Footwear maybe?
Not all grass fields are worthy…research from Kim and Voloshin in 1994 from the journal of Human Movement sciences show that 25-30% more stress comes from uneven grass then polyurethane or asphalt. Add in that barefoot running adds 20-25% more shank and head shock…you better pay attention to your tempo days before they cause more harm then recovery. I love universities, and UNC and NCSTATE are great. When I drive by golf courses I think tempo…
Clemson,
I was at the coast two weekends ago, and went golfing. I noticed how soft the ground was. It turns out the whole course was just grass and trees planted on a sand dune. I went back and ran my tempo on it the next day, and it was completely effortless.
Many of the worlds top CC and Mara runners use G Courses for training … much to the annoyance of the green keepers!!
has anyone tried 2 different sessions of tempo on tempo days? say one in the morning and 1 in the afternoon or evening.
The best surface I have used was RJ stadium for one day…(Tampa Bay Bucs). You want an even surface on both height and density. Also the landings (cf.com) are before the BDC so shin problems can happen if the load is too high.
re - technique… i agree with Clemson in that you’d better monitor your tempo at any kind of significant volume (around 1500m+) because that’s when it’s can break down and wash away any benefits you were hoping to get… i.e., the tradeoff is not there.
i can’t see the use of doing 2 diff tempo sessions on the same day. It doesn’t make sesne from a needs analysis standpoint. what is there to gain?
besides most athletes don’t like doing tempo so that’s another reason to try to minimize it when working with speed power athletes. when i look at programs for 200/400 runners that have two special endurance days plus three tempo days i don’t get it. tempo is not the only (maybe not even the best) means of recovery training.
the grass soccer field at the stadium in Austin is nice.
Kebba,
I do two tempo sessions per day. Before breakfast 10 x 100m w/ 30 seconds rest. I don’t worry about the time in the times of the 100’s in the morning, but in the afternoon they are 16 seconds. By doing tempo in the morning I stay very lean.
blood is the river of life…let it flow.
We know the science and history of what tempo does…why are people so quick to throw it out. Christ it’s like I am asking for marathon runs with backpacks.
Someone asked me what I would have done differently in my training…I would say that the reason I was not successful and got injured was a lack of consistent Tempo running!!! A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and my tempo was weak.
Fluke,
I consistently do two tempo sessions on tempo day. The first one is 40 min. in the am doing my 800-1kr of various abs. warm-up drills and light sprints. This work-out gets me supercharged for a few hours so there is no need for coffee or any other pick me uppers.
The second one is done in the pm which gets me ready to focus on getting my cash on again and/or study.
I missed both sessions yesterday.
am- b/c I woke up late.
pm- b/c the NCAA’s are in my town so I have to go and watch the 100m and the LJ (my event)
So now I am feeling it and I shouldn’t be.
Originally posted by Herb
Someone asked me what I would have done differently in my training…I would say that the reason I was not successful and got injured was a lack of consistent Tempo running!!! A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and my tempo was weak.
becuase no one has yet explained to me why athletes need to to do it twice a week in the competition season? someone give me a good reason besides that the bland “recovery”
it can’t just be recovery. there are a million things you can do for recovery besides just running up and down the track.
it’s not the tempo i object to, rather, the volume and frequency. people are proposing 2-3x a week in comp phases with volumes over 4500m.
i’m willing to listen, someone give me a good reason.
ktolbert,
Name some of the other things. What is more accessible…a swimming pool, or a grass field, (what is more conveinient for 30 athletes all at once). how about 15 medicine balls? or a grass field? It is just easy to do, and the volume does not tax the CNS, but helps to restore it via blood flow as Clemson pointed out. Have you read the archives?
http://www.charliefrancis.com/board/philboard_forum.asp?forumid=15
http://www.charliefrancis.com/board/philboard_forum.asp?forumid=6
http://www.charliefrancis.com/board/philboard_forum.asp?forumid=15&recordnum=20
It works:D
i’ve read the old forums before… so it’s easy and manageable to do tempo – that doesn’t that’s why it should be done 2x a day or 3x a week. I think that you can get more bang for the buck while having tempo as part of your recovery methods not as the sole recovery/training method (i’m not inclluding stuff like baths, showers, whirlpool… as I generally consider those post training recovery methods)
What would be your training program save tempo? I like to keep the body elevated and rich in blood flow.
for a 400m athlete (very basic outline)
M - Acc Work, Power Work (multi-jump or throw), Lift
T- Tempo or Tech work, Lift, Recovery activity
W - Speed or Speed Endurance, Lift,
T - Recovery Work
F- Accel, Speed or Speed Endur, Lift (might lift on Sat)… some recovery work
S - Speed or Special Endurance (depending on
S - recovery work or off
could you be more detailed about the recovery work and tempo?
re - recovery
- medball and/or genreal strength circuit type work
- hurdle mobility
- extensive warm-up or cooldown
- auxill or bodybuilding type of lifting
- pool
- barefoot runs, skips, walks
re - tempo (i would probably break these down into two or three sets)
6- 15 x 150m
5-10 x 200m
3-8 x 300m
10-12 x 120m
2 x 200, 180, 150, 120
4 x 180, 140
1-3 x 300, 250, 200
etc, etc. etc
Tempo is great, but I think you still need to look at the overall context of what you are doing. An extensive warmup may sometimes be a better option depending on the training phase, volume, condition etc. Its not one of the ten commandments. Faith and self flagellation have no place in sprint training.