Speed Discussion

[stavhoppare]

THERE HAVE BEEN MANY GREAT, BIG, FAST, VAULTERS...THERE HAVE BEEN MANY GREAT, SMALL, FAST VAULTERS.....THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A GREAT SLOW VAULTER: SO:

SPEED AT TAKEOFF:

WORLD CLASS FEMALE VAULTERS 9m > 4m
7.5 m/s to 8.5 m/s

WORLD CLASS MALE VAULTERS 10m > 5m
9 m/s to 10 m/s

RESEARCH SHOWS THAT AN INCREASE IN SPEED OF
1 METER/SECOND EQUALS AN INCREASE OF APPROXIMATELY
50 CM (20 INCHES) IN THE VAULT (1)
1. Horst Adamczewski and Bettina Perlt, Institute of Applied Training Science, Leipzig, Germany

M/S MPH
9.8 22.37
9.4 21.25
9.0 20.13
8.5 19.01
8.0 18
7.6 16.78
7.1 15.66
6.7 14.54
5.8 13.42

15 mph =
about a 60 second 400m
about a 30 second 200m
about a 15 second 100m
about a 6.0 second 40m

SPEED THROUGH TAKE OFF IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR IN
THE HEIGHT ACHIEVED BY THE VAULTER!!!

[stavhoppare]

HOW TO RUN FAST

PURE SPRINT SPEED IS A RESULT OF TWO FACTORS:
1. STRIDE FREQUENCY
• 4.5 TO 5 TIMES / SECOND FOR WORLD CLASS SPRINTERS
• POSSIBLE TO IMPROVE SLIGHTLY WITH EFFICIENT TECH.
• GENETIC---FAST-TWITCH WHITE MUSCLE FIBERS

2. STRIDE LENGTH
• 7’ TO 8.5’ IN WORLD CLASS SPRINTERS
• OVERSTRIDING (= BRAKING EFFECT)
• INCREASE LEG STRENGTH

Mechanically, pulling and pushing forces are equally efficient. In the human machine, however, pushing forces are much stronger.

SPRINTING IS A PUSHING MOVEMENT. THE STRONGER THE LEGS, THE MORE FORCE CAN BE EXERTED AGAINST THE GROUND.

LEG AND HIP EXTENSORS ARE PRIMARY SOURCES FOR PUSHING. THEREFORE, STRENGTHING THE QUADRICEPS (THIGHS) AND GLUTEALS (BUTT) SHOULD BE THE PRIMARY FOCUS FOR SPRINTER’S STRENGTH TRAINING.

ANTAGONISTIC MUSCLES (LEG AND HIP FLEXORS) CANNOT BE NEGLECTED. IMBALANCE CAN OCCUR BETWEEN EXTENSORS AND FLEXORS AND ALSO RIGHT SIDE TO LEFT SIDE. STRENGTH TRAINING MUST ADDRESS THIS CONCERN.

WHEN POSSIBLE, A TWO TO FOUR WEEK CONDITIONING PHASE SHOULD PRECEED ALL EXTENSIVE STRENGTH WORK. TRAINING TO CONDITION JOINTS, CONNECTIVE TISSUE AND MUSCLES IS ADVISED, BUT NOT ALWAYS FEASABLE IN LIMITED TIME PROGRAMS (HIGH SCHOOL).

A STRENGTH GAINING PHASE SHOULD LAST 3-4 WEEKS. LARGE MUSCLE GROUPS SHOULD BE TARGETED.

THE BEST WAY TO GAIN STRENGTH IS TO USE FREE WEIGHTS FOR THE PRIMARY MUSCLE GROUPS AND MACHINES FOR SECONDARY MUSCLE GROUPS, WHEN POSSIBLE. (EXAMPLE: SQUATS FOR QUADS & GLUTS; LEG CURL MACHINE FOR HAMSTRINGS)




INCLINES AND DECLINES:

SPRINTING UP HILLS (5 – 15 degrees) (40-80 METERS) IS A GREAT WAY TO STRENGTHEN THE LEG AND HIP EXTENSORS. PROPER SPRINT MECHANICS MUST BE EMPHASISED WHEN SPRINTING HILLS.

SPRINTING DOWN MODERATE INCLINES (2 - 4 degrees) WORKS THE HAMSTRINGS AND HIP FLEXORS AS WELL AS TRAINING STRIDE FREQUENCY.



PLYOMETRICS: UNDERSTAND CONCEPTS AND CONCERNS.

BOUNDING, JUMPING, HOPPING.

LEVEL GROUND

BOXES


STRENGTH TRAINING.


FREE WEIGHTS




MACHINES




NO EQUIPMENT

CHAIRS

BENCHES

STAIRS

[ADTF Academy]

Mechanically, pulling and pushing forces are equally efficient. In the human machine, however, pushing forces are much stronger.

SPRINTING IS A PUSHING MOVEMENT. THE STRONGER THE LEGS, THE MORE FORCE CAN BE EXERTED AGAINST THE GROUND.

LEG AND HIP EXTENSORS ARE PRIMARY SOURCES FOR PUSHING. THEREFORE, STRENGTHING THE QUADRICEPS (THIGHS) AND GLUTEALS (BUTT) SHOULD BE THE PRIMARY FOCUS FOR SPRINTER’S STRENGTH TRAININg

Issue is what about gravitational pull. Simply to think about, what does the force of gravity do to your running technique and speed. How can you use it to help you run faster and how does it work against you? When you can answer that you can start to look at running in a different way.

[karl]

Stavhoppare has many good points regarding the development of speed/power. I think one element of speed that is often overlooked in these discussions is efficiency.

If you have great stride length and turnover, but poor mechanics you are not utilizing your full speed potential. Poor mechanics in your run will not only limit your total speed, but often result in injuries. Yes, poor mechanics can be fixed, it just takes time and knowledge.

Good running mechanics will improve speed and reduce lost time due to traumatic and overuse injuries, both of which will improve your chances at vaulting higher.

[stavhoppare]

To ADTF Academy;

Well, seeing as how we have no examples of great sprinters running without gravitational pull, why don't we look at the great sprinters on earth. At top speed, all sprinters apply force straight down. There is now clawing action. It appears that the action is down and back however biomechanically, the force is straight down. As the center of mass moves over the base of support, the follow through effect is backward. At no time in the acceleration phase or speed maintainance phase should the base of support (foot) land in front of the c of g. Sprinters have different styles because of body makeup....however, mechanically they all have correct technique. Carl Lewis looks different from Borzov and both look different than Jesse Owens who looks different than Mo Greene BUT: They all applied force correctly to sprint as fast as they did.

The following is part of a presentation by Tom Tellez (perhaps the greatest sprint/jump/throw coach ever. This may seem complicated if you are not familiar with basic biomechanics but it is the gospel:

The human body is engineered to utilize a series of lever systems (third class)where force acts between the axis and the resistance. For any movement to occur, the lever must rotate around its axis. Based on this premise, it is safe to say that the origin of movement is rotary.

Rotary motion simply refers to bodily motion. It is the interaction of physical laws and body levers. For an object to rotate, it must have two different types of forces acting on it at right angles: a centripetal or centrifugal force and tangential force. Centripetal and centrifugal forces cause objects to move toward the point of rotation, known as the axis.

The axial or tangential force causes object to move perpendicularly in relation to the radius.
In the human machine, force is closer than resistance to the axis. To illustrate, a sprinter resists the ground while producing movement and force with the thigh. This relationship makes the lever very inefficient because more torque is required for movement. For the sprinter, it is essential that the lever move through the full range of movement fast, requiring a torque (turning force) both forward and backward.

Torque (force X movement arm) contributes to the angular velocity of the lever. If the length of the lever is constant, the lever would oscillate like a pendulum. But because lever length changes so does angular velocity, for any given force. Thus the angular velocity ties the length of the lever produces the linear velocity at the point farthest
away from the axis.

Both the arm and leg movement efficiency benefit from the ability to lengthen or shorten levers. By lengthening and shortening the lever, the athlete can change the moment of inertia (resistance to movement). The farther the moment of inertia (mass X radius) is away from the point of rotation, the harder it is to change motion.

With a given amount of force, a shorter lever with the same mass as a longer lever would rotate faster than the longer but would have a mechanical disadvantage.

It will therefore take more torque (moment of inertia X angular acceleration) to turn the longer lever than it would to turn the shorter. If no additional turning force is applied to the lever, angular momentum (moment of inertia X angular velocity) is conserved.

An increase or decline in the moment of inertia will cause decline or
increase in angular velocity respectively. This inverse relationship between the moment of inertia and angular velocity in the conservation of angular velocity in the conservation of angular momentum is one of the keys to great sprinting.

[Barto]

Best post ever. Can we please ban the terms "pulling" and "clawing" forever?

[rainbowgirl28]

Best post ever. Can we please ban the terms "pulling" and "clawing" forever?

Technically, I could use the word filter to ban them from this site (I won't though)

[altius]

Unfortunately I cannot stay out of a discussion concerning what is probably the most dangerous of the many myths which bedevil US vaulting. I do so because this myth really does have the potential to be a factor in the death of young athletes.

I suggest that before you remove the term 'clawing' from Pole vault Power you go and either train with Vitali Petrov - if he will take you - for a few days, or watch him work with his athletes including Isinbyeva. If you cant do that, take time to chat with Giovani L ,Robison P or Jeremy Bailey who have just returned from Formia. You may then appreciate that while speed at take off IS a crucial factor in pole vault performance there are a few other factors you have to consider if you want to jump high.

Just remember that the pole vault involves sprinting - while carrying a LONG LEVER - which must then be positioned to hit a small target with great accuracy while travelling at high speed. That changes all of the equations somewhat.

Also remember that while theoretical knowledge is great, it is only really useful when it is combined with a deep practical understanding of an activity. This is why biomechanists as a breed have rarely if ever contributed to the development of new techniques in track and field and have tended to confuse rather than to clarify critical aspects of the pole vault. Enjoy!

[ADTF Academy]

Applaudes with joy.


Step one confirmed gravity plays a vital role on anything we do as humans. It is constant and ever present.

Step two why and how can we use this. The article is great and informative in terms of leg swing mechanics in the cyclic action of running. I have read it and seen it used in many situations to explain leg swing velocity. However, You never put your reason behind how and why we can use gravity. You just simply stated an article that says in a nut shell the closer your heel is to your butt the quicker your leg swings. Thats pretty obvious.

Step Three what is your stance on pushing against gravity. If their is not a clawing action or pulling action to accelerate us forward then should there be a pushing action or ???????

Think in terms of working with or against gravity. Next think in terms of what does our body have available to use to produce force. How can force be produced. When you can answer those logically to yourself you might be able to work towards the process of running with efficiency. Till then continue to push your way down the runway flat with a excess forward tilt.

[rainbowgirl28]

I split this from the Speed or Strength discussion and moved it to this forum.

[ADTF Academy]

The issue of to claw or not to claw is more to over think about clawing or allow it to occur.

The notion and mechanical vision of clawing occurs unless you have a misconception of what clawing means.

Does clawing me the accleration of the foot back down to the ground to create force. Whereby the foot makes contact directly under the COM (under the hips in running and slightly infront of the hips in the vault since COM is shifted forward).

Or does clawing mean reach way out in front of you reaching the foot out infront of the knee and reaching for the ground making contact with the toe extended and physically pulling you through.


This is not clawing but a weird creation by slow athletes thinking they are clawing/pawing correctly. The correct notion of clawing/pawing is the acceleration of the foot back to the ground due to the gravitational pull of the foot back to the ground making contact in the correct mechanical position. You wanna see a good example in my opinion of this watch Steve Slaton from WVU football player. Watching it you might be like his stride is so small. Then realize he runs a sub 4.3 40 yard dash. Then watch Michael Johnson run again and you will say the same thing if you don't know who he is watch some olympic videos. Then watch your stride on video and you should see why your not running as fast as you could be.

Honestly I would rather see the term drive out the back taken out of the vocab of an athlete. Why would you want to drive behind you as hard as you can it causes you to flat line and hips to sink. The further you drive behind you the further the foot must travel to get back down under your COM. The more time you spend in the air the less time you can spend getting faster.

Hope your trip was good Altius. This topic is so hard to talk about over the internet unless they are there and observing what your talking about. Oh well!!!