How To Train Like Katarina Johnson-Thompson

Heptathletes are known for their round-the-clock training schedules, and Katarina Johnson-Thompson is no different.

The Liverpudlian has been marked for greatness since she emerged during the Jessica Ennis-Hill era, and has cemented herself as one of the best in the world over the last decade.

While she’s not quite managed to convert her natural ability into medals at the Olympics, Johnson-Thompson won the 2019 World Championships in Doha to fully establish herself as a top-class performer on the world stage.

There was an expectation that the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games would finally bring a victory for Johnson-Thompson at the pinnacle event of her sport, but an Achilles injury sadly put those hopes to bed.

Now, she has split with her French coach Bertrand Valcin and will be moving to Florida to work with Petros Kyprianou.

It’s no surprise that Kyprianou jumped at the chance to work with the Brit given her natural ability and commitment to training.

Here’s a look at how Katarina Johnson-Thompson trains and what her weekly schedule looks like.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson Training Schedule

Monday

The week starts with a rehab-style gym session in the morning, with light resistance work focusing on areas Johnson-Thompson has injured in the past, like her hamstrings.

In the afternoon, she’ll head to the track for a sprint session. This will involve a lot of drills to improve technique.

Tuesday

Tuesday morning will involve an hour of hurdle practice followed by high-jump practice. Both of these events are highly technical and require rhythm, so need to be worked on regularly.

The afternoon session is lifting, usually starting with squats (four sets of four reps) and moving on to the upper body.

Wednesday

Wednesday is when Johnson-Thompson works on her javelin throw, and this is followed by running. Early in her programme while she’s gaining fitness, this might just be a steady-state run, but intervals are used as she comes closer to competitions.

Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning are a rest period.

Thursday

After resting in the morning, Johnson-Thompson heads to the gym for an explosive workout. This includes Olympic lifts like cleans.

Friday

Long jump sessions are done on Friday mornings. Johnson-Thompson will work on her run up and make any technical changes she needs to make sure she’s ready when competitions come around.

In the afternoon, she heads to the physio to receive treatment, particularly focusing on her legs.

Saturday

Like many athletes, Saturday morning is hill running. The distance of the hills ranges from around 100m to 200m, so it’s short sharp work to focus on explosive power.

Sunday

Sunday is reserved for rest. She’ll usually do some sort of active recovery, like foam rolling, and will typically eat more than usual on her rest day.