The Start in the 400m Hurdles

While the start in the 400m hurdles is not as obviously important as it is in the 100/110m hurdles, it is nevertheless very important, as it dictates the rhythm for the whole race. Go out too hard, and you’ll set yourself up for a late-race breakdown. Go out too slow, and you’ll never be able to compete up to your capabilities. So there needs to be a balance: don’t be a hero, but don’t be timid.

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For the 400 hurdler, fear is a different animal than it is for the sprint hurdler. The 400 hurdler fears fatigue, whereas the sprint hurdler fears his or her own speed, and (especially the male 110 hurdler) the hurdles themselves. In the 400 hurdles, the fear of fatigue is very real, and with very good reason. Late-race fatigue can make a 30-inch or 36-inch hurdle seem like it’s ten feet tall. A stride pattern can be destroyed to the point where you don’t give a damn how many steps you’re taking between the hurdles;  you just want to cross that finish line and be done with track and field.

So, to a large degree, success in the 400m hurdle race is all about pain management. It’s about distributing your energy throughout the race without putting too much emphasis on one phase of the race over another. A 400 hurdler must be very efficient and fluid in the early part of the race, as late-race breakdowns are often the result of bumbles and stumbles and stutters in the first half of the race. All of which means, if your start is jacked up, your whole race will be jacked up.

Let’s start with some numbers first, although I don’t want these numbers to be considered the gospel truth. But generally speaking, I would break it down like this:

• 19-20 strides to first hurdle will lead to 13 strides to second hurdle.
• 21 strides to first hurdle will lead to 14 strides to second hurdle.
• 22-23 strides to first hurdle will lead to 15-16 strides to second hurdle.
• 24 strides to first hurdle will lead to 17 strides to second hurdle.
• 25-26 strides to first hurdle will lead to 18-19 strides to second hurdle.

As a general rule, I tell my 400 hurdlers that however many strides they take to the second hurdle, they want to maintain that stride pattern at least through hurdle five. That gets them through the first half of the race, and to the end of the first straight-away, before fatigue becomes a factor, and before the trickiness of the second curve comes into play. So, if you know how many strides you want to take between hurdles 2-5, then you know how many strides you should take to the first hurdle.

Much of the figuring-out process – when it comes to determining the most effective number of steps to take to the first hurdle – must take place in practice, by just experimenting. Experienced hurdlers may have already settled in on their number, but for athletes who are still developing, still getting faster and stronger, the process is ongoing. Usually, my 400 hurdlers don’t settle in on a definitive “this is what we’re doing no matter what” stride pattern until the very end of the outdoor season. That’s because most of my athletes are high school hurdlers who run the 300 hurdles in most meets but also compete in the 400 hurdles in certain invitationals and at high school nationals (assuming they make it that far). With the kid I was coaching last year, who was a senior but in his first year running the 400 hurdles, we settled in on 22 strides to the first hurdle, 15 through hurdle eight, then 17 between the last two ( as he wasn’t able to alternate at the time). We experimented with taking 21 steps to the first hurdle a couple times, and although he was able to make it, he found himself in no man’s land at hurdle two – too crowded to 15-step, not moving fast enough to 13-step, and unable to switch legs and 14-step. So we had to stick with 22 to the first hurdle.

Another consideration in the above example is that, even if he could’ve alternated and 14-stepped to the second hurdle, he wasn’t ready to do so conditioning-wise and still maintain his speed and rhythm late in the race. To take 21 and 14 would’ve brought on fatigue by hurdle five, and he’d’ve fallen apart before getting to the homestretch. So, that’s part of the mix. You have to go with the stride number to the first hurdle that your training has prepared you to execute. You cannot do what you have not conditioned your body to do. The fool’s gold would be the improved touchdown times in the first part of the race. You may be doing 200’s over the first five in practice and find that your touchdowns are much faster by getting out harder, but the question is whether or not you’re going to pay the price coming home. The kinds of times that you run in your open repeats – 300’s and 500’s in particular – will let you know whether your body will be able to handle the extra speed in the beginning half of the race. That way you can make an informed decision as to whether to stick with the tried and true or to venture out into the great unknown.

The biggest mistake that most 400 hurdlers make though, in my estimation, is that they get out too slow. While it’s important to be smart and strategic, I find that many 400 hurdlers are overly cautious early in the race for fear of the late-race breakdown and the helpless feeling of lactic acid build-up. Being overly cautious can create more work – more strides than necessary to the first hurdle, more strides than necessary to hurdles 2-5. Some athletes, like Bershawn Jackson, can have the best of both worlds. In the early part of the race, he conserves energy while maintaining his stride pattern before really turning on the jets in the second half of the race. But only the most experienced athletes can approach the race in this manner. Jackson knows how to bound, how to float, how to keep the rhythm.

So, in terms of the specifics of the start itself: firstly, I would say that it’s important for 400 hurdlers to be able to start with either foot in front in the pedals. That way, switching from an even number of steps to an odd number to the first hurdle won’t be a problem. Most 400 hurdlers who have a background in the 100/110 hurdles (or who still compete in the sprint hurdles) will prefer to start with the same foot in front that they use in the shorter race. But they may need to switch their feet in the longer race in order to get the optimal amount of strides to the first hurdle. For example, someone who takes eight steps to the first hurdle in the sprint hurdles but needs to take 23 steps to the first hurdle in the long hurdles will need to start with the other foot in front.

In terms of positioning, the blocks should be angled to the inside part of the lane, the same as a 200 meter runner or quarter-miler would do, so that you can get to the inside part of the lane within the first couple strides. I believe that a 400 hurdler should go ahead and drive with power and really attack the first hurdle aggressively. Blast out like a 200 meter runner. Don’t hold back. Once you get to the backstretch – coming off hurdle two – the speed you developed in the beginning you will carry you through the next three hurdles, allowing you to float and bound with minimal exertion. I also feel that getting out aggressively is important because it gives you a big confidence boost. The waiting is over, the gun goes off, and you set yourself free. Now it’s time to execute your race plan, to be the 400m hurdler that you are, that you have trained yourself to be.

Those 400 hurdlers who don’t run the sprint hurdles should always practice their start on the curve. High school hurdlers who run the 300 hurdles don’t have to worry about the curve, so they can practice their start at the 300h start line. However, hurdlers who run the 300h and the 400h on occasion will need to go back and forth, depending on which event they’ll be competing in that weekend. My personal preference though is that the focus should be on the 400h, because the start for the 300h will not suffer as a result.

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