How I Took 1.1secs Off My 40m Sprint in 2 Weeks!!

This article has been 3 - 4 weeks in the making and has taken a few twists and turns in that time.

Let's go back a few weeks.

I started block 3 of phase 2 of the Triphasic Training program where I thought it was a great time to do a little experiment.

I'm a short man, probably the shortest at my footy club at a poultry 168cms. I think Boomer Harvey is even taller then me actually.

Anyway this obviously results in pretty short legs (short everything really...) but I have always had a shortish step. I was reasonably fast when I was young. Not the quickest in my age group but in the top group anyway. I always thought I had to take too many steps to run a 100m sprint compared to everyone else, sort of like the bloke who pumps his arms and legs and never gets anywhere but I wasn't quite that bad (my mate Warbo does a great rendition of this actually).

My little experiment was to do some band hip flexion isometrics 3 x 15secs x 3 times a week for 2 weeks with a 40m sprint test before and after the 2 weeks. Here are the initial tests:

As you can see my timing device is not perfect but you can see the time for the very first movement and also the moment you cross the line, albeit with a lot of pausing!

Here are my times for the 3 x 40m Sprints with the first sprint having 10m split times:

Sprint 1 - 8.7 + 10.6 (1.9) + 11.9 (1.3) = 13 or 14.??? (can't see the finish)

Sprint 2 - 34.2 - 39.7 = 5.5secs

Sprint 3 - 48.8 - 54.4 = 5.6secs

I generally run the 40m sprint in 22, 23, 24 steps which is what is shown in sprint 1, even though you can't see the end.

I kept up my Triphasic Training training as prescribed so the only thing I was adding was the band hip flexion isometric exercise. To do wrap a band around an anchor and then around your ankle. Standing on 1 leg, flex the hip of the banded foot in front of you until your hip is at 35 - 45 degree angle or thereabouts. Also make sure your ankle is dorsi flexed. Hold this position for 15secs alternating sides for 3 sets each session. I did this Monday, Wednesday and Friday for 6 total sessions.

This exercise is designed to improve the swing phase of sprinting where the leg comes from full hip extension into hip flexion to set you up for the next step. The better set up for the next step you are, the more force you'll be able to put into the ground and the faster you'll be able to run.

2 weeks later I retested my 40m sprints and here's the videos with my fandangle timing system for them:

Here are my times, 10m split times and steps taken for each sprint;

Sprint 1 - 11.3 + 13.2 (1.9) + 14.6 (1.4) + 16.1 (1.5) = 4.8secs in 20 - 22 steps

Sprint 2 - 28.4 + 30.3 (1.9) + 31.6 (1.3) + 32.8 (1.2) = 4.4secs in 18 - 20 steps

Sprint 3 - 55.7 + 57.6 (1.9) + 59 (1.4) + 1.01 (1.1) = 4.4secs in 18 - 20 steps

That is a huge drop of 1.1secs in 2 measly weeks!!! Let's all celebrate and bow down to the world's fastest ma.........wait a minute.

Looking back at that tape and also at the split times the sprints look a bit short. So short in fact that they were only 30m!!

$##%^&*@$#!!

Not Happy. I said to the wifey who was doing my filming to go up to the next line (I did 3 x 10 and 20m prior to the 40's) where I meant the 40 line because that's what we did 2 weeks before for the initial testing. She just went to the 30m line and I didn't even notice.

Again $##%^&*@$#!!

I actually count my steps while I do the sprints and I did count 18 for at least 1 of them and thought wow, the hip flexor exercises is the biggest secret to sprinting speed, I just ran the same distance I did usually do in 24 steps in only 18. Wowee!!

Even as I converted them and times them that night I still didn't realise they were short. Not until I started to do this article of my record breaking exploits and I watched again and bang there it was - 30m.

So where to from now?

Well I was going to retest again yesterday in preparation for this post but as I went to start training my back stiffened up so I couldn't even train let alone test which threw my plan b out of whack too.

So here's what I'll do.

I have 1 week left of phase 2 for Triphasic Training and then it's into the peaking phase which is 5 weeks. I will continue with the band hip flexion isometric for this week and retest the 40m next Friday.

The peaking phase is really where the gains in speed come for the Triphasic Training program so I will test after week 2 then again at the end of week 5. I might stick with the hip flexor isometric too as they are a little weak, especially from side to side.

My aim is to break 5secs which at 34 and a half is a pretty good result. I will also practice my set up and starts as I found myself "standing up" on my first step instead of driving out horizontally. You can see it if you go frame by frame.

I hope to have one of my trainers Rob do a sprint specific contrast circuit for 4 weeks too with a pre and post test for the 40m to see how that goes.