Q&A
>>How do you know when [your athletes]
are too fatigued and reach the point of diminishing returns?
You see good form start to drop off and they lose
three to four feet. Then the form really starts to drop off, even if
they give me really good aggression and still lose three to four
feet. You try to stop it before it gets there, sometimes after a
really good series of throws I'll cut them off knowing we did good
work that day.
>>What kinds of injuries are most common in
shot putters?
With the jump from the 12-pound shot to the 16-pound
shot, the primary injury is hand problems. Lower back pain is also
sometimes a problem; I think this is mainly the product of heavy
lifting. I stress to my throwers the need to use proper technique
when lifting. This limits the occurrences of lifting injuries in my
throwers.
>>Is there one lift that shot putters have
to do?
If I had to pick one it would be close between the
clean and the back squat, those to lifts are the most important.
>>What kind of cross training do you have
your throwers do?
Our program includes medicine ball drills, power ball
drills, bounding, Running hills and stadiums. I like the fact that
most of my throwers participated in other sports in high school.
Some like to play basketball or racquetball in the off-season and I
encourage this because it helps with agility. The important thing is
that they don't injure themselves doing something they have never
done before.
Excerpt from Interview on Shot Put with Art Venegas,
Head Track & Field Coach, UCLA (by Joe Bailey—June, 2001) For Full
Interview:
http://www.coacheseducation.com/throws/art-venegas-june-01.htm
Considered the premier collegiate men's and
women's throwing coach in the nation, Art Venegas also has a
worldwide reputation because of his coaching expertise with many
world-class throwers.
Do you have a coach you would
like to see interviewed? Email us at
jschriml@somd.org
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