FEATURE: FOR THE LOVE OF RUNNING working for Athletics Australia as the click. I went to Falls Creek for four weeks training base coordinator and around that and that was hard— it’s a long month. time, I met Brittany McGowan who was I felt like I was running really well and I having a bit of a rough time with her came down from altitude and raced the season and was struggling with training Zatopek 1500 and raced really well; I was and her coach set-up. So we started really happy with the result. I had two working together towards the end of more races lined up where I was going 2015. I was quite lucky that Nic Bideau to race 800m’s. The Zatopek was on a [Head coach of Melbourne Track Club] Thursday and I was racing the 800m on had been my previous coach and manager the Tuesday. When it came to the race on during my running career. So, Brittany and Tuesday, I felt flat as a tack. I didn’t run Idecided to team up and start working well at all. I had another race on Saturday together. I had some experience in and raced even worse. There was Instagram @james_kaan strength and conditioning, and obviously obviously something going on, so I spoke some really good experience in athletics, to my coach and we devised a plan, and rest was aerobic running. I do all Brit’s so we started working together and that got some blood tests done which came strength and conditioning, so in the gym relationship sort of grew. We then started back with correct iron levels. It was just awe shifted the focus to hypertrophy and living together and at the end of last year,weird couple of weeks where I was not endurance. Now we are switching to stuff got engaged. feeling awesome and I’m now coming to that is more dynamic and speed related. the end of all that. I’m starting to feel We have a great partnership and a great really good again and I’m training really With Brit focusing on the 800m this year, team around us. I work closely to manage well. I did a time trial the other day and you want to get that explosive power Brit’s training on a daily basis here in felt great, so I’m really starting to build upfrom gym sessions, so we just switch the Canberra and when we are in training my training for Commonwealth Games. focus. Whereas this time last year, we camps. So, when I get time off, I spend it were still just doing general strength with the other athletes to learn what they JAMES, AS A COACH, HOW DO and endurance training because we are doing and it sort of helps me develop YOU PLAN BRITTANY’S were 8 months out from the world what I’m doing. TRAINING, ESPECIALLY championships. While right now, we COMING UP TO THE NATIONAL are just 4 months away from the BRITTANY, YOUR 2018 TRIALS ON THE GOLD COAST? Commonwealth Games, so we are in a SEASON IS WELL UNDERWAY. different phase. HOW IS YOUR PREPARATION JK: It’s a pretty tough one. I work quite AND TRAINING GOING, closely with Nic to plan Brit’s training. WHAT’S BEEN YOUR TRAINING ESPECIALLY WITH THE At the moment, we had the phase REGIME IN THE LEAD-UP TO COMMONWEALTH GAMES post-London 2017 World Championships, THE GOLD COAST GAMES? JUST 4 MONTHS AWAY? rest and then rebuild. So, this year [2017 WHEN DID YOU START to 2018] was different to last year [2016 TRAINING? HOW OFTEN ARE BM: I’m definitely building towards the to 2017] with the timings of the major YOU TRAINING AND AT WHAT Commonwealth Games, it’s definitely championships. With the 2017 World CAPACITY? the focus for this year. I came back from Champs in August and the 2018 Europe in early September, raced a mile Commonwealth Games being held in BM: The month at altitude was quite high in Darwin and then took two-three weeks April, there’s a shorter lead-up when you mileage for me, personally. It’s like 90km off and then got back into it. start in October/November. The intensity per week. I’ve been maintaining about was quite high, but in terms of the 85-90km per week, just to keep that It’s really hard getting back into it. I spentvolume, it was considerably less. Instead going. In the next couple of weeks, my a couple of weeks struggling and then I of doing 3 major workouts per week for 6 mileage is going to drop. It’s going to be went and raced a 1500m in Brisbane and weeks, it was only 2 major workouts. But more about quality than quantity so my then after that, everything started to they were 2 important workouts and the mileage will drop to around 70km. So far, VOLUME 36 • APRIL ISSUE 2018 9 oaliahciv/kcotsknihT