Quicken the Cadence Workout
by Steve McGill
Lately I’ve been coaching a couple high school male athletes who are working to break into the sub-14 range, and who are hoping to be in the 13.5 range or faster by the end of the season. While one has been injured a lot and therefore hasn’t been able to progress at the rate we were expecting, they both are at the stage where focusing on quickening their cadence becomes increasingly more important. This month’s workout consists of a series of drills (followed by block starts) designed to force the athletes to keep their hands low and active, and to move their feet more quickly as a result. As I’ve discussed before, hurdlers, once they reach a certain level, can only run faster times by being quicker between the hurdles, and, to a lesser degree, improving their technique.
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Workout:
1. Five reps of three-stepping over 24-inch banana hurdles
- A short, two-step approach to the first hurdle
- Hurdles are spaced 12 feet apart (males) or 10 feet apart (females)
- Five reps of three-stepping over 30-inch hurdles
- A 4-step approach to the first hurdle
- Distance from start line to first hurdle is 23 feet (males) or 20 feet (females)
- Hurdles are spaced 15 feet apart (males) or 13 feet apart (females)
- Five reps of three-stepping over 36-inch hurdles (males) or 30 inches (females)
- A 6-step approach to the first hurdle
- Distance from start line to first hurdle is 33 feet (males) or 30 feet (females)
- Hurdles are spaced 23 feet apart (males) or 20 feet apart (females)
- Five reps of three-stepping over 39-inch hurdles (males) or 33 inches (females)
- Spacing is the same as above; only the hurdles are higher
- Block starts over one hurdle, up to three hurdles.
- I don’t put a set number on this. One rep over one hurdle, one rep over two hurdles, and one rep over three hurdles should be enough. Some practice starts should be necessary before diving into it.
- All hurdles after the first hurdle should be moved in two feet from race distance.
Variations:
For athletes who take seven steps to the first hurdle in races, take one less stride to the first hurdle than what is listed above, except for the first drill over the banana hurdles. So, take three steps to the first hurdle where it says to take four; take five steps to the first hurdle where it says to take six.
Below is a video of junior Malik Mixon going through the series of drills described above.
Below is a video of senior Brandon Johnson doing the same workout, minus the block starts, as he was just returning from a sprained ankle.
Since doing this workout a few weeks ago, Malik has dropped his personal best from 14.10 to 13.88 to 13.78. Another athlete, Sam Hartman, who is a collegian at Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania, dropped his personal best from 14.04 to 13.92 to 13.88 just through me giving him feedback on race footage and instructing him to be faster/quicker between the hurdles. I’m the kind of coach who likes to simplify things for the athletes as much as possible so that they can rely on their instincts more than their minds. So, for the athletes who are having success but are locked into a rhythm, quickening the cadence by adding an increased danger element to basic drills is an easy and effective way to run faster times without making any major changes to one’s training or one’s technique.
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