Ask the coach: winter motivation, track v gym training, running block for mixed ability runners

Our Event Group Leads have each answered one of our 'Ask The Coach' questions submitted. If you have a question you'd like answered you can still submit them!

This month we answer the following:

• How do you keep javelin throwers motivated during the winter as they can’t compete indoors?
• How many times a week should a sprinter train on the track and how many times should they train in the weight room?
• What could a 4 week block of generic road training for mixed ability club runners look like? In winter we are limited due narrow pavements... what safe sessions could we hold?
• I feel my sessions sometimes get a bit stale. Is there any way I can chat with and share ideas with other jumps coaches?

How do you keep javelin throwers motivated during the winter as they can’t compete indoors?

Nick Ridgeon, Event Group Leader for Throws: Agreeing short-, medium- and long-term goals then revisiting them throughout the off-season is a great start as it will keep them centred as to their own personal 'why'. In addition to this, ensuring you create an enjoyable training environment which is tailored to the individual development needs and understanding of fun. One extra thing we tried last year is taking a small group of throwers to an indoor competition in Vaxjo, Sweden so they had a competition early in the season to focus on. It was a fantastic developmental experience and they do it in various places in Europe.

I feel my sessions sometimes get a bit stale. Is there any way I can chat with and share ideas with other jumps coaches?

You could attend the England Athletics Jumps and Throws Conference next March? It will involve a series of practical sessions, keynotes, and workshops led by international and expert practitioners in their field. If you are a club coach, talent coach, performance coach, or a coach working with disability athletes, then this conference has something to offer you. It will be a great opportunity for you to connect, collaborate and take inspiration from fellow coach practitioners. Immerse yourself over one, two days or online in our inspiring practical and theory sessions. Find out more.

How many times a week should a sprinter train on the track and how many times should they train in the weight room?

Shani Palmer, Event Group Lead for Speed: This depends on the age and stage of the athlete. There are many factors that dictate when a sprinter should be training in the gym. All sprinters can start with appropriate circuits to build up their many aspects of their fitness including intrinsic strength, lung capacity, balance, co-ordination and hone fundamental movement skills. Once that athlete is able to execute these fundamental movements, then they can start training in the gym under guidance from a coach or weight training instructor. All gym work must complement the training done on the track, so it is important that the gym programme is designed in conjunction with the track sessions. The number of gym sessions then depends on the level of the athletes, their ability to recover between sessions, their availability and their aspirations. Most senior athletes will train 2-3 times per week in the gym, depending on the time of year.

We are a road running club with a wide range of abilities from c25k graduates to sub 2.40 marathoners. What would be the best regular sessions for our coaches to lead. With step up and drop down weeks. We run twice a week what could a 4 week block of generic training for club runners look like. In winter we are limited due narrow pavements... what safe sessions could we hold?

Spencer Duval, Event Group Lead for Endurance: As I am sure you have discovered there is no easy answer when dealing with groups of mixed ability and goals, where one size doesn’t fit all.

• Move all training to time based rather than distance based, this way all work to the appropriate level but can work together so keeping the group ethic and community spirit. Leaders can use a whistle to indicate time.
• Have some goal-based conversations with the aim of identifying a target event for your members. This could be an event hosting multi distance opportunities like 10k/half marathon /marathon. Then individually write down members' goal times and distances; this will help bring folks together - it’s not essential but one way to get the ball rolling - then you all go to the event as a club.
• Get your leaders to explain to their athletes the different paces required within sessions and what they mean:
  - LSR: Long Slow Running where conversation is possible, and the focus is on running style.
  - Fartlek: where steady running is interspersed with pace efforts.
  - Recovery runs: where the idea is to recover from a hard session and prepare for the next; most runners run their hard sessions to slow and their easy sessions to hard.
  - Temp/threshold sessions: where one word answer only is possible. Interval sessions where no conversation is possible due to effort.
• Leaders ideally should structure the sessions to include: warm up - active mobilisation - drills for technic and injury avoidance - session - cool down and static stretching.
• Runners should understand that they will need to add sessions to your twice weekly sets to gain balance. The club nights therefore should focus on more technical sessions.
• All need to understand the advantages of physical preparation and how to embed this into the programme.
• You mention runners aiming at 2.40 marathon- they will benefit from all club sessions but would need to address their programmes individually with your leaders' help.

Example Session Plan for six weeks

You can visit Athletics Hub (login needed) and go to the endurance coaching videos where England Athletics created a series called “ Let’s Start With “ here you will find lots of expansions and explanations to help. Here are videos of the physical preparation exercises mentioned and more– you could watch this as a group?

Submit your questions

Didn’t get the chance to ask your questions the first-time round? Not to worry, you can still submit questions for us to answer. From questions about coaching complete beginners, to periodisation for elite athletes, no question is too big or too small.

Email us – hello@englandathletics.org