3-7 Training System

[mikepv1]

I am not saying that it had anything to do with the 3-7 training system, but why did Lawrence Johnson get injured so much?

Well as I said, Lawrence has a propensity for injuries. Like I said he had an injury every year since he came to college in 1992 including major take off ankle reconstruction that prevented him from doing many kind of jumps in training since then. He is a very dedicated athlete and often over trains himself. For example he is known to get up at 2 am and go run a mile or run stairs a week before a major competition (on his own).

There are only two modes of training, overtraining and under training. He often crossed the border. It is a skill that elite athlete should also posses. Yuri Volkov used to say that the best athlete is not the most talented one is the one who can cope best with injuries.

The higher performance intensity required for 20’ –21’ vault will inevitably take athlete closer to the edge of human abilities therefore increasing potential for injuries. In my opinion injury management and prevention will become even more important as we progress.

Time and goal management in training process would also become crucial in order to achieve superior results.

So why is your coach telling you to run 6x200m instead of say 7x200m?

As to the 3-7 system, you are welcome to ignore it if you choose.

agapit

I shall not ignore it at all. I am very intrigued by it. I think it is gound-breaking.

You seem to have always had a clever way of looking at things differently: first with the Continuous Chain Concept and now with the 3-7 Training System.

It presents no illusions that the coach can be anything less than completely on top of things. I like that.

You also couldn't be more spot-on in your point about time management. Training is all about balance and priorities.

I think this forum has been waiting for someone like you who makes people think. I'm glad you're here.

[agapit]

I shall not ignore it at all. I am very intrigued by it. I think it is gound-breaking.

You seem to have always had a clever way of looking at things differently: first with the Continuous Chain Concept and now with the 3-7 Training System.

It presents no illusions that the coach can be anything less than completely on top of things. I like that.

You also couldn't be more spot-on in your point about time management. Training is all about balance and priorities.

I think this forum has been waiting for someone like you who makes people think. I'm glad you're here.

Hey I just like pole vault. I am flattered, but you made me feel a bit uncomfortable with your kind words. Thanks.

[agapit]

Thanks for the clarification. Keeping a fresh perspective on training is a useful tool, and your post serves to raise awareness. I think the most often overlooked aspect of overtraining is mental fatigue, which your system addresses. I agree . . . change things up . . . there are plenty of aspects of the vault to work on . . . that's why some of the best vaulters in the world don't peak until their early 30's . . . my age

creed

I am sure your contributions to the event could be very valuable with your academic expertise and your medical training. I always told my student that technical aspect of the vault is the easiest. The physiological and psychological aspects are the challenge.

[mikepv1]

Hey I just like pole vault. I am flattered, but you made me feel a bit uncomfortable with your kind words. Thanks.

Haha sorry about that. It was very late and, as a writer, I tend to be redundant and overemphatic when I am half asleep.

You can effectively replace everything in my post with the following line:

Thinking Outside Box = Good


This debate between you, Alan Launder, and Dave Johnston really is good stuff, though. It's good to be able to find stuff like this to read, because I have no coach (never really have). I wish Jan Johnson would chime in. I'd be interested in what he has to say. Jim Bemiller too, although I don't think he is a member of this board.

This site is really getting big in its reach.

[ladyvolspvcoach]

Oh, yeah! B's a member of the board!!

[mikepv1]

Oh, yeah! B's a member of the board!!

Wow! I didn't know that. Where's he been in all this technical debate?

[ladyvolspvcoach]

watching!

[rainbowgirl28]

A week before 2001 indoor US Championship where he set up the current American Indoor Record he pulled his right calf.

Great post but a quick correction - LoJo set the American record at 5.96 on 3/3/01, however that was beaten a year later (3/10/02) by Jeff Hartwig with a jump of 6.02m.
I noticed that in several of your posts so I thought I'd just point it out. In any event, Laurence is a phenominal vaulter and his credentials speak volumes for himself, and for you as well agapit.

I look forward to more of your posts.

The American indoor record is still showing 5.96m and 6.02 for Jeff, but maybe it was not ratified because of the rank of the competition, etc. Otherwise why would they show 5.96m. http://usatf.org/statistics/records/ind ... en_all.asp

agapit

Track and Field News shows Hartwig's indoor record as having been ratified. They are much more on top of keeping stuff updated on their website than USATF, and believe me they wouldn't put it online unless it had been ratified.

http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/archiv ... rican.html

[PaulVaulter]

Agapit,

On your original post, I find this a very interesting concept, I have been aware of the 3 stages of progress you mention but have never seen an article with the number of sessions and the way to use it as clearly as yours. I do have some questions though.

does that mean you would only do 2-6 vault sessions off a full run before the first competition?

if there were competitions on consecutive weekends how would you train to stop the regression?

if it were important sessions, e.g. full vaults, how long should be left between the termination of the first 3-7 cycle and the commencement of the next?

Paul

[PaulVaulter]

P.S. sorry, i wasn't on this forum when this was originally posted, so only saw it yesterday when someone added a new post.

[agapit]

Agapit,

On your original post, I find this a very interesting concept, I have been aware of the 3 stages of progress you mention but have never seen an article with the number of sessions and the way to use it as clearly as yours. I do have some questions though.

does that mean you would only do 2-6 vault sessions off a full run before the first competition?

if there were competitions on consecutive weekends how would you train to stop the regression?

if it were important sessions, e.g. full vaults, how long should be left between the termination of the first 3-7 cycle and the commencement of the next?

Paul

These are good questions. Normally, I would set an objective that needed to be achieved in the full vault sessions. Usually it is a single objective. I would use 3-4 sessions to achieve the objective to whatever level possible in the 3-4 sessions and move on. If you think that it is not possible to achieve your objective in 3-4 sessions perhaps your expectations are unreasonable.

One month before Lawrence set an Indoor American Record in Atlanta and won Indoor World Championship we purposely stopped vaulting in practice, because we could not imitate the situation where our objective could be achieved in practice. It could only be achieved in competition, so we stopped vaulting in practice.

Usually I plan 3-5 full approach sessions before the first competition. It never works out that way and you end up with fewer sessions. Now we are talking about advanced level of vaulting top college+. For the 12 year olds I would use different approach.

Adaptation is desirable in the competition if you look at the competition as an ultimate exercise. It holds true there as well that 3-7 competitions is where you get the best results, considering that you have one or two objectives. Beyond that you need to change your objectives.

[PaulVaulter]

So it is not neccessarily the the overall exercise performance that regresses after 7 sessions, but the performance of the specific objective within the exercise.

This seems a similar system to the use of 3-4 week microcycles in the periodisation of strength training, the exercises may not change but the objectives change from hypertrophy to strength/power work to maintenance.

A very good idea, which im sure will lead to far more focussed sessions and greater improvements in the end.

Thank you, I'm implementing it now.

Paul