Letter from the Editor, August 2018
Hello readers, and welcome to the August 2018 edition of The Hurdle Magazine. This month’s issue features four articles from myself, one from freelance writer Teige West, and one from freelance writer Melinda Burris Willms. Since I was able to attend USATF Junior Olympic Nationals at the end of July, the articles that I wrote focus primarily on that event, where I had four athletes competing.
In West’s article, “Meditation and Relaxation,” he further delves into the benefits of meditation for athletes and for improving athletic performance. He provides advice and exercises that can be practiced to achieve the relaxed, focus state of mind necessary for peak performance.
Willms’ article, “The Kinesiology Tape Debate: Powerful Weapon or Pure Placebo Effect?”, discusses the topic of kinesio tape, and whether or not it is beneficial in helping athletes to manage injuries and recover more quickly.
The first of the four articles I wrote is entitled “Be Aggressive.” This article was inspired by the performance of one of my athletes at Nationals, and my belief that he could have run faster if he had simply been more aggressive. Looking at the topic from a larger perspective, the point would be that hurdlers have to always be sure that they are not merely running from hurdle to hurdle, but are truly attacking all the way through the finish line.
In “My Second Greatest Moment as a Coach,” I focus on Falon Spearman – the same athlete of mine that I featured in an article in last month’s issue. Falon won the 10om hurdles at Nationals for the 13-14 age group, and it was quite the thrilling race, and quite the fulfilling experience. In the article, I tie together her victory with “My Greatest Moment as a Coach” – an article I wrote about 14 years ago regarding another athlete of mine who passed away six years ago.
In “A Look Back at Nationals,” I take a look at some of the other outstanding performances at Nationals that didn’t involve Falon, but that did involve other athletes of mine or athletes that coaching friends of mine coach or assist. Just being there, and having a chance to meet so many other hurdle coaches and talking shop, was a whole lot of fun. I also had the chance to meet Allen Johnson for the first time, which was really cool.
This month’s workout, “Sprint to the Finish Line Workout, Part II” is a progression of the workout from last month’s issue. Here, the athlete will sprint the full 100/110m race distance, but instead of only clearing the first 1-3 hurdles, he or she will clear the first five. Whereas last week’s workout had a speed-endurance element to it, this workout is strictly about speed.
Next month we’ll look at off-season training ideas. Congrats to all of you who competed through July, and I hope next year will be an outstanding one for you. Thanks to all of you for your continued support.
Steve McGill
