Learn More About Hurdle Coaching

As a supplement to the Hurdle Training Plan, I have created an opportunity to learn more by having access to me for Q&A. Below you can ask questions and also access my budding database of Q&A from other coaches.

What you see on this page is a simple AI Chatbot with limited information to help you with your training and coaching questions 24/7! 

For a deeper, more informational conversation experience, go to my Coach ACE AI.

For business with Mike Caton, message me here. If all else fails, you can email me.

Botpress Chatbot

Q&A

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Note: Before asking your question, please look at the list below. It’s possible your question has already been asked and answered. 

ACE Coach Q&A

Asked and Answered

4 Stepping vs 3 Stepping

Alternating legs in 300m Hurdles

Do you suggest stretching after practice

Getting over hurdles quicker

Touch Down Quicker w Lead Leg

What to do on non running hurdling days

How far should you space the hurdles for the 6 step drill?
It’s going to be different for individual kids, but to give you a starting point in the planning, my HS senior boy (state champ) was spaced at 50 feet.
My girl was paced at 47 feet.
Keep in mind, they started closer and worked their way to that distance. You might try reducing by 10 feet for a beginner and see how it goes. Please follow up with your results and I’ll update the training plan with the information.
which of your videos is best for troubleshooting in the hurdles?
That would be the Hurdle Technique Cheat Sheet. It has a link to a supplemental video.
Here’s a link to the Cheat Sheet:
https://acemethodcoaching.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Hurdling-Technique-Cheat-Sheet1.pdf
Hurdlers coming from indoor season: Where to start them in the workout plan?

Surprisingly, with some modifications, I would only have them skip the introduction process and have them work in with the other hurdlers as early as week 2 workouts. Here is my rationale:
Indoor hurdling, because it’s just 55-60m, doesn’t always do a lot of endurance training. My training plan does. They haven’t done any 300m hurdle training, their technique might not be very good. My plan puts a lot of emphasis on technique in the early stages. Lastly, there’s something to be said about team unity. It’s good to have the squad working together.

But, modifications need to be made to make the workouts be enough for that athlete. First, they can train at 100%, while you hold the others back. They can also work with less pinching of the space of the hurdles.

Also, you can adjust the workouts to make them more challenging for that athlete, like:

  • More speed
  • Less recovery
  • More reps
  • etc.
Track Meet Warm Up

My meet warm is identical to the daily hurdle warm up progression. Depending on the availability of space, time and actual hurdles, we may have to skip or modify some of the later things (spaced out, off-speed drills, but otherwise, it’s the same. We budget 1 hour for this. 

Weekly Briefings

These are videos of Coach Caton talking about the individual weeks of the Hurdle Training Plan. Expect to see the first ones this weekend.