Preparing for the Full Ten Workout

by Steve McGill

Now that we’re into the month of March and Covid numbers are decreasing in most parts of the country, along with vaccination numbers increasing, it’s looking like a spring sports season will happen for most of us, in some shape or form. Here where I am in North Carolina, the indoor season wasn’t much of a season at all, although there were meets to be found in other states for those willing to travel. With the outdoor season upon us, it’s now time to shift the focus from the shorter indoor distances of 55 or 60 meters to the outdoor distances of 100 and 110 meters. That transition requires some conditioning work, in various forms. Some of that will come in the form of interval workouts that don’t involve any hurdling, while some of it will come in the form of hurdling workouts that include a significant amount of volume. This month’s workout is sort of a hybrid of those two types of workouts, as it involves some running over lower hurdles.

[am4show not_have=’g5;’]

[/am4show][am4guest]

[/am4guest][am4show have=’g5;’]

The Workout:

• 4 sets of 3×100 (females) or 3×110 (males)
• Walk-back rest between reps (no longer than 2:00)
• 5 minutes rest between sets

These sprints will be done over low hurdles, placed on the race marks. So, fold-up practice hurdles or banana hurdles will be needed to complete the workout properly. 

For females, the hurdles should be set at 21 or 24 inches. For males, the hurdles should be set at 27 or 30 inches. 

The idea is to run to the rhythm of the race, ingraining rhythm, while also covering the entire race distance without needing to focus a whole lot on hurdling technique. The athletes’ speed should be consistent throughout the workout, and the reps should be done at about 85% of full speed. If you need to move the hurdles in a foot or two from race distance to ensure that the athletes maintain a consistent rhythm, then do so. As the athletes fatigue, you may need to move the hurdles in a bit for the later sets. But your goal will be to keep the hurdles at race distance the whole workout. Only move the hurdles in if the quality of the reps is deteriorating. 

You can also lower the hurdles even more if you see the quality of the reps going down. This workout can still be effective even over 12-inch banana hurdles. If the athlete simply isn’t in shape enough yet to do four sets of three reps, then maybe take off the last set altogether, or reduce the amount of reps per set to two. But if you see the athletes’ sprint mechanics breaking down — they start running flat-footed, for example — then it might be best to abort the workout, especially if that’s happening early in the workout. Or you could increase the rest period between sets. 

This is a workout that should be done early in the week so that athletes have some time to recover from it. Faster workouts like block starts with lots of rest should be done later in the week, like a day or two prior to the meet (assuming the meet is on the weekend). This time of year, I generally train through weekday meets. 

[/am4show]