I have just written the following article and published it on www.oztrack.com It may be of interest to athletes and coaches. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Core Stability and Conditioning for 400-800-1500 To reach their potential an athlete may need to develop: 1. A better postural position. This may involve improving flexibility dramatically and then setting out very seriously to change body position. 2. Higher levels of balance, which is provided by both the nervous system and many fine muscles, positioned near the spine. This system of body position control must be challenged in a variety of ways to develop this area to high levels e.g. Swiss ball, wobble board, Med Ball catching & throwing, foam rollers etc. This is also the way to further re-enforce a better postural position. 3. The qualities of Endurance, Strength & Power in the trunk. There should be much more variety in trunk conditioning than simply sit-ups, crunches and back extensions. Athletes need to be able to hold their bodies in the ideal postural position for the complete duration of their event. To achieve this goal will require the strength in the right muscles to hold body position as well as the endurance to maintain the position. Athletes like Wilson Kipketer, Hicham El Guerrouge , Marion Jones, Frank Fredericks, Michael Johnson etc. have their trunks conditioned well enough to achieve the goal of maintaining ideal body position for the entire race almost every time they compete. This season, many of the athletes that train here in Sydney with me have followed a comprehensive Core stability & conditioning program. This has involved: Weekly 3 x 20min Swiss Ball conditioning sessions (following Paul Cheks Swiss Ball Video 'Better abs,buns,backs') 3 x 20min Pilates (following Denise Austin Pilates floor exercises Video) 1-2 x functional Gym Training eg Single leg lifts - all free weights - posture enhancing exercises Some have also done extra exercises on different days for -lower abs eg straight leg lowering - maintaining a neutral posture - 3 x 10 maximal load contractions. The goal is to eventually be able to lower straight legs to floor while maintaining a neutral spinal curve. -upper abs eg swiss ball crunches with a heavy weight - easy up to 80lb 3 x 10 - external oblique's - across body cable pulls in a standing position eg 3 x 10 both down and across each way then 3 x 10 up and across each way -back extensors.- hyperextensions on a back extension machine. and also reverse hypers. 3 x 10 For Drills at the Track athletes have simply concentrated on two: 1. Ankling - circular movements of lower leg maintaining dorsiflexion. Do 6-8 of these over 6-8s. 2. Quick Recovery High Knee Running - they catch their leg early bring it rapidly up underneath and keeping their pelvis stable lift their knees as high as they can without 'sitting'. They do these at varying speeds maintaining good form which means no extra bum out or sitting as well as keeping their feet dorsiflexed. They do about 6-8 of these over 6-8s at varying speeds. Most track sessions have ended with some relaxed 150s at about 800 pace. Where they can practise relaxing and running at a decent speed in the right position. The effect I have noticed usually within 6 weeks that athletes are moving differently and with improvement of their ability to maintain good pelvic position under conditions of high fatigue. Athletes have had good gains on maximum speed. Some athletes have improved their standing 60m time by as much as 0.6s. Some athletes that had poor speed now have developed much higher maximum speeds. Athlete contact times have decreased. Conclusion All athletes should invest the time to perform a great variety of exercises to improve core stability and posture. My experiences have shown me that it is a very worthwhile area of training. Following video sessions of these types of training is very popular and effective. It is also not that time consuming. This type of training will well prepare athletes to make extra gains through being able to do more fast speedwork safely with less risk of hamstring injury particularly and will also be a great thing to add plyometric work to. regards Steve Bennett Head Coach Western Sydney Academy of Sport More information is at http://www.oztrack.com/trunk.htm
