[i008787]

i008787 on April 26, 2007 at 9:22 pm #13012

Hello,
I train on my own for the 200m sprint event. I have timed myself over the 200m and wondered if there
is any rough rule of thumb of how a time speed trial using a hand held would measure vs a typical race.

I am running a masters event and the over40 group are doing the race in 26-29secs. Hand timed I am
hitting 30 dead.
Also I have lost 14lb, feel great but not sure how low in bodyweight I should go. The more bodyweight I am losing the faster I am getting. I want to get near the top guys.
Tks,

[richard-703]

richard-703 on April 26, 2007 at 9:45 pm #64427

What's your weight? How fat are you?

With a second person handtiming you starting on your first movement, then the rule of thumb is add 0.24 secs to your time. This can vary greatly.

The best way is to film a video with a digital camera on "30 frames" per sec.
Then freeware such as "virtualdub" lets you look at it frame by frame. You can mark the time of the first movement, and when you cross the line. It is good to about 0.03 secs.
Technically the frame rate is 29.97 not 30.00 so you should multiply by (30/29.97). I don't bother because the correction is small and I just use it for a good estimate (plus you can count strides, look at form etc).