Speed workout for running a faster 200m

It’s important to get out fast in the 200. So a good speed workout for running a faster 200 would be something like 4 x 40m out of blocks on the turn with 4 minutes rest. I’ll write it as I would speak to an athlete: Run as hard as you can for the 40m (put a cone down) and memorize how long you run for/how many steps, etc and try to run it the same way each time. That will help your start on the turn so you can get out and not start hacking to catch up. The next part of the speed workout would be 2 x fly 30m off the turn. back up far enough that, when you start sprinting, you hit the beginning of the 4×1 fly zone at full speed. Float 10m to the beginning of the exchange zone. At the exchange zone, build up again so you slingshot off the turn by attacking through the zone, focusing on quickly recovering the heel underneath the hips, running ‘hips tall’, stepping over the knee and driving the foot into the ground. Attack with the arms, down and back. It’s not enough to just run fast, you have to try and do it the way I just said or you’re just making the same old bad habits worse. That’s a good speed workout.
For conditioning in the 200, you only need so much. (Sprinters are only going to be running, assuming they are in high school and let’s say, for the sake of simplicity, they are girls, roughly 25-27 seconds. So everything should be based on speed, speed endurance and technical feedback from the coach.) For basic conitioning as recovery work from your speed work, 10 – 20 x 100m @ 70-75% is more than sufficient. If you want something more lactic acid/anaerobic conditioning based that isn’t full speed endurance work – something like 4-6 x 150m @ 85% with a walk back recovery is a good, specific workout. If you want to do something longer and faster (in case you’re running a lot of 100s and 200s in meets but not really many 400s) a workout like 300, 250, 200 @ 90-95% with 10′ rest would be good, especially if you aren’t finishing races well. Just make sure you do the 300, 250, 200 workout as a replacement for a speed day. You can do the other 2 in addition to your speed work, just don’t do the 150s the day before speed work.
You have to make sure you separate the training of energy systems or you’ll fry your athletes’ bodies because they can’t adapt to or recover from the overlapping intensities. I call it neuromuscular anarchy!