A Coaches Roundtable

Discussion of Coaching the 400-Meter Hurdles

Many coaches look for the quick, simple fix in training. Yet, at the same time, they complicate things and make training for different events much more complex than necessary. The 400meter hurdles are one such event. Not that it isn’t difficult. It is widely acknowledged as one of the toughest events in track and field, and designing training for the event can be incredibly challenging. But many coaches “overthink” the event and make it much more complicated than it needs to be.

Our coaching philosophy, regardless of the event, is to break it down and simplify the training as much as possible. Coaches should be reminded that simple doesn’t necessarily mean easy. Training for the 400-meter hurdles obviously isn’t easy. Vern Gambetta, the founding father of functional training and a former track and field coach, says this: “I have believed for years that simplicity yields complexity. Start simple and basic, and build complexity as needed. If it is not needed, then don’t go to more complexity. Simple is not necessarily simplistic,” he says.

The objective of this presentation is to provide an understanding into how leading collegiate coaches train their elite long hurdlers. The coaches were all asked to answer a number of questions to gain perspective of how coaches in different areas of the country orchestrate and design their training programs. Some of the questions presented to the panel of coaches were queries coaches have posed to me. Despite a coaching career that has spanned 43 years, and having coached several national champions in the 400-meter hurdles, some were questions that I have had throughout the years. This reinforces my belief that track and field coaches should always be learning. And it certainly goes along with the cliché that says, “It is always good to know what you don’t know.” As coaches navigate down the long and winding information highway, it is important for them to glean information from practitioners who have had plentiful successful experiences over a long period of time. Thus, there is no better way to continue to obtain information and enhance yourself as a coach than a coaches roundtable discussion. Seven very successful collegiate coaches were asked the same nine questions pertaining to the training of 400-meter hurdles in this presentation. But first, a brief look at the coaches who agreed to participate: