drills

All notes taken were following observations during the sessions; however there maybe some inaccuracies due to the acoustics in the hall. I have tried to give full explanations of the exercises, but further consultation maybe needed for clarification.

Warm Up Games
Suicide
·2 teams in the hall.
·Several cones set out in a straight line ahead.
·Each team member takes it in turn to sprint ahead to the furthest cone and return to tag the next team member as quickly as possible.
Confusion
·As above but with a twist.
·Shuttle runs again, but this time 2 people from the same team run at the same time (almost)
·1^st team member runs to 3^rd cone and then back to the start
·The 2^nd team member then runs to the 3^rd cone and 1^st team member is running to cone 4.
·1^st team member returns to the start
·2^nd team member then runs to cone 4 then back to the start.
·Continue until all team has completed both running to cone 3 and 4

Note
During such strenuous exercises in a warm up, you should check your pulse.
Count for 1 minute checking pulse and times it by 4. That will give you your heart rate.
A raised heart rate is needed to improve circulation, thus improving muscle tone &movements.

Flexing head and Neck
·Gently tilt the head forward and backwards
·Then side to side gently
·Repeat several times, aiming a little further each time.
·Keep shoulders lower and relaxed
·Keep arms by your side

Flexing Arm muscles
·Helicopter arms backwards.
·Rotate the arms both at the same time backwards in a helicopter fashion. Circling faster each time
· Then rotate forwards. Repeat several times
·You should aim to feel a tingle in your fingers.
·This would indicate that the circulation has improved into your finger tips.
·Shake your hands high and low to stem the tingling feeling.

Warming up the Hips
·Roll the hips in a circular motion clockwise direction
·Gently roll them in a circle like a “hula hula”
·Change direction rotate anticlockwise
·Then try to make a figure of 8 with your hips one direction then the other.
·Circle each leg one at a time
·Draw an imaginary circle with each leg
·Should be 2x hip width apart
·Walk feet in
·Push bottom back as in a skiing action with feet together
·Lean forward as if skiing
·Repeat several times

Note:
Change your whole attitude of mind when training. Change your mentality from day job to athlete. When you are focused on the task of training you will gain greater progress in your athletic ability. You will find that you will become an athlete not just a runner.
Try to remember your posture. When you focus on your posture you will run automatically more efficiently. Imagine a piece of string on the top of your head; the string is pulling you up to the ceiling. This helps to elongate the body and straighten the spine.
During the time when you focus on your posture, breathe in and hold the breath. Then exhale and focus on the breath leaving the body.
Stand tall and be proud -always be aware of your posture ! Try to reprogram yourself and this will improve your coordination.

Knees and thighs
·Feet shoulder width apart with knees bent
·Bend the knees and aim the bottom towards the floor
·If your hips and knees feel funny widen the stance by moving your feet further apart.
·With feet wider apart, keep feet and toes parallel
·Took bottom forward
·Keep breathing
·Walk feet in
·Repeat

Calf & leg muscles
·Stand with straight legs hip distance apart
·Lean forward from the waist with arms stretched forward
·Lean as far is comfortable
·repeat
·Walk feet in

Wall stretches for legs
·Spread along the wall with plenty of room for swinging legs.
·Stand facing the wall and swing left leg out and in
·Keep the right leg straight and stable
·Use the hip flexor to elevate the leg keeping toes pointing towards the wall.
·Swing leg as high as is comfortable
·When you draw the leg down, try to cross the midline of your body. Only as far as is comfortable
·Repeat with other leg.

Note:
Try to mobilise the leg joints every day.
The more you do it the better you will get. Practice means more flexible joints.
As runners we must focus on the maintenance of our running systems as well as our performance.

Control on Our Feet
Keeping focused on posture and positioning of feet will improve our performance as a runner.
Drill A
·High knees across the hall
·Place feet on floor in controlled way
·Do not slap the floor with your feet, light controlled movements that cannot be heard.
·Remember to breathe. Do not hold your breath when you concentrate on your feet.
·Whilst focusing on your feet try to make yourself taller, strengthen through the spine, keeping upright and focused ahead.
Drill B
·Heel flicks across the hall
·Try to keep your feet close together when they hit the floor
·Keep the action snappy and choppy
·Aim to not make a sound as the feet make contact with the floor.
·Remember to breathe

Note:
This is conditioning your muscles to be turned on and off. You are conditioning your reflexes and your nervous system. Eventually you will become symmetrical and thus improve your coordination. When all parts of the body work in harmony, you will improve your performance.

Drill C “The Ministry of Funny Walks”
This is about controlling your body, not the other way around. Engaging the mind to place the legs with greater precision. By making a funny walk the mind is developing links with the nervous system to control muscles and thus improve performance.
·Stride forward keeping the back leg straight
·Keep hips facing forward
·As you bring the front leg forward, bring it up towards the chest, bend it and place it out to the side of the body.
·Feel the stretch in the back leg
·Repeat with the other leg, until you have reached the other side.

Seated Stretches
·Sit opposite each other, one partner with legs outside the others
·Best to take off shoes so you do not hurt each other’s inner thighs.
·The partner with legs on the outside takes hold of the other persons arms, below the joints.
·The aim is to stretch your partner forward until they can not bend forward any more
·It should not be painful, but you should feel the stretch on the inner thighs.
·Aim to hold for longer periods over time
·Change over to stretch the other partner.

Groin Stretches
·Partner needed to hold the stretch
·lie on the floor with the balls of your feet touching
·draw the feet towards your bottom feel the stretch in the hips and groin
·to gain more from the stretch, partner should apply mild pressure to the knees which ar wide apart.
·Hold the stretch for several seconds, longer over period of time
·Should be able to draw feet nearer to the period, as you become more supple
·Should be able to get the knees nearer to the floor over time too!
·After the stretch, it needs to be released
·Draw your knees together and elevate slightly so partner can push them towards your chest
·Repeat it 2x
·This will help to release the back muscles

Note:
Running can be very fatiguing especially if out for long periods of time. It can be isolating if you are on your own too! After the first 40 mins of running you can begin to experience a dip in concentration. This may mean that your posture begins to fall, and your positioning of your feet is not as coordinated as it might be. This is where these drills and techniques become especially important. They will help you to become more focused and aware of every part of your body.
Performing stretches daily will help to maintain our range of movement, and this will improve every day.

Trusting yourself
Learning to trust your self is very important; knowing your body and the mechanics which enable it to run efficiently is paramount to becoming a more effective runner. The following technique will help you to become a faster runner, especially for those who perform on the track.
·Close your eyes and travel forward with high knees
·Lean forward as you travel, you will not fall, as your body automatically puts your next leg down.
·On a signal open your eyes with your head tilted forward.
·Sprint towards the wall as fast as you can
·Do not bring your head up until near the wall.
·Trust yourself to know where the wall is.

Leg Stretches
·Stand with back against the wall
·Partner takes your leg and elevates it as high as you feel comfortable
·Feel the stretch in the hamstring of the elevated leg
·Change over legs
·Aim to get higher over time
·Keep the non elevated leg on the floor and do not over stretch too soon.