Please critique my form

Training/Competition Videos Member Clips
1

I would appreciate any comments on my form as displayed in this 100m race.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UF3PL5TR

This race was hand-timed as 11.1s. Assuming a reaction time of 0.15s at the start, here are some splits based on my analysis of this video:

20m 3.21
30m 4.21
40m 5.19
50m 6.17
90m 10.15
100m 11.17

51.5 strides (27.9 for first and 23.6 for second 50m)

Thanks a lot for your help,
Robin.

2

To make things easier, I have now uploaded the video onto youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTZD3DTu-jE

Any comments would be very much appreciated.

Thanks,
Robin.

3

poor hip extension, i think… and you’re very tight.

4

Thanks. I agree on both points. While tightness is often a problem for me over the last 20 or so metres, in this particular race I felt rather tight from 30m onwards. Any thoughts on how to address the hip extension issue?

Thanks,
Robin.

5

I would be curious to see you run some tempo 100s at a set effort counting your strides on each run. After you’re warmed up, continue to do more reps now stretching your quads between each tempo run and see if that affects your # of steps (hence hip extension).
What is your race warmup like?

6

What was your training the week leading up to this race. Specifically the last 7 days or so. What did you do for weights, training ect.

7

Day 1: 4x20m flying sprints plus 40, 50, 60m from blocks, weights (2x2x110kg bench (sore pecs), 3x2x160kg deadlift, abs

Day 2: 1500m Tempo plus abs

Day 3: 1200m Tempo, overhead shot throws (8 forward, 8 backwards), 3x30m drills (A-skips, high knees…), hurdle mobility

Day 4: off

Day 5: 4x20m flying sprints, 50, 60, 70m from blocks, weights (3x2x105kg bench, 140kg deadlift)

Day 6: 1500m tempo

Day 7: off

Day 8: race

I don’t think it was the training that resulted in the tightness, but rather the fact that it was the first proper race of the season.

in any case, I know how to work on relaxation, but would appreciate any input into whether and how I should address the poor hip extension.

Thanks,
Robin.

8

I’m going to tape some flying sprints tomorrow at 90, 95 and 100% effort and post them here. My race warmup is usually something like:

5x100m strides (at appr. 50, 60, 70, 80, 80% of max speed)
stretching (short, dynamic)
2x20m drills
2x50m at 90, 95% effort in spikes
1x30m flying sprint at 100% (30m run-up)
1x10m, 1x30m from blocks
race

Sincerely,
Robin.

9

Here is a clip of me doing flying sprints at 90, 95 and 100% (from side and front):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dw3gkQSOVaQ

Or for better quality:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UBVGRYYS

I didn’t time these runs, but my SB for a flying 40 is 3.89s (timed using infrared speed gates)

According to my analysis, my stride length was the same for the 90 and 95% runs and slightly longer (ca. 2.5cm more) for the 100% runs.

I would say that hip extension looks a bit better from this angle than in the previous clip. Please have a look and tell me whether you think it needs improvement. (Before Asafa Powell came along I would have certainly thought it does, but now I’m not sure anymore.)

Thanks,
Robin.

10

If you ran 3.89 for a flying 40m in training and ran 11.1 in a race I would focus more on your start & accel than your hip extension which looks ok to me.

11

Thanks. My start and accel is actually the strongest part of my race. Using a touch pad and infrared speed gates I ran 3.96s over 30m from blocks last week. Assuming a 0.15s reaction time at the start, that’s 4.11s FAT. Flojo split 4.09 on her way to her Olympic title (10.54)

Last year I ran 60m in 7.16 and one hour later 100m in 11.25, which suggests that the second half of my race is in need of improvement.

Looking at split times of world class female sprinters (see http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/technique/109-Frank_Dick.pdf), a split of 3.89 between 30 and 70m equates to about 11.00 - 11.05. My PB is 11.01.

Thanks again for your comments,
Robin.

12

Ok better info… so your PB is 11.01FAT not 11.1 hand. So you can run a 3.89 40m split in practice? Or is that a split in a race?

When you ran 7.16 then 11.25 in the same session were they both FAT (a meet or touchpad/sensors)?

13

The 3.89 was in practice; 40m with a 35m run-up. I have run similar times in practice on three other occasions this season (3.91 for 40m and 2.93 and 2.94 for 30m).

The 7.16 and 11.25 were both FAT in a competition.

I ran a 6.93s 60m from blocks with touchpad last week, splitting the previously mentioned 3.96s at 30m.

14

Ok that makes sense. Like I said I was originally thinking 3.89 40m fly and 11.1hand.

Often, technical issues are resolved as your strength/power/conditioning/mobility levels go up. It’s hard to resolve a technical issue if you’re not capable of comfortably making the change. I see alot of paralysis by analysis that goes on when the problem’s root cause is that the athlete isn’t strong enough or mobile/supple enough to make the necessary corrections.

I think all your times are very logical. I am surprised you don’t get more benefit from a competition environment compared to practice. Oh and I wouldn’t go comparing yourself to the freakiest sprinter ever :slight_smile: (flojo)

You will like this link if you haven’t seen it yet.
http://charliefrancis.com/community/showthread.php?t=10634&highlight=women’s+split+data

15

I think conditioning may have been an issue in my case, and I am planning to give a lot more emphasis to a (longer) GPP this fall/winter.

I think there are three reasons for this:

  1. I train with a relatively low volume of sprint work (600-1000m per week) and thus do not get much benefit from a taper.

  2. I often tighten up in races.

  3. Weather conditions here in the UK (contrary to what my profile says, I’m not in Australia anymore) have been bad for most of my races this season. I did seven 100m races with electric timing this season and only one of them benefitted from both, a tailwind and temperatures above 20 degrees celsius.

Thanks for the link. I had seen it before, but wasn’t sure where.

Thank you for your thoughts and input,
Robin.

16

again its a strenght issue, and forcing it to happen… open those hands may feel better…
on the good side, pretty nifty feet,ciao

17

Thanks. Where do you think strength is lacking?

Sincerely,
Robin.

18

your intial steps are short and no force coming off the ground… remember my key rule…

6steps to the first 10 metre in less time possible

also, there shud be more force coming off teh ground then going into the ground… watch ben johnson run 9.79… play attention to the first 30 metres… he was a monster at it…

ciao…

19

I’m not sure how useful it is for someone who runs 11-flat to try to emulate the best starter ever when the strength and explosiveness is vastly different.

20

lets get one thing straight…11 flat is not slow,
wake-up… form is form, ciao