Track & Field

What’s the best running tip you’ve ever received?

Arm Workouts: The Secret to Better Running

OK, Josh. I actually love this question. It says, what's the best running tip you've ever received? So I was going through my Graves' disease. And one of the Olympic games in 1992, I couldn't feel-- I was still having some residual effects of feeling my feet or having the numbness that I was feeling in my legs and my feet. And I didn't run one of my rounds right. And so my coach comes up to me. And he's like, what happened? As I couldn't feel my feet. He was like, you could feel your hands, right? I was like, yeah. Yeah I'm good on my hands. He said, OK. Then, you better work the heck out of your arms and tell your feet to keep up. So that's the best tip. Because, I always tell people now, you know your arms tell your legs what to do. So work your arms and tell your feet to keep up. That's my best tip. Thanks for the question.

The best running tip I've ever received is to work your arms and tell your feet to keep up.

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The best running tip I've ever received came during my battle with Graves' disease. During the 1992 Olympic Games, I was experiencing numbness in my legs and feet. In one of my rounds, I couldn't feel my feet properly, and my coach approached me to ask what happened. I explained the issue, and he responded with a valuable piece of advice.

He said, You can feel your hands, right? Then work the heck out of your arms and tell your feet to keep up. This tip stuck with me. I now always tell people that their arms play a crucial role in guiding their legs. By working your arms and telling your feet to keep up, you can improve your running performance.

So, that's the best running tip I've ever received. Thanks for asking!

Do you believe in the maxim 'hard work beats talent, unless talent works hard, and if so, what's your secret to motivating the talented?

Unleashing the Power of Talent: Work Hard, Maximize Potential!

Do you believe in the maximum hard? Work beats Talent unless Talent works hard? And if so what's your secret to motivating? The Talented? Hm. I believe Talent gives you an opportunity Talent equals your potential. Now, you can take that potential to the Grave with you if you don't do anything about it or do anything with it. And hard work, okay? There's different degrees of hard work. So if you have the talent, You need to take that talent and realize, what am I going to do with it? I can leave it on the shelf and I can just say hey that's the would have should have could us or I can say, you know what, I have a talent for this. More importantly, I want this, I have a desire to be the best at this or the best at that. So I'm going to write it down, sign it, and I'm going to work hard to accomplish. You know, when God gives you a talent, you're supposed to utilize and if you utilize it, then he'll bless you in other ways. So if you, if you've been given a talent recognize what that Talent is And work hard to see that that Talent is accomplished every day. What are you doing? Are you giving it your all? Are you giving half an effort? Because you know sometimes when people say that people have talent sometimes they take that in there. Like okay well I have talent and they don't work hard. I want somebody with heart because heart can't teach that heart means that this person is going to go all in every time to maximize their potential. And I want somebody who maximize their potential not who sees their potential and just looks at it from afar. Don't be your own fan, write your own narrative and get the work done as they say. Don't talk about it. Be about it.

If you have been given a talent, recognize what that Talent is and work hard to see that it is accomplished every day. Don't be your own fan, write your own narrative and get the work done. Don't talk about it, be about it.

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I believe that talent provides an opportunity and represents one's potential. However, that potential can go to waste if it is not utilized or developed through hard work. Hard work comes in different degrees, and it is essential to recognize what you want to achieve with your talent. If you have a desire to be the best in a particular area, it is important to set goals, commit to them, and work hard to accomplish them.

When you are given a talent, it is meant to be utilized. By utilizing your talent and working hard, you open yourself up to blessings and further growth. It is crucial to recognize your talent, determine what you want to achieve, and put in the necessary effort every day.

Having talent alone is not enough. It is important to have heart and give your all in order to maximize your potential. I value individuals who have heart and are willing to go all-in to reach their goals. It is not enough to simply acknowledge your potential; you must actively work towards it. Don't just talk about what you can do, but take action and make it happen.

Key Traits of a Coachable Athlete: Openness, Execution, Learning

So the question says, what makes an athlete coachable? I would say, what makes an athlete coachable is somebody that's open to listen to learn. That becomes kind of like that. Sponge, they ask questions so that they understand what it is. A coach is trying to get them to do, but they are key on execution that they go back and they try to execute immediately what they were told or what they saw. That they would come back if it didn't feel right, they try to figure it out and that coachable athletes are also athletes that become students of their event. So they want to learn all that they can learn watching videos of themselves, watching videos of other people so that they can get what they need and understand the event and understand what they need to do when they need to do it. So that execution becomes second nature that they Practice over and over until it becomes second nature and they don't have to think about that. I think that's what makes an athlete coachable that they're open to learn. They want to learn and they're willing to learn and determined to learn and get it right. And if they don't get it right on the first time, they don't beat themselves up, they come back and they figure out. Okay, what went right? What went wrong? I'm going to listen to my coach but also coachable athletes are those who try to put it into To play immediately. They don't want to wait until after a race. Is done to come back and ask the coach, they want to go off of feeling, so they want to get what the coach is telling them in practice so that they can fill it in the race and if they have to make Corrections they can make Corrections, that's my opinion.

Coachable athletes are those who are open to listen, ask questions, and become students of their event. They want to learn all they can to understand the event and what they need to do. They practice until it becomes second nature and they don't beat themselves up when they don't get it right. They also try to put what they learn into play immediately in order to make corrections when needed.

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What makes an athlete coachable is their openness to listen and learn. They act like a sponge, absorbing information and asking questions to understand what the coach is trying to convey. Coachable athletes prioritize execution, immediately attempting to implement what they were taught or observed. If something doesn't feel right, they work to figure it out and make adjustments.

Coachable athletes also become students of their sport. They actively seek to learn by watching videos of themselves and others, gaining a deeper understanding of their event and what needs to be done. They practice repeatedly until execution becomes second nature, eliminating the need for conscious thought.

Being coachable means having a willingness and determination to learn and get things right. It involves reflecting on what went right and wrong, without beating oneself up over mistakes. Coachable athletes strive to apply coaching feedback immediately, even during practice, so they can experience and adjust based on real-time results.

In summary, coachable athletes are eager to learn, quick to implement feedback, and continuously seek improvement.

Any advice to have a good start off the block?

Master the Blocks: Explosive Starts for Sprint Success

Maxim. Any advice to have a good start off the blocks? Well, first of all, you have to use the blocks. You know, you want to push off the blocks. Pork your arms. It's like it's like somebody shoot you out of a cannon. You have to be explosive and have a sense of urgency. I see people come out the box and they step out the blocks. Okay. You should have just started from a standing start because that didn't help you at all. What you want to think in your mind is you don't want to give somebody an advantage. I don't want to give you an edge and then I come run you down know if I can To buy my land. Going to beat you by a mile. Be explosive in use the blocks is push. Push push push push. You got to get out. Work your arms and you don't want to get out and stand up. My analogy is always that airplane. If you're on an airplane and the airplane. What do they do? They taxi to Runway to gather speed gather speed and then they lift, they don't need a never come all the way up. If the airplane comes all the way up you're in trouble. You want to work out or cup work away. You do that, you'll have a fantastic block start and then keep perfecting that. Don't be satisfied. Every time you want to get better and better and better and better.

To have a good start off the blocks, you have to use them and be explosive. Push off the blocks with your arms as if you were being shot out of a cannon. Don't step out of the blocks, as that won't help you at all. Visualize gathering speed like an airplane on the runway before it takes off and keep practicing to perfect your block start.

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To have a good start off the blocks, there are a few key pieces of advice. First and foremost, make sure you actually use the blocks. Push off them with force, as if you're being shot out of a cannon. Be explosive and maintain a sense of urgency.

Avoid stepping out of the blocks, as that defeats the purpose. If you're going to step out, you might as well start from a standing position. The goal is to eliminate any advantage you might give to your competitors. You want to be the one setting the pace and leaving them behind.

Focus on being explosive and utilizing the blocks to push yourself forward. Work your arms vigorously to generate power. Remember, you don't want to just get out and stand up. Think of it like an airplane on a runway. They gather speed before taking off, but they don't come all the way up immediately. Work your way out and maintain a low, powerful stance.

It's important to keep refining your block start. Don't settle for mediocrity. Strive to improve with each attempt. Continuously work on perfecting your technique and getting better and better.

If you could only choose one style of coaching - would it be structure or creativity?

The Power of Creativity in Coaching

Okay, so I like this question. It says, if you could choose, if you could only choose one style of coaching, would it be structure or creativity, right? So there's an advantage, or probably a disadvantage. To both structure is its routine. It's regimented. It's probably in the books and then creativity gives you a different play on it and I can only choose one. I'm going to say, creativity. because, Structure may not work for everyone. I can be creative in coaching and get out of the person. Exactly what I need from them. You know, whether it be changing the name of something, you know, got all these names that in the books. This is what it's called. Okay? But that doesn't look like what it sounds like. So I'm going to change the name or I'm going to come up with something different to get you to still accomplish. I need to to accomplish, get you to understand what I need you to understand. You know, in whatever event it is, make it fun, you know, creativity allows for you too. I mean, you're not going to hurt the athlete, you were just trying to bring out of them and get them to understand it in a different way. Sometimes structure is too much for people, I like creativity for myself and so I think that's what I would choose and I think I could have fun with that. At whether it just be changing the names of some of some of the things that we're doing with your drills or finding a drill that works. You know, you have problems trying to teach kids how to work their arms properly or how to keep their toe as most people say, dorsiflex. I say is tracked, 0, because if you don't have Tac Toes and got dance told, I need to send you to a dance room and I may bring out of pink tutu. And have you do a little dance for me? But so it's just a matter of. We're all trying to do the same thing. Get the app. Beat to be the best that they can be and it's just a matter of how you do it and I think creativity for me would work because I can have fun with it and practices fun. I will say the kids that I coach last year when their time was done, they were still coming out there and maybe that's because I have a little bit of crazy as me, but I like to be creative. Thank you for the question.

I would choose creativity as my preferred style of coaching. It allows for more flexibility and fun to help bring out the best in athletes.

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If I could only choose one style of coaching, it would be creativity. While structure has its advantages, creativity allows for a different approach that may work better for individuals who don't respond well to rigid routines. With creativity, I can tailor my coaching to bring out the best in each person. I can change the names of drills or come up with new ways to help athletes understand and accomplish their goals. Making the coaching process fun and engaging can be achieved through creativity. It's about finding unique ways to teach and motivate, such as using humor or unconventional methods. Ultimately, the goal is to help athletes reach their full potential, and creativity allows me to do that while enjoying the process.

On a scale of 1 to 10 how cool do you consider yourself and why? (From Greg Bennett podcast!)

Podcast guest rates their coolness at an 8 or 9, revealing why they think they're pretty cool.

Okay Eduardo. Okay. On a scale of 1 to 10. How cool do you consider yourself to be and why? Okay, so I'm going to say eight or nine just because I think I think I'm pretty cool. I look at my kids and my kids friends, my kids friends like me. They like even hanging out with me so when kids are cool, teenagers are cool hanging out with you then you're actually okay, I won't Myself attend because I know I'm that person. I'm pretty cool with you. As long as you're cool with me, you do right by me. I'll do right by you, but can't be a 10 because I do have that moment that if you get on the other side of me then you'll see the other side. So but II actually I think I'm I think I'm pretty cool. I'm sure I could be cooler but I'm pretty cool.

I'd rate myself an 8 or 9 because my kids and their friends like hanging out with me, and as long as people do right by me, I do right by them.

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On a scale of 1 to 10, I would consider myself an eight or nine in terms of coolness. I base this on the fact that my kids and their friends enjoy hanging out with me. When teenagers find you cool, it's a good sign. I believe I am a cool person as long as others treat me with respect and kindness. However, I can't claim to be a perfect 10 because I do have moments where my other side may come out if someone crosses me. Overall, I think I'm pretty cool, although there's always room for improvement.

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Gail Devers is an American retired track and field sprinter. She won gold at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics in the 100m, making her the second woman to defend an Olympic 100m title. She was also the 1993, 1997 and 2004 world indoor champion in the 60m, 2003 world indoor champion in the 60m hurdles, and 1993, 1995 and 1999 world champion in the 100m hurdles. In 2011, she was inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame.