Kamilah W.

During my collegiate career I volunteered with the USTF youth Track and Field clinics at the University at Albany. The athletes ranged from ages 7-11 years old. I currently work as an Assistant Coach at Luisa Dela Cruz Middle School in the South Bronx. The students ages range from the 11-15 years old.

I competed as a Division 1 athlete for four years at the University at Albany. I specialized in the 400m with a personal best of 55.0 but I also compete in the 200(25.0),500(113.6) ,800(2:16.5), 4x400 and 4x100. I was an All-Conference athlete for 8 consecutive seasons. I was also a member of 2 school record breaking 4x400 meter relay teams. In 2012, as a freshman I was a member of first female 4x400 relay team in Albany history to qualify for Regionals in Jacksonville Florida. Our relay came in second at Penn Relays winning the ECAC Womens's final and also placed second at the outdoor ECAC meet with record breaking time of 3:38. As a sophomore and junior I faced some difficulty throughout my season due to hip flexor and quad injuries. As a junior I placed third at the Outdoor America East Conference with a time of 55.6. As a senior, I was ranked # 2 in the America East conference and ranked #10 in the Eastern Region. In my senior year, I served as team captain for the Women's team and relay captain.

I believe both drills and technique are incredibly important to incorporate in training. Building a strong foundation early in the season is key to achieving optimum running fitness. Base building work outs will give athletes the strength, stamina and confidence to complete more intense and skill specific work outs, that will be the primary focus during the racing season. Every athlete is different, and won't respond the same way to the same training. I adapt my work outs and training methods depending athlete. Most practices will consist of 30 minute of drills to help with form and to build agility. Perfecting drills can be the main factor in improving race time. Drills emphasize correct running movement which will force athletes to consciously mimic proper race form every training day. The work outs will vary, athletes should expect 2-3 quality work outs a week followed by a recovery day.