50m or so: one is the go hard like a 200m race rhythm to getting yourself rolling. But the equally important objective is to establish upright stance mechanics - essentially get the pelvis to a flat or neutral position to enable effective and efficient front as well as rear side mechanics.
Re your question on race model king 300 by hitting only one part of the run at serious race rhythm, yes it can be used to rehearse the race but I would tend to use that during taper only if I felt the athlete was a bit underdone and psychologically a bit frail and needed to do a bit more volume just to make the athlete feel s/he had done plenty if work and would not lose fitness during the relatively long taper.[/i]
Our Plan
Tuesday July 23: Tues was 11 day trial…300m…she ran 42 on a wet track.
Wed tempo
Thurs was 2x3x100 race model (first 100, 180-280, 150-250). We also did massage treatment and she felt really lose. She did express nervousness from lack of. 400m racing compared to school season with 2-4 400 races weekly.
Friday did tempo + massage.
Saturday plan would be 3x100 race model (start to 100, 180-280, 250-350). then fast/relaxed 150. (considered doing 200 race model, full recovery, 150 instead, but feel like more race model reps would be better than 1 effort over longer distance)
sunday tempo + massage
monday: 4x50 race model (2 into turn, 2 off the turn), 1 x 80 fast/relaxed
tues tempo + massage
wed off
thur warm-up/down
fri race: Not even close to her PR. Locked up at 350m, ran sluggish first 200m in 29 (model was 28-30).
Final Thoughts
I feel I have a great grasp of the high school season planning and peaking. The summer posed many challenges as meets are scarce and the distractions of summer for a teenager. I never had an athlete perform poorly in a big meet when they followed everything I asked of them, including all the massage work I did. On meet day, she was quite tight, surprisingly. This had me worried we over did the warm-up/down, She did loosen a bit during warm-up but tone was quite high to my liking.
I’m not sure fi we should have found meets, even if they were not great competition. With a girl, I could always try to have her race boys too. The summer meets are tricky scheduling warm-ups. No exact race time is given. For her, the 400m races started at 3:30pm with the 13 year old boys and girls, then 14s, then 15-16, then her at 17-18. They are asked to be there one hour prior to race time. In meets past, they would need to be checked in at the hour before. This meet was not like that. When they called her in, she ran 15 minutes later.
We arrived to the meet around 1pm. Did a shake massage and easy warm up. She said she felt good over and over. We did a few 50m runs in the warm up area, took 30 minute break, did a few more more. Then another 30m later she ran. I think the warm-up wasn’t great.
With her workout times being so good, I think it must have been her warm-up/preparation that led to poor race. She was very bummed of the result. I am very proud of her. She had a great attitude, never missed a session, always did what I asked of her this summer. As a coach, to me, that can’t be measured but shows her true character.
She is very excited for next year as she wants to break the 400m school record of 58.6.
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