Create championship middle distance runners using this in-depth training guide! David Halliday spends over 2 hours detailing the philosophy, training ideas and coaching tips that have led to success over his 17 years of coaching runners.

Developing the Runner
One of the most important elements of developing your middle distance program is finding the right athletes. Halliday describes what to look for in prospective athletes and where to look for them. He reveals strategies for testing prospects to make certain that they are targeted for the proper events.

Afford your athletes the best training situation possible and minimize injuries by following Halliday's advice on making the most of your facilities and your surrounding community.

Halliday defines the physiological requirements for success in the 800 and 1500 and critical information related to training all of the energy systems with proper emphasis. He reviews a chart of aerobic and anaerobic contributions in endurance running events to define appropriate workout construction.

With the physiological requirements defined, Halliday shows how he breaks his distance team into three training groups that best meet the needs of his runners; distance oriented, mid-distance (true 800 runners) and the sprint oriented group that can run down to the 400. Halliday's training is flexible enough to meet the individualized training needs of each athlete.

800 and 1500 Training
The training phases in this DVD are segmented into six phases:

• Off-Season (Summer)
• Cross Country Season (Fall)
• Transition Phase (XC to Track)
• Pre-Competitive Phase
• Competitive Phase
• Championship Phase

Halliday lays out his highly specific seasonal plan. He details the elements of success for implementing the plan including how to prep your athletes both physically and mentally for the season journey and in terms of building a cohesive team.

Discover a detailed warm-up for middle distance athletes. This warm-up is event-specific to ensure it meets the needs of your athletes. The program includes a light run, build ups and accelerations, leg strength exercises, sprint drills, mobility drills, technical sprint drills, light static stretching and hurdle drills. Halliday also shows how to adjust the warm-up for competition.

Strength Training
Halliday breaks down the four elements of his strength training program into weight training, circuit training, med ball and core training, and plyos. He provides you with a total breakdown of his December through May strength training program that includes what to do and when to do it!

Halliday sets up training from the transition phase through the end of the season. To set up this training protocol, he defines the three types of running that are prevalent in each phase. With all of his training modalities defined, Halliday details each phase; Transition, Pre-Competitive, Competitive and Peaking/Championship. In each phase, he includes a weekly training model plus daily workouts for a week in each phase. You will get coaching nuggets from 18 years of Halliday's successful coaching experience throughout his instruction.

This is the most comprehensive middle distance DVD available. It will teach you, guide you and provide a step-by-step proven approach to building a successful middle distance program!

174 minutes (2 DVDs). 2011.

featuring LaShawn Merritt,
2x Olympic Gold Medalist (2008)

In this five-part instructional track DVD, Coach Dwayne Miller and Olympic Gold Medalist LaShawn Merritt share techniques, strategies, and training methods for maximizing success in the 400M dash.

Merritt demonstrates all of the drills and techniques in this DVD, so you can use it with your athletes to model excellent form for each drill.

The Stretch
Both men feel their stretching routine is imperative to maximizing Merritt's performance. This particular routine focuses on the back, gluts, groin, hamstring and low leg; all critical muscle groups for the 400M. He ends with hurdle step overs that incorporate stretching with body posture, balance and control. Throughout the routine, Miller and Merritt offer valuable narration of how each stretch applies to 400M success.

Ballistic Warm-Up
Develop ballistic power in your athletes. Miller shares four drills develop explosiveness while maintaining technical accountability for proper running mechanics. Invaluable tips for creating good arm movement are included in this segment as Miller believes that "creating good arm movement creates good body movement and control."

Stride, Rhythm and Positioning Drills
Help your athletes improve their acceleration out of the blocks! This segment emphasizes stride length, rhythm and foot and body position to aid your athletes in driving out of the blocks. These drills can be used for any sprint event.

Breaking Down the 400
Miller shows how he breaks down the 400M race on the track. He teaches strategies for effectively coming out of the blocks on the curve, the objectives for each phase of the race and coaches athletes as they work on their race.

Weight Training
Prevent injuries and gain the strength you need to run a faster 400. Miller and Merritt discuss and demonstrate eight critical exercises that are at the heart of Merritt's 400 success. They show correct form, key techniques to executing the lifts correctly and discuss the benefits of the exercises in terms of relevance to the event.

Merritt closes the DVD with a brief discussion of his general approach to good nutrition, followed by a question and answer session that includes Merritt breaking down his gold medal winning 400M performance in Beijing.

36 minutes. 2011.

Middle distance running presents unique challenges for speed and endurance training. The highly successful conditioning program that Coach Nuttall has developed is designed to help you lead your middle distance runners to better form through improved strength, flexibility and endurance, which ultimately allows the athlete to go faster longer. Nuttall begins with a dynamic stretching program. The goal of this 12-exercise progression is to gently load the joints in preparation for training. His drill instruction is divided into walking drills and running drills. Nuttall's objective is to improve movement patterns through strengthening the hips, gluts and hamstrings. A sequence of nine progressive drills, with and without a medicine ball, adds a core strength component as well as postural accountability. Nuttall also shares single leg drive sequences that challenges the athlete to maintain postural form with different transitions as well as build up drills that focus on getting to and maintaining race speed. This conditioning program is certain to assist you in meeting speed and endurance training challenges with improved performance.

48 minutes. 2009.

Due to high mileage, endurance runners often complain of low back pain, tightness in the hips and shin and foot pain. To ward off injuries in areas of the body that are critical for endurance success, Nuttall presents a 5-part conditioning drills series that he feels is essential to running economy and training consistency. The five parts are:

• Dynamic Stretching - Prepares the joints for the rigors of training.
• Skipping Hurdles Drills - Assists in strength development for the gluts, hips, back and abs. Nuttall offers tips to watch for imbalances that a runner may be experiencing as well as advanced training drills using a med ball to further strengthen the core and build a better running posture.
• Lower Leg Conditioning - Drills for conditioning the lower leg to allow the athlete to sustain a greater training load.
• Core Stability - Exercises designed to develop the entire core rather just focusing on the lower abdominals.
• Skipping Drills - An exercise sequence designed to tie together all of the components of the entire program.

48 minutes. 2009.

Distance coaching great Jack Daniels shares grassroots technical and training strategies for coaching middle distance and distance runners. Daniels feels it is essential to evaluate a runner's stride and to experiment with breathing patterns that are best suited for each individual runner that you coach. He shares strategies for experimenting with your runners to find the optimal stride and breathing pattern for each runner. Daniels presents the technical aspects of proper distance running - rolling over the ground versus bounding over the ground - that can negatively impact a runner in terms increased injuries and decreased running efficiency. Daniels shows how to account for a runner's fitness level at the start of the season. This helps to determine grouping for the most effective training. He moves into training strategies and offers ideas on how to mix longer, easy running with sprint repeats with the goal of running with good mechanics, speed and running economy. Finally, Daniels displays seasonal planning recommendations that include four distinct phases and considerations for individualizing the plan to meet individual runners' needs. Also included are scientifically backed workout specifics that are easy to understand and implement into your program.

44 minutes. 2008.