In this article, I’m going to show you how to organize your practices to optimize your hurdling time. Your athletes have a finite amount of energy to spend at each session and as a coach, you need to learn how to manage it to decrease your team’s injuries and get your hurdlers flying.
This is the 4th article in this series about coaching hurdles. If you haven’t seen the others, I recommend checking them out because I reference them here.
Here’s the order that you should do the various components of your practice
- Warm Up
- Drills
- Full-speed work
- Off-speed work
- Speed and conditioning
Have Hurdlers Start Earlier Than the Rest of the Track Team
It’s not necessary, but, If possible, have your hurdlers start about 30 minutes before the rest of the team because their warm up is longer, they need to do their hurdle training, and then hopefully do some of their speed and conditioning workouts with the other sprinters.
Hurdle Warm Up
Their warm up should start at a low intensity and gradually build up a good sweat. It should also include a progression of movements that prepare the athletes bodies for hurdling. I teach my progression in part 3 of this series. Check it out.
Hurdle Drills
Because they need to be done with precision and because they are good for preparing the athletes’ bodies for full speed work, I recommend doing drills right after the warm up.
Full-Speed Hurdle Training
After the athletes have completed the warm up, it’s time to spike up and do some full-speed work. It’s best to do this type of work early, before the athletes get fatigued and I recommend limiting the repetitions to a minimum. This is where many coaches and athletes make a mistake: Because full-speed hurdling is so tough on the body and because fatigue sets in which messes with the steps and technique, I recommend keeping these repetitions low. This applies to training for the sprint hurdles and the distance hurdles.
Off-Speed Hurdle Training
Depending on the time of season and your goals for the workout, you may want to or need to do some more hurdle training, but you’ve already done all the full speed repetitions you should. In that case, I recommend reducing the spacing of the hurdles to where the athletes can clear them while running with approximately 50%-75% of their top speed. This enables them to focus on technique without having to work so hard to reach the next hurdle. It also saves their legs and cuts down on injury.
Speed and Conditioning for Hurdling
Because hurdlers are sprinters, they need speed and endurance like everyone else.This part of the workout should be saved for the end of the session. Not all hurdle coaches agree on this. Some like to do all the running and conditioning over hurdles. I disagree. I prefer to do about half of this without hurdles. I think the quality of the speed work is better and it decreases the potential of stuttering, which can become psychological. I prefer to have my hurdlers join the other sprinters for the second half of their workout.
Coaches, if you want to skip all the video watching, planning and guesswork, I’ve done all the work for you and have 2 options for you to get it. First is with my hurdle training plan. It’s a full-season plan that walks you step-by-step through the season with all the workouts you need. I’ll leave a link in the notes below. The other option is with my new learning community I’m calling Team ACE. I’ll leave links to both in the notes below.
I hope this helps.
Hurdle practice is an essential component of training for any track and field athlete looking to improve their hurdle performance. However, organizing hurdle practice effectively can be challenging, as it requires a combination of skill work, strength training, and conditioning. Here are some tips on how to organize hurdle practice to develop great hurdlers:
- Start with a dynamic warm-up: A dynamic warm-up helps to prepare the body for the demands of hurdle practice by increasing blood flow and activating the muscles. It should include exercises such as leg swings, inchworms, and high knees to get the hips and legs moving.
- Focus on hurdle technique: Proper technique is critical for effective hurdle clearance, and it is important to spend a significant portion of practice working on it. This can include drills such as hurdle walks, hurdle hops, and hurdle skips to develop proper foot placement and arm action.
- Incorporate strength and power training: Strong and powerful legs are essential for effective hurdle clearance, and it is important to incorporate exercises such as squats, lunges, and single leg jumps into practice. Plyometrics, such as box jumps and bounding, can also be helpful for developing power.
- Incorporate hurdle mobility work: Hurdle practice is demanding on the hips and ankles, and it is important to spend some time focusing on improving the range of motion and flexibility in these areas. This can be done through stretches such as lunge stretches, pigeon stretches, and calf stretches, as well as through foam rolling and lacrosse ball work.
- Include conditioning work: In addition to working on specific hurdle skills and strength, it is important to also develop a good base level of cardiovascular fitness. This can be done through a variety of methods such as running, cycling, or rowing.
- Don’t forget about rest and recovery: It is important to allow the body time to heal and adapt to the training stress, so be sure to include rest and recovery as a crucial part of the practice plan. This can include things like active recovery sessions, foam rolling, and getting sufficient sleep.
By following these tips, you can organize your hurdle practice in a way that effectively develops the skills and physical attributes necessary for great hurdle performance. Remember to start with a solid foundation and gradually build up the intensity and challenge as the athlete progresses, and always prioritize proper technique and safety.