Competing in the 400 Meter Dash
Clyde Hart
Competing The ideal race pattern will be one of smooth deceleration if the runners have dispersed their energies properly, with as little tightening up at the finish as possible. The 400 meter runners should try to cover the first 50 meters at near top speed. At this point they should relax the actions of the upper body while still trying to maintain their leg speed. Their thoughts should be those of trying to settle into the rhythm of the race and to get a feel for their competition. They should also begin thinking about the next big effort they will make, which will be at the 200 meter mark. They should be trained and conditioned to know that at this point in their race plan, they will make a determined effort to increase the actions of their arms and to begin driving and lifting their knees, trying to resume more of a sprinting action.
The runners who learn to work this turn from the 200 to the 300 meter mark will usually find themselves in good position to win the race. It is a controlled pickup, one that should allow the 400 meter runner to come off the final curve even or ahead of their opponents. During the final 100 meters of the race, the runners must learn to stay relaxed while fighting the effects of fatigue One of the best ways to do this is by thinking of proper running technique and good form which they have been taught and concentrating on this.
Summary Before coaches plan their 400 meter workouts, they should ponder several concepts:
(1) The basic concept of going from quantity to quality has not changed over the past several decades.
(2) All workouts should follow a progressive pattern; you should standardize your workouts so that speed of the running distance should progressively be shortened and in some cases the rest factor as well.
(3) The concept of overloading is also one which pays dividends. An example of this would be having the 400 meter runner run 2 x 600’s, coming through the 400 meters at a very slow pace.
As the first 400 meters time is gradually lowered to the point that the runner has difficulty maintaining pace, the distance is lowered. At the next distance, 500 meters, the runners will run at the same pace through the first 400 meters as they were running at the previous distance. The athletes will continue this workout drill until the distance is reduced to 450 meters. This final distance will hopefully be reached by mid?season and will be continued to the end of the year. It is suggested that the athletes run a single run as opposed to two runs before a major competition. Although the runner is getting less distance, effort is becoming greater,thus more stress is being put on the body.
(4) Another factor to consider in planning 400 meter workouts is that it takes a hard run of around 40 seconds in order to incur a significant lactic acid buildup. This being the case, the ideal distance for women would be 300 meters and for men 350 meters. Most quality 400 meter runners will cover this distance in slightly over 40 seconds, thus they are working a couple of seconds into lactic acid buildup. By running this distance, the runner can accomplish several of these runs in a workout session.
Finally, the coach must become personally involved in the race strategy of the 400 meter runners and be more than just a trainer. Time the different segments of the workout runs as well as competitive races. Let the runners know beforehand what you expect them to come through the 200 meters or even the 300 meters, if necessary, in order to get an idea of what kind of pace they are keeping. Oftentimes, the race will dictate what pace the runner will have to carry in order to be competitive, but this is no excuse for not having the runner mentally ready to perform at a certain level. It will give them valuable confidence if they know they have been through different checkpoints at a certain time in practice, thus they will not have a fear of doing this in actual competition.
