Training has been going better than ever. My weight room lifts are at an all-time high and my throwing is on the same path. Although success in the weight room does not directly translate to the discus ring, there are correlations and statistics that encourage me to continue working hard and setting new personal records (PR’s).

Currently we (Aretha Thurmond, Cory Martin, and I) are on a Tuesday/Friday lifting schedule. By lifting twice a week we are able to focus our lifting days on strength training and still have 4 days to practice throwing and functional strength movements. This is not a common training schedule but it is working very, very well. On our Strength training days we do variations of the following; Olympic lifts (snatch or power clean), a push lift (squat or bench), dumbbell lifts (incline bench, over head press, bicep curl, etc), back work (rows, TRX pull ups, etc), and an assortment of core stability and strength work. We always end with partner stretching which has proven to be very effective in limiting injury and encouraging recovery for the next training day. My new PR’s have come in the power clean, the snatch, and the bench press. We are in the foundational building cycle of our season so we are doing 5-8 repetitions for 6 sets of each exercise. I power cleaned 330lbs for 5 reps, snatched 231lbs for 5 reps, and bench pressed 315lbs for 7 reps.

In the discus ring we are spending the majority of our time on three cues. Stay tall, stay long, stay smooth. I know, it sounds so simple. And it is. In fact, it’s almost too simple. For the majority of my athletic career I have tried hard. I tried so hard I actually took myself out of position instead of moving through the position I was already in. If I “try too hard” I become inefficient in my movement and spend the same or more energy in the wrong direction. I can try and explain. When I enter the middle of the ring I have a choice. I can use the rotation I already created at the start of my throw and allow my body to turn together in a smooth, long, efficient, balanced rotation OR I can try and “do more” by quickly pulling my right leg to the middle of the circle in an effort to create more speed and rotation. The latter always results in a disjointed, hitchy…yes it’s a word created by my coach to explain my old technique, shortened throw that requires constant adjustments through the movement. The result of the “faster right leg” is inconsistency and wasted energy in the wrong direction. That being said, we are fixing it! I am very excited about this change and can’t wait for my next throwing practice.

Thank you to everyone on my team who has helped us continue to chase the dream of the 2012 Olympic Team. We currently have 22 monthly donors and several of you have chosen to give a onetime donation which we split up to help us each month. Thank you everyone for your generosity. Honestly, this pursuit would be impossible without your help. If you have not yet chosen to join my support team and have thought about it in the past….now would be a great time . I am very diligent and frugal with these donations and they will all go to help pay for my training these next 10 months. They are 100% tax deductable. Visit http://www.willconwell.com/donate/and choose a monthly auto donation on the left side of the page, or a onetime donation on the right. Thank you for your help!

Believing,
William Conwell

While training in San Diego I stayed with Olympic Discus thrower Jarred Rome and American Record holder in the pole vault, Brad Walker. While talking with Brad he opened my eyes to two things I had not previously thought about. First, I was looking for someone who had made big improvements in their performance in a short time span. I was looking for someone to talk to about what they did and how they did it. The goal was good but my reasoning was not. Brad asked me, “Why do you want to find that person?” I replied, “If I know someone else who has done what I am trying to do, it will help me believe it is possible.” After I said it I realized how unconfident I sounded, but it was true. Brad’s goal is to set the world record in the Pole Vault. He said, “I’m trying to do something no one else has ever done, if I wait to talk to someone who has jumped 6.16m (20 feet) I will never break the record.” His statement was right on. There was much more to our conversation, including a detailed discussion about feelings versus positions while training and competing, and I found it all very valuable.

That weekend I competed at the UCSD Triton Invitational. My goal, for the first time in my life, was to be on balance. It sounds like a simple goal and one that should be easily achieved however during competition it is nearly impossible to make a change. But I did! I kept to my one and only goal, I stayed on balance. After achieving my positional goal I realized it was not enough. Yes, I was on balance and that was step one but I wasn’t moving well enough to create separation between my shoulders and hips which leads to far throws…which is step two.

A few days later I flew to Maui and met up with the top male and female throwers in the USA. We threw in two meets at War Memorial Stadium. It was an excellent trip. I stayed with my Uncle Chuck Conwell and his girlfriend Pat. My goal while in Maui was to stay on balance while adding a low left heal, a firm left hip at entry, and facing the sector as long as possible while entering the middle of the throw. The first meet was a bit messy and I did not face the throw well at all. The second meet went much better. I warmed up with very relaxed throws and was very aware of my body position at the start of the throw. I threw 59.24 meters (194 feet) which is my seasons best and currently ranks me 17th in the USA. It is a move in the right direction.

After the meets Uncle Chuck showed me just about every part of the beautiful island. We walked on the beaches, played in the water, went to the Hard Rock Café, climbed one of the mountains, drove “up country”, and watched the sunset while sitting on the beach. I couldn’t have asked for a better trip. Thank you Pat and Uncle Chuck.

I have a few more meets on my schedule this season; next up I will throw at the Tucson Throwers Classic in Tucson, Arizona on May 19th and 21st.

If any of the above technical stuff sounded interesting to you call, text, or email me. I would love to explain in detail exactly what I have been working on in the discus ring, weight room, and track.

I have been working with coach Jerry Clayton here at Auburn University for just over one year.  Most throwing and drill sessions we talk about three major elements that are required to throw far.  1) Flexion 2) Balance 3) rotation  The cullmination of these three elements is seperation between the right shoulders and hips which leads to far throws.  I used dartfish last week to compare one of my throws last season to 3 world-elite throwers;  Gerd Kanter, Rutger Smith, and Piotr Malachowski.  My lack of hip rotation is UNDENIABLELY clear.  My left side is so active in the start of the throw while my right side waits and waits…..and waits.  The result is a rather linear movement across the ring and a shift into the finish of my throw. 

Click Here To Watch the 4 way comparison video

I have been working every day to refine…no, create a new techinque that my body’s memory fights.  The progress is slow but steady.  I will post a training video showing the new and improved hip rotation I have been working on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1JeSZzTspA

Highlight videos can be found here

http://www.youtube.com/user/USATFweb

No problem….I strapped up my lifting shoes and rolled up the track and field shed doors. It started as a light and fast lifting day but I was feeling good and I don’t compete for another week so I thought…why not have a little fun. After snatching and benching I stepped up the weight in the squat and hit a new lifetime best of 505lbs. Watch as the rinkity squat rack shakes back and forth.

Arizona was HOT! The average temperature for the week was 95 degrees and I’m pretty sure it was 100 on Saturday. Our first day of competition Cory Martin threw the Hammer 71 meters, Aretha threw the disc 59 meters and I threw 58 meters (Cory was looking for 75 meters and Aretha and I were looking for 62+ meter throws)

The next day we worked with a sports psychologist and had our videos analyzed by a bio-mechanist. The combination of mental and physical advice was very beneficial (Thank you USATF High Performance). Nearly everyone threw better on Saturday. Cory Threw a new world leading throw in the Shot put, 22.10m (72’6″). Aretha Thurmond threw 61.98 meters and I threw 61.28 meters (201′).

We celebrated Cory Martins 25th birthday and world leading throw and took an early flight out of Tucson the next morning. We are now back in Alabama getting ready for our next competitions. Mine will be in Montana on June 5th.

Here are my best throws from Thurday and Saturday. Check out the video’s tab to see Cory Martin’s 22.10m (72’6) world leading shot put.

2 weeks before the competition I was talking with Aretha Thurmond.  I was telling her about my concerns and giving her every reason why I thought I shouldn’t go.  She didn’t buy it.  She encouraged me to trust my training, get myself to the west coast to compete in high caliber meets with other great throwers…and she topped our conversation off by telling me she would be using some of her miles to cover my flight costs!  That was blessing #1.  Blessing #2 came when I went to practice the next day and my coach, Jerry Clayton, informed me that his athlete Eric Werskey and him would be traveling to San Diego for both the meets I was now planning on competing in.  Eric has been throwing so well the team decided to move him out of his red-shirt year to compete.  This was great news for me because now I had a flight, a coach, and a group to travel with.  Blessings #3 and #4 came in the discus rings at Chula Vista and UCSD.  At the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista I threw a seasons best of 60.80m (199′).  That throw was better every throw of my 2009 season.  Two days later at UCSD I threw two throws over 61 meters with a best of 61.36m (201’4″).  That is my 6th best throw of my career.  I am really enjoying training right now and I can’t wait to see what will come of this 2010 season…..63+ meter throws will send me to Europe this summer.