pv training

[Polevaulter2012]

I think that is just to much stuff especially for a high schooler to be doing. You should not lift or do anything extra on a vault day besides warming up,plant drills, vaulting, cool down, stretch. lift 2-3 times a week.LIGHT WEIGHT. Focus on explosion and doing it with perfect form lifting 3x10. Do gymnastic type stuff on atleast one of your lift days. do running workouts that consist of ten 50 meter sprints. no need to do anything longer since you have the xc background. also only vault twice a week. one day from short the other from long.
Here is what is may look like.

Monday:Warm up
10x50meter sprints
Lift(3x10)light
Gymnastic type exercises(optional)
Stretch
Tuesday:warm up
Do standing, walking, jogging, and running plant drill (4 each)
Vault(full approach)
cool down
Stretch
Wednesday:Warm up
Pole runs on track from your long approach(5 times)
Optional lift(3x10)light
stretch
Thursday:Warm up
Do standing,walking,jogging, and running plant drill(4 each)
Vault(Short approach)
Cool down
Stretch
Friday:Warm up
10x50 meter sprints
lift(3x10)light
Gymnastic type exercises
Cool down
Stretch
Saturday:Stretch
Sunday:Stretch
If this sounds like something that you may be interested in write me an email at ScottElliott12@msn.com I would be glad to answer questions in more detail. I can give you pre vault stuff to. This workout schedule was an example of what you can do when you actually start practicing vault. Just email me and i can figure out were you need to actually start for your pre season stuff.


Keep reaching for your dreams. Scott

[dnike13]

I think that a lot of people have been giving lifting weights a bad name and are pushing too much for gymnastic drills. I do agree with everyone on here that gymnastics is a very good way to get strong and it does teach a lot of things for the vault. However, many kids do not know how to perform gymnastic moves, and better yet, a lot of coaches do not know how to properly teach these moves. I teach my jumpers no gymnastic moves for three reasons:
1.) We do not have the right equiptment
2.) None of my kids ever had gymnastics training and I do not feel comfortable teaching them (I never did gymnastics and turned out ok)
3.) Aren't we always stressing that the number one thing in the pole vault is safety when we jump? What about safety when we train? I do no feel they would be in the safest care if I was taking time to teach them gymnasic drills that I have no idea what to do for them when I could improve upon other aspects in their vault, ie. their take-off, or swing.

High school kids are always looking to do things that may not always be the most safe things in the world and I believe that if you do not feel comfortable teaching or performing these gymnastic moves that you should not do it. Some of you may think that I am a nut case or weirdo but that's ok I guess. There are hundreds of thnigs you can do that will help your jump anyways that people do not even think of. Weightlifting, if done correctly, will be a lot more productive then JUST doing technical drills in the offseason. It is also very rare that you get a high school kid with enough dedication to lift, sprint, and do technical drills on their own. If you are a kid who is running cross country, and enjoy it, do not quit it just because people on here are telling you to. You may even find out you are better at XC than pole vault, a 17 min 5k is not a bad time at all. Well that's it for my rant. Sorry for going off onto so many tangents.

[Polevaulter2012]

Well when I am saying gymnastics for someone with no coach I mean by simple stuff like: forward rolls or somersaults, Backward somersaults,handstands, Cartwheels, and round-offs.Even drills like bubkas, bubka extensions, ect.... It takes a different type of strength for all these exercises and you also gain body awareness. I am not telling this guy to go out and start doing giants and other advanced drills and moves. I agree that you should train safe and to your skill level. I also said to lift weights but lift light with explosion and perfect form. lifting light weight with perfect form is better then lifting a lot of weight with alright form. You stay at your skill level while still doing things with perfect form.

Weightlifting, if done correctly, will be a lot more productive then JUST doing technical drills in the offseason.

But with those technical drills you can work on parts of your vault with out vaulting and you also gain strength doing them. Thats why its even better to do drills and weight lifting.

It is also very rare that you get a high school kid with enough dedication to lift, sprint, and do technical drills on their own.

Well i was one of those kids. I had no coach in high school that told me what I needed to do. I ran xc in high school and it takes dedication to go out and put in the miles to run those kind of times. So I believe this kid has what it takes to be dedicated. He runs a 17min 5k and he is on here asking for help on how to get better for pole vault. I honestly think short sprints, drills/simple gymnastics, flexibility, and weight lifting with perfect form while staying at your skill level is what a high schooler should work on. All basic stuff. I think its better to be doing things right and take it slow then to try and skip steps to try and obtain faster results because you are not dedicated. Pole vault is a sport that if you want to be good you have to be dedicated. Kids that want to continue their career in vault after high school will take the time to do what is needed to become the best they can be. This is my third year out of high school and I still do all the basic drills. Yeah I have some other more complex drills also but I still do basics. Basics are the backbone.

Keep reaching for your dreams. Scott

[dnike13]

Polevaulter 2012, I was not coming after you at all , nor was it focus on any of your posts. I agree that the basics are the most important part of the vault, and do not change your workout program. My argument is that there are people on this forum look at weight lifting and cross country like they are a representation of pure evil. Also, people like you (who had a drive and desire to teach themselves and get better and do work on there own) are few and far between. A lot of kids talk the talk, but not many kids can walk the walk (sorry for the corny injection) especially when it comes to workouts that need to be done and drills that they need to do, and some will even lie just to try and make you think they are working hard.
First I will start with weight lifting over gymnastics. There are more schools that have a strength and conditioning coach than have a gymnastics coach. If taught correctly, weightlifting is very safe and the rewards are incredible. Cave when had to carry heavy animals all the time that weighed more then themselves, so why can't humans today do the same? Cross country in the grand scheme of things will not hurt the average high school athlete because it is giving them something to do (instead of eating Doritos and playing video games), can be used as the conditioning phase of your jump season to build strength in those legs, and it builds up a college resume if you are good. I have been on both sides of this argument. When I was in high school I was a mid- 16 XC runner and gave up running my senior year to focus on pole vault only. What did I get? Six inches more on my PR. That is why I tell all my kids to keep doing their fall sports when they start to get serious about pole vault, whether it be soccer, cross country, tennis, or football. I try to teach my vaulters to learn from the mistakes I have made so that they do not make the same ones as I have. If Rudy wasn't already running XC then I would advise him to focus on the vault because it would be a better use of his time. In all, everyone has their own personal opinion on each matter. I'm just trying to share my past mistakes and things that I wish has done differently and what I do with my jumpers.

[Polevaulter2012]

I totally agree with you about the XC and all the fall sports stuff. I was just saying that after XC season to start your pole vault training, I think that the basic gymnastic stuff(forward rolls, backward rolls, cartwheels, handstands, and round-offs) is safe and is really good along with weight lifting. The thing I have with weight lifting is i think a lot of high schoolers think they need to be lifting a lot of weight and trying to put up big numbers instead of focusing on good technique. Weight will come if you train right and you will benefit way way more in the long run. I am a perfectionist, so I strive to do every little thing correctly. I am huge on basic drills. I practice my plant with my short pole every chance I get. I try think of how everything I do will relate to the vault. I am super dedicated to this sport. I actually am addicted to this sport. I think the problem with most U.S. vaulters(all different skill levels) are that they tend to forget about the basics instead of incorporating them in to their new stuff. I feel a lot of vaulters think they are past the basics stage and need more complex drills and workouts to jump higher after a few years if not a year. Sure some complex drills are good, but I think the basics are still very important to do no matter what your skill level. Plant drills I think are one of the most important drills you can do. Your run and plant are the biggest part of your vault, but a lot of vaulters talk like everything after that is the most important part. This is just my opinion and i know this was kind of off topic but i thought i would share my view on it. I am also sorry if my last post sounded like I was being defensive dnike13. Its hard to tell how people are saying things on here. I was just trying to clear up my point of view. sorry.

Keep reaching for your dreams. Scott

[vault3rb0y]

Why is the pole vault not safe for most high schoolers? A lack of coordination, body awareness, and inconsistency in the gymnastic parts of the vault.

What does gymnastics teach? Coordination, body awareness, and consistency/accuracy in the gymnastic parts of the vault.

Gymnastics training makes the vault SAFER! If you don't know how to coach a kip or a free-hip to handstand, then don't. But I am a firm believer that ring/rope/high bar bubkas can be taught to any high schooler by any pole vault coach worth his salt, and that working your downswing on a high bar and into a bubka are solid gymnastic basics that apply directly to the vault as well as make it safer.

[Polevaulter2012]

But I am a firm believer that ring/rope/high bar bubkas can be taught to any high schooler by any pole vault coac

I agree
Pole vault is also not as safe because the lack of money in high schools. this means not the right pole selections, old scratched poles, older model pits, lack of a knowledgeable coach. There are other reasons that high school vaulting isn't as safe besides just gymnastics drills but I agree with you that it does help. I also think working on plant drills a lot will help also. The main thing i see in high schoolers struggle with is the run and the plant, so this in turn creates problems through the whole vault. Here is something else I do not agree with in the high school rule book. I dont know if this is in every state but in Oregon you cant vault on a pole under your weight. Not even if you are just a 1/2 a pound over. I think the vaulter should be able to vault on a pole that is safe for the vaulter. The officials and the coaches should make that decision. Because a lot of high school girls are not to the skill level(Speed, strength, technique) to be on a pole that is at or over her weight. Same with some guys. I know that the pole says dont jump on this pole if you weigh over this weight band but i am sure you all know you can do this and still be safe. Anyways I know this topic should be in the safety blog but I thought i would just express my thought here.

Keep reaching for your dreams. Scott

[souleman]

Barefoot,

But I'm going to restate something... Running improperly with the pole will create bad habits. Doing bad pole drops will hinder your progress. Practicing bad plants and bad vault mechanics is practicing to hold yourself back. GET SOME GOOD HELP with your carry, drop, plant, etc. Bubba has vaulted for nearly 45 years and probably has a pretty good idea how to run with and plant the pole, yet apparently even he still gets help from his coach.

My point to my prior comment was not that Bubba's regimen was the be all to end all. Instead I was trying to point out that many of the "new vaulters seeking wisdom and knowledge" spend more (if not all of their) time looking for just the perfect training method. What ends up happening is that while they are still searching (and not doing anything along the way because they are still searching) for that magic formula which will make them be world class it's March and the season has started. We've had many on the forum who have just done that.

As for Rudym13, I would say if he spent all of his time this off season doing Bubba's regimen and then watching Dave Butler's Reno video and do everything on Dave's video, he would be well down the road to a successful season. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8610699280052593028#Are there more things he could do? Absolutely! On the other hand he is basically training on his own so our suggestions need to be those that will direct him to a source that he can follow day by day. I hope this clears up my position and helps our young vaulter.
Later
Mike

[Barefoot]

Barefoot,

But I'm going to restate something... Running improperly with the pole will create bad habits. Doing bad pole drops will hinder your progress. Practicing bad plants and bad vault mechanics is practicing to hold yourself back. GET SOME GOOD HELP with your carry, drop, plant, etc. Bubba has vaulted for nearly 45 years and probably has a pretty good idea how to run with and plant the pole, yet apparently even he still gets help from his coach.

My point to my prior comment was not that Bubba's regimen was the be all to end all. Instead I was trying to point out that many of the "new vaulters seeking wisdom and knowledge" spend more (if not all of their) time looking for just the perfect training method. What ends up happening is that while they are still searching (and not doing anything along the way because they are still searching) for that magic formula which will make them be world class it's March and the season has started. We've had many on the forum who have just done that.

As for Rudym13, I would say if he spent all of his time this off season doing Bubba's regimen and then watching Dave Butler's Reno video and do everything on Dave's video, he would be well down the road to a successful season. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8610699280052593028#Are there more things he could do? Absolutely! On the other hand he is basically training on his own so our suggestions need to be those that will direct him to a source that he can follow day by day. I hope this clears up my position and helps our young vaulter.
Later
Mike

Mike,

I think we agree for the most part. Without a coach (and Rudym13 mentioned this in another thread), my first suggestion was wrestling or basketball. Stronger, faster is better.

If Rudym13 is serious about his business, he can find someone to do a basic check of his pole carry, run, and plant. I simply know as a high school coach, that with athletes who have spent ages practicing a really bad carry, run and drop, its really hard to fix once the season is upon them.

Butlers video is the money.

Rudym13... most important is that you do something, not just spend your winter figuring out something to do.