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Full Video Transcript

hi everybody Welcome to Stillwater high school this is the human performance lab that I have and my physiology classroom here in Stillwater Minnesota and I’d like to talk to you today about the 800 meters and a little bit about developing a race plan I’d like to thank my technical crew here Marcus and Maddie I’d like to also point out that I’ve got some distance crew here some of my 800 meter Runners and some of my MERS who are also going to watch today at the end of the presentation we’ll give you a web address that you can reach me at if you’ve got questions if you want to buy some training things whatever you need I’m here for you and I I operate a question and answer board so if you’ve got things make sure you contact me and again that address will pop up a little bit later now talking about the 800 meters and that’s where I really want to concentrate today is on the two lapper I don’t want to talk much about training I want to talk about a plan for running uh the 800 now why would you want to do a plan well anything that’s worthwhile in life has got a plan and the racing plan for the 800 meters uh should serve two purposes um number one it should be a a means of action it should be a plan of your actions rather than a predictor of your results the time will take care of itself the place will take care of itself this is more processing rather than results number two uh a a good racing plan should psychologically prepare the athlete for the physiological processes that are going to occur during the race which is should be the most stressful time in in any athlete’s life is the actual competition is the race and we prepare them so well physically that we we it really serves its purpose to have a good psychological uh racing plan something that’s set up ahead of time that might anticipate some things that uh may go wrong and just a good time for the coach and athlete uh to discuss what their racing intentions might be now let’s profile the 800 M before we get going what is it well technically it’s a endurance event now I know there’s uh some Talk Amongst coaches that really is just kind of a long Sprint uh you won’t get very many physiologists to agree with that because of the strong aerobic component in the 800 meters we group it in with the other endurance events Now by aerobic component we mean that it a certain amount of the energy has to be supplied through the Aerobic System as well as a contribution from the Anor robic system you could walk it you wouldn’t have any racing success that way but that would be purely aerobic to get up to racing speed you’ve got to have some sort of contribution from both of the energy systems as a turns out the physiologists have done the work for us and they’ve determined that the 800 M which is too l is about 50% aerobic and 50% anerobic now what that means practically is this it will take about 90 calories worth of energy to run the 800 M now those of you that have a pasta meal the night before a race and load up on pasta and and have all of those uh uh various uh team bonding things and you know you need to load up on all this pasta please realize that the 800 M uh and the energy required is about equal to 34 of a banana so you really don’t have to load up too much for it’s 90 90 calories of which 45 calories will be processed in the mitochondria thus in the Aerobic System and 45 calories will be processed anerobic that is outside of the mitochondria so that’s the kind of the physiological features of it um the athletes that will run this race are varied we’ve got sprinters that move up we’ve got middle distance Runners and we have distance Runners that may move down you need to be able to address all three and when I get into a general racing model I’m not going to uh discern between those three but as you train those three you need to realize what type of athlete you’re training is it the uh true middle distance Runner like historically some of our more famous ones have been Sebastian Co and Wilson Kiper who were probably just as successful in the mile as they were in the 800 MERS uh their volume is probably 40 to 50 miles per week they’ve got a very high uh eletric uh model of of V 2 max to running economy and then you’ve got a longdistance runner that’s moving down the Peter Snell type the Steve ovette type who is very comfortable running more than 60 miles a week um spends a lot of time on the endurance component has very high V2 Max um that sort of Runner then the third type which we are seeing more and more commonly is the long Sprinter that’s uh moving up they don’t have the highest V2 Max uh in the bunch but they they are very economical they’re able to uh have a very strong vertical component they’re probably 4 foot Strikers which uh is very metabolically expensive they probably don’t have a long run in their normal training menu um they’re they’re more most comfortable with a training volume probably somewhere around 30 30 m per week those are the types of people that you’re going to find in this race so as you train them you of course are are are training for their faults and deficiencies rather than their strengths so you’ll need to address that in training and you know that stuff is available uh through some of the thing things I’ve written and and and the U um how to train the middle distance Runner which we we’ve got a as a a class that you can purchase through complete track and field so as you set up the racing plan you need to discuss with the athlete what their competition is who they’re racing and what type of Runner they are although that’s probably been discussed many times with them specifically since they’re your athlete let’s talk about the race itself how do you distribute uh the energy how are these 90 calories distributed uh throughout uh the two laps how do you set up a time frame that you allow them to be able to successfully hit certainly you don’t want them to go out as absolutely as fast as they can you want to give them some some strength in order to finish how do you set it up well there’s been uh studies done some of it a lot of it’s come out of South Africa where we’ve looked at uh the last 26 world record holders in the 800 meters and it turns out that 24 out of the 26 had a faster first lap than a second lap and it’s been significant at least a couple of seconds and that’s that’s generally how the racing model is set up that the first lap is two to three time two to three seconds uh faster than the second lap now how might you set that up practically with your athlete I’ve got an example here of uh an athlete actually sitting right here in the crowd he’s got a date Pace today of uh 400 MERS he can run in 53.2 seconds his date Pace here and that’s what DP stands for his date Pace in the 800 M currently is 157 7.1 now if I’m to set up a a racing model for him the first 400 m should be run at 93% of his date Pace 400 m so our goal for him to get through that first lap in 57.3 seconds and he can certainly run faster than that but the 800 MERS isn’t about running 1400 it’s been able to repeat 400s that’s the number you’re shooting for the second second lab again we’re dealing with the 53.2 date pce 400 um 89% is your goal on the second lap so when you divide by 089 he’s right under 60 seconds 59.8 add the two that’s how he should achieve the 157.18 the 800 meter record for so long before David visha broke it he uh kitter actually set the world record three different times his third or second lap on all three was about the same and as he brought the uh 800 meter record down it all came out of the first lap so he was running his first lap harder his second lap remained about the same if you look at the Olympic Games in the last four Olympic Games we’ve got data on in the 800 the 1500 the 5,000 and the 10,000 every one of those races over the last four Olympics on the men’s side the last 400 meters was run in the high 52 Point range so you know that’s the critical Zone in the race is the the last part of it and it no matter what the race at the Olympic Games which is usually a tactical race they’re able to close in high 52 seconds so even the 800 which is in the Olympics kind of traditionally more tactical than um you know other European races even going out uh you know somewhat slower uh than normal because it’s so tactical in the Olympics still causes that second lap uh to not not be as fast uh as the first lap so look for about a two to 3 second slowdown between the first lap and the second lap okay let’s set up the race here we go I’ve picked out seven critical spots in the two laps and and that’s the things that need to be discussed today and you take it to your athlete let’s talk about the start I’ve got three athletes here red green and blue and of course in the 800 M uh they start in Lanes it’s a staggered start and they’re going to run the first portion of their race in Lanes until they get over here onto the backstretch which is a cut line and from this cut line they’ll move into lanes and this is really what separates Day h00 from the 400 the 400 is just in Lane you’re basically running as hard as you can but you’re in Lanes the whole way the 800 is not quite as hard as you can but it’s still pretty hard but you move shoulder toh shoulder and that’s what really makes the 800 so Dynamic and so interesting is the shoulder-to-shoulder competition rather than sitting in your lanes like they do in the 400 well let’s look at the situation here let’s say your red green or blue which one’s better uh you know preferred Lane is in the middle of the track so the Green Dot is no doubt preferred but it’s got some pitfalls it’s got a lot of advantages but it’s got some pitfalls blue has got some advantages being on the outside also got a few pitfalls that need to be discussed and red of course has has got probably more pitfalls and advantages and they need to be addressed as well so let’s let’s talk about getting going here as the gun goes off they’re in Lanes your first five steps should establish your pace now the difference between the 800 and other longer distance races has to do with a lot of physiology but a lot of psychology as well on the psychological side I like to tell my distance Runners that in the longer races it’s all about concentration because you’re out there so long in the 2 Mile the 5K that’s a lot of concentration in the 800 M it’s about awareness more than concentration you have to be completely alert and that’s why I don’t run some guys on my team in the 800 very often they’re just not alert Runners they’re are just not aware of what’s going on around them and thus just our tactically very poor 800 meter Runners I might stick them up uh in a longer race where maybe their concentration is a little stronger or at least there’s more room to make up for errors uh that might occur the the real problem with the 800 is if there is a problem there’s just no time to make up for it so let’s get going and these first five steps are pretty hard and then you’re in your pace and you should be uh completely sensor aware of sounds you hear people’s steps people’s breathing you should be able to sense people on either side of you uh maybe the periphery of your vision you can see people you’re trying to to come around the corner aware of where you’re competition is now when you get over here this seldom happens but I’ve drawn it this way all three being equal red has the problem here of the whole pack collapsing in on them on this person in this position green has the problem of of being boxed in on both sides they will be uh set up according to what either on either side of them do Blue’s got uh an advantage of not having anybody to their right it also has the advantage AG this position also has the

making a nice smooth transition along the backstretch

advantage of making a nice smooth transition along the backstretch now a lot of things that happen in in races with younger people uh problems and things that stem on the back stretch deal with people that make the cut just too quickly they just Veer right in and I know it’s something you talk about with your with your athletes it’s it’s a very simple concept but they seem to forget it in races you you just just absolutely don’t have to take a sharp left turn you want to bring your

bring your body very slowly in to the inner rail

body very slowly in to the inner rail along this area from from you know the cut Mark to the 200 meter Mark red has to have elbows out a little bit protecting space not necessarily elbowing people but make yourself bigger make yourself bigger and then people won’t intrude on you uh GRE if if if this is a race that was seated properly green should be the best runner and um as green gets out here if it was seated properly green should kind of be the one that’s dictating the cut to the curve because blue certainly can’t cut until Green’s cutting as well now when you get here when you get to the 200 m Mark the

get to the 200 meter mark

goal is to be in good racing position now that doesn’t mean pinned against the rail that’s perhaps the worst place to be and that’s what red really has to watch for are people pushing into the rail against them ideally what you want to be is on the outside of Lane one uh outside line of Lane one just off the shoulder of the leader now if you are by far the best runner in the field then you should be the front runner you don’t have to key off anybody just go but if this is a competitive Race by the time you get here you’ve got the front pack and you’ve got the the leader and the Challenger the prime Challenger just off the right shoulder just back a touch but on the outside right shoulder of the athlete and that’s the best position to be in and that’s why it’s a little bit better to be blue than red but it’s great to be green because that gives you the clearest path down here now this guy is going to run uh 57.3 for um the first 400 how what should you be here um at the 200 meter Mark if you’re going to be 573 over there you’re going to be somewhere High uh 27s maybe 28 at the 200 meter Mark and then come in and 29 on your second 200 M which would be area D here from the 200 m to the 400 m as you get in front of the crowd so you’re about just under 28 to here and then about 29 to there staying in position staying relaxed deciding when you’re going to make your move you’re because of the the speed here you know you’re leaders are starting to separate from the uh other people in the race and you’re just at this point real relaxed as you pass the 400 meters this is kind of a grave yard for 800 meter Runners this is where the pace generally slows you’re little anxious because of the crowd in the front stretch you’re trying to get up to your split time you’re calculating your split you maybe mentally separated the race into two 400 meter repeats so as you cross the start finish line for the first time here after the first lap there’s a tendency for all athletes just to let down a little bit and as you go around the corner in a lot of races you’ll see the pack reforming it might have been strung out a little bit coming down the fren but now it’s it’s it’s coming back a little bit it’s B more back in a pack because the leaders relaxed a little too much on this corner now this is an excellent place to make a move to make a strong move just as you’re approach coming off the corner approaching the cut Mark A lot of people are going to wait over here to the last 200 M if you’re the best runner you’re no doubt out of the problem but if you’ve got a real competitive race going here this is a prime spot just over the cut Mark uh to make you move and make a strong move make a move they can’t come back on because if you make a move and and are able to be in good position here they’ve got the corner to deal with and you know not a lot of people are going to take the effort to try to get by you on the corner on on um with with 200 meters to go they’re going to wait until you’re down to 100 or 90 M so you can gain an advantage on this spot and it it’s just a kind of an under um appreciated part of the race is people are kind of preparing for the finish and um but you’ve got to be psychologically strong and and you it’s got to be part of your plan I mean this is this was where you’re going to pull the trigger right in there and that and that’s been pretty much predetermined that no matter where you are in the race that’s that’s where you’re going to make a psychological and a physical move on your competition so then you get over to area F which is the last curve and people will tuck in there’s some the last bit of jostling will occur here everybody’s fatigued um you’re starting to recruit muscles that you haven’t used earlier in the race and that’s kind of that rigor look that you get when when 400 800 guys finish it it looks like they’re in some sort of rigor mortise setting in they call it riger we call it riger but really what’s happening is your big muscle groups have fatigued and now your body is relying on kind of ancillary and smaller muscles to accomplish the task because your your will is still there it’s just you’re you’re there’s so much acidosis uh the pH in your inner cellular fluids has crashed and you’ve got what we call fatigue setting in and you’ve got to maintain your form you’ve got to continue to run high in posture don’t go to the dog paddling route around this last quarter keep your thumbs up keep your hands relaxed reled clenched hands aren’t going to help that’s going to further fatigue muscles in your upper body and your arms don’t really make you a faster runner but they certainly will slow you down so you want to keep your upper body as relaxed as possible when you’ve got the the incredible amount of fatigue setting in the last 90 m is about foot speed what you have left what’s your maximum speed what do you have uh what have you trained over the last uh you know components of your of your of your training scheme to further the foot speed and maintaining your form maintaining your relaxation keeping your thumbs up running tall keeping your weight out on the front of your Spike plate being a midfoot to 4 foot Striker and uh continuing to run through the Finish Line not run to the finish line line but run through the Finish Line being absolutely aware of what’s around you you’re at this point you’re intent more on your competition than your time and run past the start Finish Line and then collapse and and you know do whatever you do when you when you finish your race um and that’s how you run the 800 meters so if you’ve got questions make sure you get a hold of me get a hold of Latif he’ll he’ll get the questions to me and enjoy your day at the track thank you