AS88 wrote:
You mentioned that Ben couldn't jump but that you have been working on it. Can you elaborate here? Do you mostly work vertically or horizontally, how many times a week, is this done in conjunction with strength training in the gym etc. Everything you think is of value here. And mostly importantly: is he a good jumper now?
Also, which power meter do you use?
Sure. When Ben and I started working together, improving the run was a top priority, so I started with the basics. Running is just a series of hops, with the ability to apply force into the ground the key component. We were at the OTC in November 2016 together, we had just started working together, and I was running our National Junior Select Camp, Ben was a mentor there, and he did a bunch of testing with the USOC staff. I saw him do the jump test, and it was clear he was very uncomfortable with his jumping. It made me realize we had to address it. Fast forward one year later, and he does that same test, and it was over 20% improvement in the test. The USOC staff told me they never really see those kind of improvements at that level.
The next thing I added was a lot of jump roping. It started with single unders, and then moved to double unders. Ben was terrible at it to start, but now can probably do 100+ double unders without stopping. The coordination building and explosiveness of double unders is something I believe helps a lot. In the video by Talbot Cox, you can see Ben do them, as well as one of the videos Today's Plan had produced.
I put the jump rope after long runs, hard runs, etc. I believe that is part of the reason Ben wins so many sprint finishes, (Island House, Chengdu World Cup, for example), because he used to those high intensities when fatigued late.
Here's Ben's progression on his running in 70.3, prior to Worlds.
Jim Vance
http://TodaysPlan.com.au (Disclosure: I am contracted with Today's Plan)
http://www.CoachVance.com/ Twitter @jimvance