Make your own training hurdles.

Sorry, this took longer than I expected. Starting back to school on a master's degree was like going from 0 to 60 in 2 seconds flat. Overwhelming there for a while.

I finally have the pictures of the hurdle making process ready for you. THis first one came in upside down, so I'll go over it, wouldn't want you to hurt your neck trying to read it.

PVC Pipe 1/2 " you need to cut 4 x 6" long and cap the ends and insert other ends into two Tees. Cut 2x 9" long and insert into one Tee. You will also need the circular saw, Drill with 32" drill bit, and pvc glue. Pictured are washers and nuts, but I didn't need to use them. Cut one PVC 38" long and cap.

This is how your stand base will go together. These part I will be gluing, but I won't glue in the standard upright. Will explain later.

 For the upright you need to drill holes for (7) 1 1/2 to 2" long screws. My uprights already had holes at 20", so I did holes 4 inches apart, 12,16,20, 24,28,32, 36. Due to the fact that my drill would sometimes slip, bar turn, or just operator head-space and timing, the screws aren't exactly lined up. This is why I won't glue the upright in. When we shift to a different height, some standards might need a little twist to line up the screw perpendicular to the crossbar.

It takes 2 standards and a 3 foot cross bar to make one hurdle. What I like about these is that the support base is off to the side. The ones we had last year that made an X and adjusted in height had longer legs that by the end of season wanted to turn in on your jumping or landing area. The cross bar rest on the screw which needs to be glued in. 

When athletes are training with the hurdles, make sure they jump with the cross bar away from them, so it will come off the standard if hit. If practicing in windy conditions have the wind in your face so it will keep the crossbar on the standard. Have fun using your own training hurdles. Note: you don't always have to go over. Squatting and stepping under is a good way to loosen up the hip joints.

Tomorrow is Plyometric day. I hope you are having fun with the program.

Making a Roller

I promised to show you how to make your own roller. Here are a few ideas.

Sorry, pictures seem distorted coming over from the camera.  I gathered these items to give you ideas as to what to use. You might come up with something better. Old t-shirts, refrigerator liner foam, scrap PVC pipes either 2" or 4", duct tape or electrical tape. The black one at the top is a small roller that fits easily into the gym bag. It is made from 4" PVC 6"s long, covered with some of the refrigerator foam liner (green) and then electrical tape. (The duct tape was missing that day- hmmm, 3 boys in the house. I don't wonder why it was missing.)

For the one I'm making tonight. I folded the old towel in half lengthwise. Taped one end to the longer PVC pipe. Rolled it up tight and taped it off in three spots. I have previously done this with a larger beach towel and folded it more on one end. It made it thicker on one end of the roller. The sprinters liked having the two thicknesses on one roller. After the towel, I rolled the rest of the refrigerator liner foam onto the roller, taping it at the start of the roll and then again at the end. Once it is anchored I used long strips, overlapping, from one end to the other. The picture shows the extra 3 inches of tape on the end. This is pulled tight and anchored into the inside of the PVC.

After the tape is added all the way around, the roller is ready for use. Our 800m runner prefers to use 4" PVC pipe with just a layer of duct tape around it. He likes his roller firm.

Here are the two that I will be using. A 6 inch and a 15 inch roller made from extra items at home.

The silver one will roll everything from the neck down (feels like the chiropractor's rolling table), the black one I use to concentrate on the I T bands and thighs when elsewhere. I like having the duct tape completely covering the roller so dust can easily be wiped off.
Our weather is stormy tonight and through tomorrow, so I'm not sure what workout I'll get to do.
Coming this week, I'll be posting the different daily workouts for the track team and touching on items such as dynamic and static stretching - when do you do them?