TRAINING LOG:Alan Hebert

Two hours throws with Ted Joseph this eve...

softball throws warmup
some Open Stone, probably a dozen tosses until Ted's elbow started hurting, so we knocked that off. No reason to mess that thing up in the first workout of the year.

First turn drills (5-6)  with the womens 14 and then sprint phase drills with the 14 ..LOTS of them.  I'm focusing on getting on my toes, because Greg York has made me paranoid about it, and quick-quick-quick.

Then first turn drills with the 28'er (5) and more sprint phase drills...again, on the toes, quick, drive the hip through and out front with the delivery. Finished up with three full two-spin throws, all over 50, one possibly 54, depending on how accurate my paces are.

My back is sore so we pulled out the womens hammer and wound that in sets of 5-6 winds. I'm just NOT in the groove, here, but am trying to work on lifting the hammer to a high point behind me. Did about 30 winds, then 6 throws...*reach* for that high point, relax, and get my head outta the way at the delivery.  Throws about 90-94 feet.

Ted packed it up and I stuck around for some glides with my 15.8 rock.  I finally swopped out the cleats on my right foot for smooth discus shoes, and wow...*big* difference.  I'm staying low and making that foot get active when I hit the middle of the trig. Damn...there's some *boinggg** in the old man.  Lots of 32-33, and one nice one out to 34, I pulled tape on it.  These still aren't farther than I can stand that  stone, but  it's COMING...slowly.

Alan H wrote: If Greg starts throwing heavy hammer in the 80's before July I think I'm going to take up another hobby or something...

I set an audacious goal (for me) because my inability to throw this thing is pissin' me off and pissin' myself off tends to be my best motivation strategy.

Right now, however, based on progress the last two months, your other hobbies will be gathering dust for the foreseeable future!

Alan H wrote: I dunno, Greg.  Your weights and stones came along pretty darned fast and they're still improving. Josh sez y'all all throwing 80-something. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see you go low 80's in your first Games.  BTW, are you managed to get some practice time in with a caber?

Just another illustration of how we all benefit from having an archnemesis.   

Goals between now and Ardenwood  (April 14th)

1. get mah hammer mojo back on track, even if the #'s aren't quite up where they should be. No more throwing myself all over the place, lock it in.

2. drill the LWFD until the new first turn technique and "butt down" is second nature. I don't want to  think, just want to DO in the trig

3. Drastically improve my pissant feeble left side in Braemar and Open Stone.  If I do this, the numbers will come.

Practices:  Wed-Thurs March 28-29 --- Sunday April 1st  ---  wed-thurs  April 4-5 --- Light drills wed April 11th

I've been considering this for several weeks, but I think now's the time.... I'm ending this log, at least for now.  It's been incredibly useful, but things change, and I'm "there".  Who knows, I may start it up again, sometime in the future.

I still log elsewhere. Anyone who's just dying to see what I'm up to, just let me know and I'll tell you where it is. I also regularly post workouts on Facebook.

Alan, sad  to see you go. check your PM

I think I needed a break from the drama and testosterone, to roll around in my own testosterone for a while.  I'm going to try logging here again, and see how it works out with my head.

WOODLAND RESULTS

Took third overall against the usual suspects, plus kind of new guy Dennis Schultz and several completely new guys in the class.   One of them lives in San Jose, says he'll be joining us for practice, and that's great.

Braemar Stone...I'm on a roll, throwing over 27 feet a lot in practice, I went 27'  5.5"  at Woodland. So I've gone over 27 feet in the last two Games.  Very Happy with this.

Open Stone.... 30'  3" ... This sucks. I should be consistently over 32 by now  and this is just plain pissing me off.  Kind of sick of it.

Heavy Hammer ...  we opened with this, actually, which was a shock.  66'  7.5".  Anything over 65 is a good day, but I have that 68' 10"  at Ardenwood on my mind, and the 68+ that I put up at Pleasanton.

Light Hammer ... a so-so series of throws.  I topped out at 80'  11.5"...sheesh, Mark, just give me 81 willya?     Anything over 80 is a good day, but I really want to be seeing 86-88's by now. I'm kind of stuck, here.

HWFD ... after a comically disastrous first throw, I settled down and did fine on the next two, topping out at  32' 7.5", which is pretty darned good for me.  It was only Ventura, last year that I first threw solidly past 30 feet  (34 feet...out of nowhere).  Now I've done it at Bakersfield and Ardenwood and Woodland, all of them over 31 feet.  This is a big breakthrough  for me, and is solidified now.  I spent two years trying to throw 27 feet.    My new benchmark is "anything over 31 is a good day" whereas at the end of last season it was "anything over 28  is a good day".

Light weight for distance....first throw at 48 and change, but felt jerky.  Second throw, I cleared out WAY too much room in the first turn, charged WAY too hard and not straight-onto the board and finished the throw a good two-three feet OUTSIDE the trig.  Hey it was good for some laughs around the 50's class.    I threw it easily over 50 feet, but...uh....Ya gotta stay in the box.   I tightened up my first turn for the last one, and it was smooth, if lacking in punch a bit and I'm pleased with 49 ' 9".  Sti l in the hunt for 50+

WOB, stayed relaxed, got 13 easily on my second throw and that's always good.  I probably had  13' 6" in me -- hit the bar twice at 14, but no love I'm going to work on more leg speed over the next few weeks and see if I can't get that 14 at the MWC..

Caber, .... fell into my usual habit of pulling late and didn't turn The Lion. I hung one up there at about 88 degrees, though. C'mon the WIND blew it over the wrong way....*ahem*...OK, maybe not.

Welcome back!

Nice job at Woodland!

Those videos from the post above are among a group of 8 that seem VERY good!!!

Kaboom time at Arillaga.

Stretch...some woman was hogging the cage so I had to resort to Old Skool.
3-D hip stretches because Charlie Reid recommended them, too
box jumps ... 10x 24-inch box. I SO need to do more of this. I'm STILL a tortoise from the zerchers I did on Friday.
Hang Cleans .... 2 x 4 x 135 / 3 x 3 x 155  focus on FAST
Strict OHP ... 6 x 135 / 2 x 3 x 155 / 3 x 3 x 135 FAST  well, sorta. I *thought* about pressing fast, anyway.
landmines ... 2 x 10 bar+60
db snatches ... 4 x 6 x 80-, 2 sets of 6 each side.  I think, next time I'm gonna power clean off the floor instead of doing these.
foam roll
upright rows ... 3 x 6 x 85  because I wasn't tired enough.

I feel SO much better than Sunday!!  Those zerchers tightened me up something fierce.

Alan H wrote: But..............I know what I did.

Also, It's been a LONG time since I've lost a weight during a throw, and I'm now throwing farther than ever. No hook grip, here.

I was going to hit the gym and do power cleans and sumo deadlift high pulls on Friday...

... but I forgot my shorts.  So I changed into a workout t-shirt, went out to the truck and the IM field, puton my throwing shoes and did a shot, 45 minute hammer session. During this session I discovered an incredible insight which has eluded me for a very long time regarding hammer.

The harder you throw it, the farther it goes.  Oy, ve.

I've spent 4 years working on radius and "the catch" somewhere in all that, I lost the "rip the snot out of it".   Yesterday, after fussing with the usual technique things, and throwing the usual 80-83 feet, I decided  try holding back a bit on wind #2, keep the left arm straight and just go like hell at the end, and forget the fancy stuff.  Result?

87, 88 maybe 90.  Probably 90.    5x in a row.  And it's simple.

OK, then.  Considering the fatigue state of my hip flexors, it was probably good that I didn't lift anyway!

Today, gonna go watch the Stanford womens rugby team in the NCAA championship match...GO CARDINALS!