Derrick,
Sorry for the verbose reply – it certainly seemed like you were taking a contrary position in regards to cheated hurdles in your first post: “I believe in using regulation hurdles and do it often. I think it’s the best speed work method for those that can handle it. I think at a certain level you learn the rhythm and technique better when using regulation vs. non regulation. I view the issue the opposite way, why do you feel ‘cheating’ the hurdles is better? I don’t believe that it really is any more stressful…”
And to be truthful…I’m still trying to understand how you use regulation hurdles “often” & on a “fairly regular basis” yet still use non-regulation hurdles “daily” and “most often”… Sounds like a lot of hurdling 🙂
That said…my original post was not intended to created a debate of the merits of “cheated” hurdles in training (but I’m obviously willing…hah, hah). What I really want to know are the specific training benefits/qualities that you believe you can only achieve with regulation hurdles, and not with cheated hurdles, at practice?
In other words – when you prescribe this specific training method (regulation hurdles) at practice – what is the training goals/outcomes you hope to achieve?
In your first post you stated: “I think it’s the best speed work method for those that can handle it. I think at a certain level you learn the rhythm and technique better when using regulation vs. non regulation”
Why do you think training over regulation hurdles in a practice setting produces the “best speed work” vs. cheated hurdles? Basically, how and why do your hurdlers produce better speed work over regulation hurdles at practice than with cheated hurdles?
As you use both regulation and cheated hurdles – your statement seems to imply that if you want their best speed work – you move the hurdles out and up to regulation settings. Are you basing this on touchdown times or ?
And what is the specific advantage of regulation hurdles vs. cheated hurdles that allows hurdlers to “learn the rhythm and technique better when using regulation…”?
What is it about raising the hurdles and increasing the spacing to regulation settings that help your athletes learn better rhythm and display better technique in a practice setting?
P.S. If always running over regulation hurdles at practice will get me 4 guys at 15.0 or better – than I’m all for it. I’m not greedy…I’ll just take one guy running 14’s.