April Training Update
Published on 3 April 2011 in Training Updates | 6 Comments |
Former Swiss record holder Samuele Dazio.
I spent some of the extra time visiting coach Samuele Dazio on Friday in Ticino. I first met with Dazio at the Swiss Athletics Hammer Workshop in March. Immediately he gave me some fresh ideas on how to improve my technique. Since then we have remained in contact and I hope to visit him once or twice a month in the future. Bondarchuk continues to write my training programs, but is has been difficult to work on technique without him watching me in person. I thought it would be easier since I also trained away from him while I was in law school, but what I forgot is that even in law school I visited him for a few days each month. I need those few days. As much as I think email, YouTube and self-coaching can improve my technique, there is no replacement for someone watching you and giving instant feedback. Dazio was an accomplished thrower himself and coaches the same basics principles as Bondarchuk, so it has been a great match.
Already, my technique has made significant steps forward. Last time I wrote a training update, I wasn’t happy with my technique. As you can see in the video, things are much better now. Feel free to share your thoughts below. The low point of the hammer is better. I am not having trouble staying in the ring and in the sector. I am transferring both the hammer and the ball to the left more in the entry. And I am staying a bit more relaxed during the throw. The last point is something I am working on more now. During my first single support phase I tend to pull from the left shoulder and shorten the hammer rather than relaxing to lengthen the radius. Dazio has been helping with that and the biggest help has been taking fewer intense throws. When left on my own, I throw harder and harder. Before I know it every throw is at a high intensity. Having him around reminds me that sometimes I need to back off and focus on technique.
To make things ever better, I am still regaining my strength after having the flu in February. And while my back was hurting me at my last competition, Friday was the first day I threw without a back support in three weeks. It looks as if everything might come together for the start of the season for once.
My next competition is planned for May 1st in Basel. The week before the competition I will spend with Dazio and some other athletes at a training camp in the Tuscany region of Italy. While there will not be any other great throwers in Basel, the competition will be a good chance to see how the technical changes can carry over into a meet setting.
6 Responses to “April Training Update”
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Name: Mémorial Kops, Ludivig & Reuter
Date: 19 May 2012
Location: Ettelbruck, Luxembourg
Hi Martin,
Your orbit has improved making for a much better balance in your throws. In terms of intensity one of the differences between Bonderchuk and Zaitchouk is Zaitchouk is very careful about the number of maximum throws taken in a practice session. He says that each athlete has only 3-8 hard throws in his body and this does not vary very much from practice session to practice session. The number is individual to the athlete. You can find out your personal limit by having someone watch you throw. You warm-up then start throwing maximally. The observer counts the number of throws until it seems you slightly lose feel/coordination. For most athletes I have coached the number is 4-5.
Joe
Thanks Joe. Since we normally only take around 15 throws per session, I can take most of my throws hard after the warm up throws. But when the focus is on distance, then I often forget about the other technical points I need to fix. Having a coach around, even a javelin coach who would come to watch weekly last summer, reminds me that I’m there to work on technique too. And, lo and behold, the distance gets even better when you don’t focus on it. It’s one of those things that every thrower knows but is rarely used since it is counter-intuitive.
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