Accel – max v transition problems

    Posted In: Sprints

        • Member
          aivala on August 7, 2009 at 9:04 am #16043

          I have some problems while transitioning to max v lately. In the last month I improved greatly my max v mechanics (learnt to run fully upright and tall, like in vid one), but on the runway, where I have to get upright faster than off the blocks I float and have some weird splits, my hips drop, … I also ran during july exclusively on grass so it also might be an issue.

          These are not all out runs, an abortion of a progressive run, in an attemp to hit a greater max v.

          F.e:
          On monday:
          30m
          0-10m: 2.13 (cut stride short after going for freq)
          10-20m: 1.16 (3.29)
          20-25m: 0.56 (3.82)
          25-30m: 0.50 (4.32)

          Yesterday:

          run a
          0-10: 1.90
          10-20: 1.23
          20-25: 0.56
          25-30: 0.56 / 1.12 / 4.23
          30-35: 0.53
          35-40: 0.53 / 1.06

          run b:
          0-10: 1.90
          10-20: 1.20
          20-25: 0.56
          25-30: 0.56 / 1.12 / 4.20
          30-35: 0.53
          35-40: 0.50 / 1.03
          (and I believe I got slightly faster after 40m)

          Tall running (after a month of lots of track running)

          Yesterday’s run a:

          Yesterday’s run b:


          and an all out approach two months ago (4.66s +-0.03 40yd even though I stuttered badly) :

          (normal speed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu_GQHYIVmE)

          Thanks a lot.

        • Participant
          premium on August 7, 2009 at 9:39 am #87252

          were those all with the same run-in? Take my suggestions lightly cause i’m not an expert like others on the board…but i would suggest maybe refining the acceleration a bit and having a slower rise of the torso etc. out of the acceleration angles. I don’t really have much experience or knowledge about jumping but i did use 100m highknees to help me learn to run with my hips higher

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on August 7, 2009 at 10:00 am #87255

          Nick may be a better person to analyze your runway sprinting, but to me it seemed like your hips never finish making the transition to top speed. Your upper body is running tall but it looks like your hips are still anteriorly rotated which is preventing you from truly running tall down the runway.

          Now I may be looking at the video cockeyed, but in your jump attempt did you even get close to top speed? Your ground contact time looks quite long and I have a feeling that your hip rotation may be playing a part in that.

        • Member
          aivala on August 7, 2009 at 10:06 am #87257

          Now I may be looking at the video cockeyed, but in your jump attempt did you even get close to top speed? Your ground contact time looks quite long and I have a feeling that your hip rotation may be playing a part in that.

          Well I noticed the not-hitting-max v part but how does that of anterior hip rotation works? I never heard the term.

          That jump was obliterated from 10m before the board, I started stuttering and everything went down the toilet. Not to mention some huge takeoff problems that Nick already adressed. Even though this happened and including the penultimate step I averaged 10 m/s from the 11m board onwards. That was an all out run from the beginning.

        • Participant
          Josh Hurlebaus on August 7, 2009 at 10:15 am #87258

          At top speed your hips shoudl have a posterior tilt to them, this allows greater knee height and push downward at MaxV. The video made it look like your hips were rotated the opposite way which would increase ground contact time and prevent you from ever hitting your true top speed.

        • Participant
          tkaberna on August 7, 2009 at 12:44 pm #87265

          It looks to me like you are still sitting when upright. You have to run with your hips taller at maxV. I like that you are mostly front side mechanics but your support leg never fully extends. Do you pull down the runway or push up for flight time?

          It seems as if you break your dorsi flex as well which may cause a weak link all the way up the chain. Just my .02.

        • Participant
          johnstrang on August 7, 2009 at 12:56 pm #87267

          Totally agree with Josh. You can see what he is talking about if you stand sideways looking in a mirror and contract your glutes and lower ab muscles. If you were to draw a line from your head down to where your foot contacts the ground at your top end it would not be straight. You are not allowing yourself to optimize your trajectory at takeoff.

        • Member
          aivala on August 7, 2009 at 8:57 pm #87276

          Thanks for the replies!! Josh, I was looking for hip rotation but on the wrong axis lol.

          Tom, I use to push/pull myself during the first 6 / 8 steps and then I switch to stepping over, but I now realize I might do better if I left the stepping over thing appart. I believe the video where I do run correctly I did anything but stepping over. If I step over with a smoother upright transition torso is OK but my legs do not ever extend. Can a cue make such a big difference? I am normally able to run really tall coming off the blocks where I am in some kind of hypnotic status and I am not really in control of myself, on the runway it’s just impossible to do it that way.

          John, I hadn’t heard such an explanation. You mean keeping the body straight to use it as some kind of catapult with the axis on the take off foot, the thing that’s extremelly evident while high jumping?

        • Participant
          johnstrang on August 8, 2009 at 12:06 am #87287

          Well, I don’t want you thinking of it too much in terms of high jump because they different. Just like everyone else noticed you are not tall when running and it causes you to have a slight forward lean. That lean limits your height, but I just watched the video again and you do a good job of recovering that lean and take off at a pretty good angle. So just get rid of the low hips and you will increase your jump by a great deal.

        • Member
          aivala on August 8, 2009 at 6:40 am #87304

          Thinking of high jump already broke my ankle in the past so it’s definitely not the way to go.

          Does this qualify as hips tall? Its a slow warm up run but I wasn’t stepping over. The answer could be key to my problem, it’s a shame I had those jogging trousers on. Is it me or it’s also possible that my stride looks much smoother in this last video?


        • Participant
          Chad Williams on August 8, 2009 at 7:22 am #87306

          There are a couple of things going on here . . . all connected.

          1) During single support phase at touchdown, your step is significantly in front of your COM in a toe down position. Looks as though you are hitting the front few spikes.

          2) Your have a significant posterior pelvic tilt.

          3) You run with your shoulders leading your hips and your head leading everything. A more neutral alignment of the entire system is going to aid in your Max V mechanics.

          Focus on your posture. All the time. If you have been carrying around a bookbag with lots of heavy equipment/books/whatev . . . get rid of it.

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