Michael F.

I have helped coach other high school athletes in discus and shot put as well as D1 hammer throwers at Duke who were learning to throw the hammer, while going through my training. Being team captain at Duke, it was an expectation to help coach and mentor the younger athletes on my team.

Won the AZ State track meet in the Discus and took 4th in the Shot Put.
Still currently hold the Discus (172') and Shot Put (54') School records at Notre Dame Preparatory High School
Notre Dame Prep MVP 2012
3rd Ranked National High School Hammer Thrower in 2012
Broke the AZ All time Hammer Throw record in 2011 (216'). (Still currently stand at 3rd all time high school hammer thrower)
Broke the Great Southwest Hammer Throw Record in 2012 (210') (A previous record that stood for over 20 years)
All around athlete of the meet award (male and female) at the Great Southwest Track Meet
Broke the Duke Hammer Throw School Record and still hold it to this day (59.58m)
3rd All-Time Weight Thrower at Duke (55')
NCAA East Regional Track Meet-Hammer Throw Qualifier 2012

-Warm up: I typically use the proper warmup that the Duke throws team uses, which is designed to warm up the body and maintain the athlete's primed explosive power for throwing

-Footwork Drills: Specific drill designed to help the athlete master footwork of the particular throw and engrain the muscle memory that will translate into the actual throw

-Throwing Drills: These are drills that we do with the implement but don't actually utilize the full technique. They are used to highlight small areas of the throw that are major contributors to a good throw. Mastering these will help to master the whole throw.

-Full Throws with Slow Motion Video Review if Necessary: Since the throws are so quick and based off of a feel, the videos allows for the athlete to see what they are actually feeling in the throw so that they can make quicker improvements to their technique.

-Demonstration: I will be throwing right along side of my athletes which allows me to demonstrate in real time what I am trying to get them to do in the throw. Adds another level of learning in the brain which allows them to replicate what they see.

-Critiques after every throw

-Mental Toughness Conversations: Throwing does not come easy and so it takes a lot of grit and mental toughness, and when trained properly, it will not only help come big time track meets, but also for the rest of my athletes' lives.