When Should I begin GPP?

Track & Field 100m
1

I am going to try out 100m this year. I did the 400m for the past 3 seasons, and would like trying the 100m and 200m. This is due to the fact that I believe I could do well in these events, and that an injury that effected my last season makes me question doing the 400m this year. It was a hip injury, something got pulled, and then healed wrong. I have gone to a specialist for the injury, and also plan to see another doctor before the summer is over, an ART specialists.

Anyway, I will be going unattached this year, away from this current high school finally, and will try lining up 8 meets or more. The main three meets will be around these dates: 6/11/06, 7/11/06, and if I get that far 7/26/06. My first meets will probably begin around late April.

Now considering all that, when should I begin GPP training around on the calendar? I am lifting weights and such right now. I bought the GPP Essentials DVD, so it may be on there, just havn’t recieved it yet. When should I begin I guess hills, and other things on the DVD? Thanks for any help.

2

Are you running indoors? Its best to work backwards from your goals.

GPP is usually around 7-8 weeks
SPP 12 weeks
SPP starts around November if you are running indoors, by January you will be ready to race.

3

No, I’m running outdoors. The end of the season will be occuring either in June or July. I’m planning for next season. Hints the dates 6/11/06, etc. So from what I see from your numbers, I should start GPP around the end of January to early February. Does anyone disagree with that reasoning?

4

You are going to wait 7 months to start GPP? What will you be doing between July and Feb to keep yourself fit?

5

Is this injury fixed, or will it be before starting GPP? And what makes you believe that despite this injury, you will do better in the shorter sprints with higher forces possibly being developed around this area? What’s the nature of the problem/injury?

Perhaps by clarifying this, others could make suggestions as to your event choice as well!

6

You are going to wait 7 months to start GPP? What will you be doing between July and Feb to keep yourself fit?

I will be lifting weights between that time. What else do you suggest I do? Not arguing with you, its an sincere question. I could bike during that time. Do you have any other ideas. Should I really be doing track work during that time, before GPP?

Is this injury fixed, or will it be before starting GPP? And what makes you believe that despite this injury, you will do better in the shorter sprints with higher forces possibly being developed around this area? What’s the nature of the problem/injury?

The injury wasn’t fixed at the end of the season. Practically throughout the season I had the injury. This injury was caused the season before the last season due to lack of coaching, and putting little importance on warming up. He was also a authoritarian coach, not caring about the athlete. That would explain why I had a lot of trouble having control over my own training. I went to another school my freshman year, and they had a good program. I also talked to my old coach about him, and he said that that was sorry coaching. Even when I didn’t say anything about him, the coach could see that he wasn’t a good coach. I started going to this school sophomore year. Lets not get into that though, long story, lets just focus on the injury, events, and training.

Anyway, the injury was caused towards the middle to end of my sophomore track season. I figured the injury would heal over the off-season. When I lifted weights, I wasn’t bothered by it. Then my junior season, last season, started up, and the injury began to bother me again. Went to a specialists, and he gave me stretches, but although it improved a little, it still killed my season again.

The injury is in my left hip area. It is either a hip flexor problem, or another muscle(s) problem. The specialist just told me that a muscle(s) got pulled in that area, and that when it healed back, it healed back wrong. This made me lose mobility in my left hip area. When I would run, my left hip area would hurt bad. I would also have to cut training short due to it. It also killed my 400m. I didn’t PR once my Junior year, which is really unusual.

Now this is why I want to do the 100m and 200m. I would just like to try something new, and maybe this could help me. It seems the injury is more prone to pain, by training distance, rather than speed work. I will be going to a ART specialists July sometime, and do what that doctor tells me to do, on top of what this specialists told me to do. Also, the fact that wouldn’t the doing the 100m and 200m still have carry over if I choose to do the 400m next season?

7

I think a longer GPP and SPP would be a much better idea than waiting until just before your outdoor season (do you have no indoor races?). You could, at the very least, start in September or October if you feel you need to lift and get away from the track for a bit.

8

So just prolonging the GPP would be just fine? Would that affect my performance negative in any way, having a longer than usual GPP? Is there another option to doing that, such as maybe swimming laps in the pool during the off-season, with weights, and starting the beginning of January, start GPP? Also, I’m not final on going to the 100m and 200m this next season, but its not out of the picture. I would at least like to try it out, and if its not for me, wouldn’t doing those events still carry over to the 400m?