Info on Sprinting?

Aspiring

Hi, I'm not really sure if this is the right section to be posting this but I thought it fit best here so..

Some info first, I've never been in any athletics clubs or anything like that just played sport and have always been fairly fast.

Recently I've become interested in sprinting (thanks olympics) , but there are no tracks around here so I'm limited to running roads or on grass really but I was just wondering if I was to become a sprinter, how fast would I need to be in terms of speed over 100/200m? I'm 17 if that makes any difference.

Also I was just wondering how can I increase my speed I've seen some youtube videos but they are all about form really not about actually increasing speed which I wan't to do. I wan't to measure my speed over 100m soon so that's why i'm wondering if I get a good time I might get into athletics.

Thanks in advance

seanmacc

Apart from the obvious of wieghts, leg lifts, vertical jumps and drills you'd find on youtube an old basketball coach of mine who was an accomplished college sprinter in the US swore by the skipping rope. At age 17 (back in my day) to be competitive you have to be around 11sec mark. The winner of the schools championship back in my day ran a 10.8. 200m you'd be talking mid or sub 23 sec, I competed against David Gillick at that age in the 200m and he blew the field. Didn't get his time though.

Sprinting is all about the technique though. Your technique really depends on your body shape, stride ect. Good coaching will teach you this.

userfriendly2

Interval sprints is the best way to get faster IMO. This can be complimented by a lower body weightlifting regime; Squats, Calf raises, Leg Press, Lunges to name but a few.
Skipping rope is brilliant for stamina and should definitely be worked into any regime in the form of interval training.
Diet and Nutrition - Won't be a competitor without a decent diet.

Try googling HIIT(High Intensity Interval Training)

RayCun

If you want to find out how fast you are, go to a club where you can be timed properly.
If you want to train to get faster, go to a club where you can be trained properly.
Sprinting is very technical. The sprinters in my club train five days a week. One of those days is all about starting from the blocks, another day is all about plyometrics. You need proper coaching for both.

Aspiring

Thanks for all the replies, I'm not sure where my local club would be and how much would it be to join a club?

ecoli

Aspiring wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies, I'm not sure where my local club would be and how much would it be to join a club?

To find a club:

http://www.athleticsireland.ie/content/?page_id=5996

Most clubs rates vary depending on their facilities etc (usually anything from 10e-50e for juvenilles). However most will allow you to attend a few training sessions to get a feel for the club to see if it suits you or not before you have to fork out for membership fees

Aspiring

ecoli wrote: »

To find a club:

http://www.athleticsireland.ie/content/?page_id=5996

Most clubs rates vary depending on their facilities etc (usually anything from 10e-50e for juvenilles). However most will allow you to attend a few training sessions to get a feel for the club to see if it suits you or not before you have to fork out for membership fees

I just don't think I'd feel welcome in the clubs because all of the other lads would have been there for years and I'm just walking in not knowing anything :pac:

riveratom

Would LOVE to get into sprinting, have always loved the feel of it whenever I've done it, such a buzz, plus it is fascinating to watch!! Really gets the heart pumping...!

Was quite good at it in the past too, don't see why I wouldn't be ok at it still, if I give it a bash. Must find a running club..

ecoli

Aspiring wrote: »

I just don't think I'd feel welcome in the clubs because all of the other lads would have been there for years and I'm just walking in not knowing anything :pac:

Not at all. Most clubs are crying out for members of all levels and try to go out of there way to be helpful and inclusive and normally will run through stuff with you as you go along

Edit: Given that late teens is a huge drop off in terms of people giving up the sport you will find that alot of clubs will have alot of time for your age bracket also. I know a couple of early twenty year olds joined my club only last week and seem to be settling into the sprint group nicely already

Aspiring

ecoli wrote: »

Not at all. Most clubs are crying out for members of all levels and try to go out of there way to be helpful and inclusive and normally will run through stuff with you as you go along

Edit: Given that late teens is a huge drop off in terms of people giving up the sport you will find that alot of clubs will have alot of time for your age bracket also

I know but I mean they'd all have perfect form where I'm just sprinting from what feels right to me. There's a club in my school I think but I only ever hear them talking about cross country and stuff like that but I want to be a sprinter. Is there any way I could get a rough idea of my 100m time from manual timing?

RayCun

People join clubs at all ages. There are people on this forum who only started training in their 20s and 30s, only started sprinting at that age.

And suppose you went down to the park with a mate, measured out a rough 100m and timed with your watch. What next? Sooner or later you'll have to get proper training. Sooner or later you'll want to get a real time, from a real race. Better sooner than later.

Aspiring

RayCun wrote: »

People join clubs at all ages. There are people on this forum who only started training in their 20s and 30s, only started sprinting at that age.

And suppose you went down to the park with a mate, measured out a rough 100m and timed with your watch. What next? Sooner or later you'll have to get proper training. Sooner or later you'll want to get a real time, from a real race. Better sooner than later.

I know I have a GAA pitch I could measure 100m on but that's grass so its not really accurate or would it be? If I get a decent time I'll consider joining a club.

ss43

Aspiring wrote: »

I know but I mean they'd all have perfect form where I'm just sprinting from what feels right to me. There's a club in my school I think but I only ever hear them talking about cross country and stuff like that but I want to be a sprinter. Is there any way I could get a rough idea of my 100m time from manual timing?

Don't worry, there's plenty of sprinters with crap form and if you go into a group where they're all good, that's a good sign the coach is good so it's a good place to be.

seanmacc

Aspiring wrote: »

I know I have a GAA pitch I could measure 100m on but that's grass so its not really accurate or would it be? If I get a decent time I'll consider joining a club.

Use it as an indicator. Don't be embarrassed about joining a club and being crap compared to the others. Sprinting is all technique and its all about finding the technique that suits you. Learn your technique that gets you from A to B fastest, watch international sprint events and look at how all the professionals differ from each other in their styles and try some out.
I found over 100m as I'm 6ft 6 I was very slow to et to full throttle unless I rose quickly and engaged high and strides and using my toes a lot. Carl Lewis as an example never rose fully until nearly 90m, focusing on staying low and pumping the legs in low long strides and ran more off the balls of his feet.

Join a club, give it at least six months you'll see how well you improve, at the very least its a great place to pick up fit chicks. You may also find that 100m or 200m aren't your thing and that maybe you're suited more to 400m or even 800m (not very far away from sprinting). Hurdles could also be an option. I used to run 100m 200m 400m and 400 hurdles at various points at school, club and university level and am now 30 and running 5k and 10k at every road/cross country race I can. Athletics is a great sport to get involved in. There is very few sports where average Joe can go out there and compete against a pro (in certain events maybe even win)

riveratom

seanmacc wrote: »

Use it as an indicator. Don't be embarrassed about joining a club and being crap compared to the others. Sprinting is all technique and its all about finding the technique that suits you. Learn your technique that gets you from A to B fastest, watch international sprint events and look at how all the professionals differ from each other in their styles and try some out.
I found over 100m as I'm 6ft 6 I was very slow to et to full throttle unless I rose quickly and engaged high and strides and using my toes a lot. Carl Lewis as an example never rose fully until nearly 90m, focusing on staying low and pumping the legs in low long strides and ran more off the balls of his feet.

Join a club, give it at least six months you'll see how well you improve, at the very least its a great place to pick up fit chicks. You may also find that 100m or 200m aren't your thing and that maybe you're suited more to 400m or even 800m (not very far away from sprinting). Hurdles could also be an option. I used to run 100m 200m 400m and 400 hurdles at various points at school, club and university level and am now 30 and running 5k and 10k at every road/cross country race I can. Athletics is a great sport to get involved in. There is very few sports where average Joe can go out there and compete against a pro (in certain events maybe even win)

Jumping in as a follow-up to my last post - man that all sounds deadly! Definitely going to look to join a club, and hopefully there'll be at least a few who'll be into the sprinting. Will join one in either Drogheda or Dublin.

Out of interest, what would your 100m time have been? How far away from Bolt's record?!

seanmacc

riveratom wrote: »

Jumping in as a follow-up to my last post - man that all sounds deadly! Definitely going to look to join a club, and hopefully there'll be at least a few who'll be into the sprinting. Will join one in either Drogheda or Dublin.

Out of interest, what would your 100m time have been? How far away from Bolt's record?!

My PB on 100m was 11sec dead I set when I was 19. It was never good enough to place high in a final at schools, club level so I focused on 200m and 400m. 200m my PB was 23.1 at 19 and my 400m was around 49 sec. 400m was the event I always won most at simply because fewer people participate in it. I found it more enjoyable as an event because it is very tactical and more forgiving technique wise for errors.

A dodgy bit of knee cartilage forced me to give up the sprinting and push for distance running. Never as competitive as I was at sprinting but I love trying.

seanmacc

No Irish man has ever run under 10 seconds. That's how good Bolt is.

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

No Irish man has ever run under 10 seconds. That's how good Bolt is.

I can see an irish man doing it in the next 10 years though.

seanmacc

Aspiring wrote: »

I can see an irish man doing it in the next 10 years though.

As the pro's are availing of better technology with computer analysis, coaching, diet and sports psychology it can't be far off. The current Irish record is 10:36 but that is a massive chasm to the sub 10 mark. Bear in mind the sub 10 second mark was only broken in the 80's and before Bolt it was only being picked off by hundreds of a second at a time when athletes ran the perfect race in perfect conditions.

I'd like to think I could beat Bolt over 10k though

riveratom

seanmacc wrote: »

My PB on 100m was 11sec dead I set when I was 19. It was never good enough to place high in a final at schools, club level so I focused on 200m and 400m. 200m my PB was 23.1 at 19 and my 400m was around 49 sec. 400m was the event I always won most at simply because fewer people participate in it. I found it more enjoyable as an event because it is very tactical and more forgiving technique wise for errors.

A dodgy bit of knee cartilage forced me to give up the sprinting and push for distance running. Never as competitive as I was at sprinting but I love trying.

11 secs seems really fast man?! So were the top guys doing like 10-11 secs then?!

Not sure what I'd do it in, I have a fair bit of muscle mass and am more sprint-suited than endurance I think, I'd say maybe ~15 secs.

Rhys Essien

Bit of useless information and not sure how true, but Gareth Bale(Tottenhan Hotspur)could run the 100m in 11.4 at age 14,so OP no pressure.:D

seanmacc

riveratom wrote: »

11 secs seems really fast man?! So were the top guys doing like 10-11 secs then?!

Not sure what I'd do it in, I have a fair bit of muscle mass and am more sprint-suited than endurance I think, I'd say maybe ~15 secs.

The winning time was 10.7 on that particular race and never got near my pb before or after that event. Bear in mind every tenth you knock off that level is a huge deal. Sub 11 seconds at U19 level is the norm. 12 seconds flat would probably get you to a final.
15 seconds may seem slow in comparison to the likes of Bolt but bit of training, research and coaching I'm sure you can shave seconds off that very quickly. Getting under 12 was my goal at 16.
I competed in the Dublin community games when I was 13 and the kid that won ran 11.3, never saw him on the scene after that. A kid doing it at that age you think has huge potential.
Another perspective I could give you is if you remember Jonah Lomu in his young days with his size and bulk could do 100m in 10.8
http://www.rugbygamers.com/news/fastest-rugby-player.html
Keith Wood about 11 flat back in the day. Work at it train as much as possible responsibly and if your naturally quick sub 12 is very achievable

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

As the pro's are availing of better technology with computer analysis, coaching, diet and sports psychology it can't be far off. The current Irish record is 10:36 but that is a massive chasm to the sub 10 mark. Bear in mind the sub 10 second mark was only broken in the 80's and before Bolt it was only being picked off by hundreds of a second at a time when athletes ran the perfect race in perfect conditions.

I'd like to think I could beat Bolt over 10k though

10:18 I thought it was I could be wrong. I'd love to break the 10 second barrier haha but I feel it'd take over my life if I was to achieve that :rolleyes:

I'm pretty confident at the moment I could do 100m in 12/13 secs tops and I'm willing to learn how to get faster too I'm kinda lucky I've got long-ish legs and have always been the fastest at whatever I do so it should be interesting to find out what my time over 100m will be. I'm pretty sure if I done 200m at the moment I'd end up at 3 quarter pace by the end of it because I'm not used to that distance sprint (playing GAA).

MD1990

Aspiring wrote: »

10:18 I thought it was I could be wrong. I'd love to break the 10 second barrier haha but I feel it'd take over my life if I was to achieve that :rolleyes:

I'm pretty confident at the moment I could do 100m in 12/13 secs tops and I'm willing to learn how to get faster too I'm kinda lucky I've got long-ish legs and have always been the fastest at whatever I do so it should be interesting to find out what my time over 100m will be. I'm pretty sure if I done 200m at the moment I'd end up at 3 quarter pace by the end of it because I'm not used to that distance sprint (playing GAA).

u would have to give up GAA to get a great 100 Metre time
also u would need to do alot of weight training,plyometrics & sprinting

Aspiring

MD1990 wrote: »

u would have to give up GAA to get a great 100 Metre time
also u would need to do alot of weight training,plyometrics & sprinting

Haha I could give up the GAA for a few years I suppose if I was actually good enough, since I'm coming to the end of underage soon anyway. I think I'm getting ahead of myself a good bit anyway and I have access to gym and all that.

seanmacc

MD1990 wrote: »

u would have to give up GAA to get a great 100 Metre time
also u would need to do alot of weight training,plyometrics & sprinting

GAA and basketball are two sports I'd know of that complement a sprinting training programme and at the end of the day he's not trying to compete with Bolt.

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

GAA and basketball are two sports I'd know of that complement a sprinting training programme and at the end of the day he's not trying to compete with Bolt.

Bolt, ah yes my ultimate goal ah no really tho I think I should get my 100m time before I get too many ideas into my head about becoming a sprinter.

Question: Deadlifts good for sprinting?

MD1990

seanmacc wrote: »

GAA and basketball are two sports I'd know of that complement a sprinting training programme and at the end of the day he's not trying to compete with Bolt.

Basketball might be okay
but GAA wouldn't if he wanted to try & be a really good sprinter
the endurance for GAA would make u loose some power for sprinting imo
best lifts for sprinting are

Squats - Box Squats are greay for accelleration & help improve your normal squat
Deadlifts
Power Cleans - Hard to get right technique though
Jump Squats

Plyometrics

Best Plyometric exercise would be the Depth Jump

seanmacc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tl7wSP2EL9A

Good video to give you a comparison of styles

Aspiring

MD1990 wrote: »

Basketball might be okay
but GAA wouldn't if he wanted to try & be a really good sprinter
the endurance for GAA would make u loose some power for sprinting imo

It would depend on he position I think, but the training we do for GAA is ridiculous, were trained to be endurance athletes and it's actually made me sprint slower over the last few years I think.

MD1990

Aspiring wrote: »

It would depend on he position I think, but the training we do for GAA is ridiculous, were trained to be endurance athletes and it's actually made me sprint slower over the last few years I think.

u need to be taking long recovery between sprints
if u were doing 5 100 Metre sprints
u would need 5 minutes rest between each one to perform each sprint at your best
its the same while doing Weight Training
u wanna be doing low enough reps but high KG with about 3 minute beak between sets to perform each exercise at your best

seanmacc

MD1990 wrote: »

Basketball might be okay
but GAA wouldn't if he wanted to try & be a really good sprinter
the endurance for GAA would make u loose some power for sprinting imo
best lifts for sprinting are

Squats - Box Squats are greay for accelleration & help improve your normal squat
Deadlifts
Power Cleans - Hard to get right technique though
Jump Squats

Plyometrics

Best Plyometric exercise would be the Depth Jump

Both sports involve a lot of short interval sprinting. Endurance and recovery are which GAA and basketball give is essential for recovering between heats. Although maybe better for the 200m and 400m than the 100m. Although it does depend on your position on the GAA field.

I'd agree though, sqats are your friend for getting out of the blocks.

Aspiring

MD1990 wrote: »

u need to be taking long recovery between sprints
if u were doing 5 100 Metre sprints
u would need 5 minutes rest between each one to perform each sprint at your best
its the same while doing Weight Training
u wanna be doing low enough reps but high KG with about 3 minute beak between sets to perform each exercise at your best

Thanks for this info man I'm taking it all in. In our GAA training its ridiculous we do maybe 20 minutes cardio (laps) then straight into sprints then intervals and you might get 5 minutes break in total between all that, and thats 3,4 maybe 5 times a week as I'm on county panel aswell.

Are my Asics ok for sprinting in?

Also can I keep increasing speed over time or eventually will I hit a limit..

MD1990

seanmacc wrote: »

Both sports involve a lot of short interval sprinting. Endurance and recovery are which GAA and basketball give is essential for recovering between heats. Although maybe better for the 200m and 400m than the 100m. Although it does depend on your position on the GAA field.

I'd agree though, sqats are your friend for getting out of the blocks.

alot of de-accelleration in GAA which will hinder your stride length & form
GAA training mostly consists of doing lots of laps which is terrible for speed in the 100m

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

Both sports involve a lot of short interval sprinting. Endurance and recovery are which GAA and basketball give is essential for recovering between heats. Although maybe better for the 200m and 400m than the 100m. Although it does depend on your position on the GAA field.

I'd agree though, sqats are your friend for getting out of the blocks.

I'd be one of the ones running the most on the pitch in the position I play and I've been under pressure over last few weeks had matches/training 5 or 6 days a week and my body was crying out I mean I could barely walk the days after and it just got worse and worse the last 2 days are my only rest days it starts again next week monday same cycle only few weeks left tho.

Aspiring

MD1990 wrote: »

alot of de-accelleration in GAA which will hinder your stride length & form
GAA training mostly consists of doing lots of laps which is terrible for speed in the 100m

Over the winter I'm thinking of doing that what you call it thing somebody advised instead of constant cardio. HIIT or something it's called I'm hoping it'll make me a better sprinter and better overall athlete.

The laps we tend to do are sprint the end(short) lines and 3 quarter or half pace the sidelines. Have to say it made me super fit over time but my speed has suffered as I said

MD1990

Aspiring wrote: »

Thanks for this info man I'm taking it all in. In our GAA training its ridiculous we do maybe 20 minutes cardio (laps) then straight into sprints then intervals and you might get 5 minutes break in total between all that, and thats 3,4 maybe 5 times a week as I'm on county panel aswell.

Are my Asics ok for sprinting in?

Also can I keep increasing speed over time or eventually will I hit a limit..

u can always keep increasing speed
the training u mentioned will make u slower not faster
ridicolous training
what your coach should be doing is sprints 1st while you are fresh
u will notice immediate improvement in speed from doing Squats & Deadlifts

Aspiring

MD1990 wrote: »

u can always keep increasing speed
the training u mentioned will make u slower not faster
ridicolous training
what your coach should be doing is sprints 1st while you are fresh
u will notice immediate improvement in speed from doing Squats & Deadlifts

If I suggested that to my coach the outcome would be sprint a lap or 2 id say haha.

Can't say I know much about squats but I know I'm good at deadlifts. Should I do high weight low reps or low weight high reps or what?

seanmacc

Aspiring wrote: »

If I suggested that to my coach the outcome would be sprint a lap or 2 id say haha.

Can't say I know much about squats but I know I'm good at deadlifts. Should I do high weight low reps or low weight high reps or what?

Depends on the length of your stride. Long legs high weight low reps, short legs low weight high reps.

MD1990

Aspiring wrote: »

If I suggested that to my coach the outcome would be sprint a lap or 2 id say haha.

Can't say I know much about squats but I know I'm good at deadlifts. Should I do high weight low reps or low weight high reps or what?

GAA coaches know nothing imo complete fools
here is a Squat video

Deadlifts i would do just 5 Reps x 3 Sets with as high KG as possible with 3 Minute break between sets
try & be explosive lifting as well

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

Depends on the length of your stride. Long legs high weight low reps, short legs low weight high reps.

Long legs here so first one I suppose..

MD1990 wrote: »

GAA coaches know nothing imo complete fools
here is a Squat video

Deadlifts i would do just 5 Reps x 3 Sets with as high KG as possible with 3 Minute break between sets
try & be explosive lifting as well

How do I avoid using my back much doing deadlifts I swear I nearly destroyed my back lifting like 100kg a while ago haha

MD1990

Aspiring wrote: »

Long legs here so first one I suppose..



How do I avoid using my back much doing deadlifts I swear I nearly destroyed my back lifting like 100kg a while ago haha

i would go for the High Weight Low Reps if i were u
your form for deadlifts could be off
u need to keep your head looking straight & your back must not be rounded

Aspiring

MD1990 wrote: »

i would go for the High Weight Low Reps if i were u
your form for deadlifts could be off
u need to keep your head looking straight & your back must not be rounded

Probably is, thanks for these! Is running on the beach any better for you or is that a myth?

seanmacc

Aspiring wrote: »

Probably is, thanks for these! Is running on the beach any better for you or is that a myth?

If its in the water slightly below the knees maybe.

Running just on sand is good for long distance more so than sprinting but is good if you're prone to injuries for low impact on the joints.

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

If its in the water slightly below the knees maybe.

Running just on sand is good for long distance more so than sprinting but is good if you're prone to injuries for low impact on the joints.

Oh right I just want to get faster really so no use and im not prone to injuries at all thankfully!

userfriendly2

Check out these links

http://www.menshealth.co.uk/fitness/cardio-exercise/usain-bolts-speed-workout

http://www.livestrong.com/article/207987-sprint-workouts-for-speed/

The 1st one is more about building up the muscles rather than getting out there and sprinting and the 2nd one is great for finding out all about recommended exercises and talks a little about the High Intensity Interval Training(HIIT).

ss43

MD1990 wrote: »

i would go for the High Weight Low Reps if i were u
your form for deadlifts could be off
u need to keep your head looking straight & your back must not be rounded

Do you mean your head looks straight in front of you at the lowest point? I would have thought that your head should only be looking straight when you're standing fully. If your neck is in line with your spine the whole way through the movement, you're lifting with the same posture you're running with.

Aspiring

userfriendly2 wrote: »

Check out these links

http://www.menshealth.co.uk/fitness/cardio-exercise/usain-bolts-speed-workout

http://www.livestrong.com/article/207987-sprint-workouts-for-speed/

The 1st one is more about building up the muscles rather than getting out there and sprinting and the 2nd one is great for finding out all about recommended exercises and talks a little about the High Intensity Interval Training(HIIT).

Cheers for these man, went out sprinting on a hill today when I got back on flat land I felt like a kangaroo hopping around haha mental, legs were in bits tho.

seanmacc

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/08/05/sports/olympics/the-100-meter-dash-one-race-every-medalist-ever.html

Interesting Nytimes video article.

I'd of kicked ass in the Olympics in 1896

(Found the video a bit slow. Let it buffer a couple of mins before you play it. Dam you eircom)

Aspiring

seanmacc wrote: »

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/08/05/sports/olympics/the-100-meter-dash-one-race-every-medalist-ever.html

Interesting Nytimes video article.

I'd of kicked ass in the Olympics in 1896

(Found the video a bit slow. Let it buffer a couple of mins before you play it. Dam you eircom)

I know that feeling.. 1mb eircom connection here :rolleyes:

Gonna have a look at it now

Aspiring

Great video anyway! but I feel we've almost reached the top level of sprinting if you know what I mean, can't improve much more with the athletes muscles in tip top condition and the genetics perfect how can it get much faster really?