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KIN 425        Speed, Agility and Endurance Development Notes 

Anaerobic exercise is exercise intense enough to trigger anaerobic metabolism. It is used by athletes in non-endurance sports to build power and by body builders to build muscle mass. Muscles trained under anaerobic conditions develop differently, leading to greater performance in short duration, high intensity activities, which last up to about 2 minutes.[1]

Aerobic exercise, on the other hand, includes lower intensity activities performed for longer periods of time. Such activities like walking, running, swimming, and cycling require a great deal of oxygen to generate the energy needed for prolonged exercise to maintain a certain energy level.

There are two types of anaerobic energy systems, the ATP-CP energy system, which uses creatine phosphate as the main energy source, and the lactic acid (or anaerobic glycolysis) system that uses glucose (or glycogen) in the absence of oxygen. Intense activity that last up to about thirty seconds rely primarily on the former, phosphagen, system. Beyond this time aerobic and anaerobic glycolysis begin to predominate. Anaerobic glycolysis uses glucose inefficiently, and produces by-products such as lactic acid that are thought to be detrimental to muscle function; this limits activity based predominantly on anaerobic glycolysis to about 2 minutes. The effectiveness of anaerobic activity can be improved through training.[1]
 

Running Speed:

  • Sprinting is a series of ballistic strides in which the body is repeatedly launched forward as a projectile. Running speed is the interaction of stride frequency and Stride length

 

Speed Training Goals

  • Achieve high stride frequency and optimal stride length by:
    1. Maximizing the backward velocity of the lower leg and foot at ground contact
    2. Minimizing vertical impulse and horizontal braking forces
    3. Emphasizing brief ground support time, explosive force production, and rapid stride rate; and
    4. Developing eccentric knee flexion strength to improve leg recovery mechanics and place the foot properly at touch down

 

Agility

  • The ability to explosively brake, change direction, and accelerate again, while maintaining balance.

3 Speed Training Methods:

Primary training method

  • The execution of proper technique
  1.  Foot plant under center of gravity
  2. Minimizing braking forces and ground support time
  3. Exerting max backward impulse/force
  4. Proper posture
  5. Proper arm mechanics
  6. Practice at sub-maximal speeds to teach proper mechanics, then progress to full speed once mechanics and technique is mastered

Secondary training methods

  • The use of external devices or gravity to assist or resist the athlete while running
  1. Assisted sprinting (overspeed)- the objective is to exceed full speed by no more than 10%, primarily as a means of improving stride frequency. [bungie chord sprints]
  2. For the athlete to benefit from overspeed sprinting they must:
    1. Increase their arm and leg turnover rate
    2. Pull their feet back and down making contact under the hips
    3. Aggressively explode through each stride in an effort to reach greater speed
  3. Resisted Sprinting (overload)- The objective is to use resistance to overload the athlete’s stride muscle actions without arresting or taking away from the athlete’s proper running mechanics, primarily as a means of improving speed-strength, power output and stride length. [sled sprints]
  4. For the athlete to benefit from overload sprinting they must
    1. Explosively swing their arms, driving their elbows back
    2. Explosively flex and extend their hips, knees and ankles
    3. Explosively generate max force in their leg drive and push off the ground

Tertiary training methods

  1. Basic fitness training
  2. Strength and Power Training- closed chain 1st, open chained 2nd
  3. Speed Endurance- Specific to sport needs

 

Lactate Threshold

 

The lactate threshold (LT) is the exercise intensity at which lactic acid starts to accumulate in the blood stream. This happens when it is produced faster than it can be removed (metabolized). This point is sometimes referred to as the anaerobic threshold (AT), or the onset of blood lactate accumulation (OBLA). When exercising below the LT intensity any lactate produced by the muscles is removed by the body without it building up. The lactate threshold is a useful measure for deciding exercise intensity for training and racing in endurance sports (e.g. long distance running, cycling, rowing, swimming, motocross, and cross country skiing), and can be increased greatly with training.

Fartlek (speed-play) training and interval training take advantage of the body being able to temporarily exceed the lactate threshold, and then recover (reduce blood-lactate) while operating at below the threshold, but still doing physical activity. Fartlek and interval training are similar, the main difference being the relative intensities of the exercise, best illustrated in a real-world example: Fartlek training would involve constantly running, for a period time running just above the lactate threshold, and then running at just below it, while interval training would be running quite high above the threshold, but then slowing to a walk, slow jog or completely stop during the rest periods. Interval training can take the form of many different types of exercise and should closely replicate the movements found in the sport.

Fartlek would be used by people who are constantly moving, with occasional bouts of speed, such as soccer players, while interval training is more suited to sprinters, who exert maximum effort and then can stop exerting completely. With both styles of training, one can exert more effort before fatiguing and burn more calories than exercising at a constant pace (continuous training), but will emphasize training the anaerobic system rather than the aerobic system. Long duration training below the lactate threshold is recommended to primarily work the aerobic system.

 

Speed and Agility Program Design

  • The extreme neuromuscular demands and power production of maximum speed and agility drills dictate that they should be conducted under minimal metabolic stress, Do them early in a training session, structured around brief exercise bouts with frequent relief or rest periods
  • If speed and agility training are done within the same session as weight training the following applies.

 

Weights                       Lift            Run

Heavy Lower Body      2nd             1st

Heavy Upper Body      2nd             1st (if top speed is emphasis)

                                       1st              2nd (if speed endurance is emphasis)

Interval Training

  • A type of running training containing four variables: the number of repetitions, distance, tempo of run, and rest interval.

  • (All Sports) - A training technique that utilizes multiple, short, moderate to high-intensity bursts of effort over a short distance. Interval training is usually used to improve speed.

  • Interval training is broadly defined as repetitions of high-speed/intensity work followed by periods of rest or low activity.

  • a method of physical training in which periods of activity are interspersed with periods of active recovery.

It is believed by many in the fitness industry that this method of training is more effective at inducing fat loss than simply training at a moderate intensity level for the same duration. This has been confirmed in at least two studies.[1] [2]

Swedes came up with a term for a type of training that lies in between interval training and plain distance training: fartlek, which means speed play, and consists of distance running with bursts of harder running at more irregular points, lengths, and speeds compared with interval training. Not only is it an efficient training method, fartlek training provides the opportunity to increase one's intensity without burning oneself out in a matter of minutes.
 

The greater the intensity (% of max speed) the greater the rest interval must be between reps or sets

            Intensity        work to rest ratios

100%             1:4-6      (work 5 seconds at 100% rest 20-30 seconds)

90%                1:3-5

      80%                1:2-4

      70%                1:1-2

      60%                1:0.5-1

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) or sprint interval training is an exercise strategy that is intended to improve performance with short training sessions. HIIT is a form of cardio which is beneficial to burning fat in a short and intense workout. Usual HIIT sessions may vary from 15-30 minutes. Most HIIT sessions have a 2:1 ratio in terms of time. For example, for running, your HIIT session may be something like 60 seconds jog, 30 seconds sprint.

An example of a HIIT session may be as follows: Use this scale of 1-10 (1 being a casual walk and 10 being sprinting as hard you can) to help clarify the intensity level of the run. For this exercise, it is most efficient if it is done on a track or at least outdoors instead of on a treadmill. Begin with a five minute warm up jog at about a 4-5 followed by a couple of minutes of stretching. Then start with a jog at about a 5-6 intensity level for 60 seconds and then sprint at an 8-9 intensity level for 30 seconds. Repeat this cycle 6-8 times depending on how fit you are (Beginners should limit themselves to 6 cycles and more advanced HIIT users should strive for 8 cycles). Your HIIT session will look something like this: Jog (level: 5-6, 60 seconds) then Sprint (level: 8-9, 30 seconds), Jog (level: 5-6, 60 seconds) then Sprint (level: 8-9, 30 seconds), Jog (level: 5-6, 60 seconds) then Sprint (level: 8-9, 30 seconds), Jog (level: 5-6, 60 seconds) then Sprint (level: 8-9, 30 seconds), Jog (level: 5-6, 60 seconds) then Sprint (level: 8-9, 30 seconds), Jog (level: 5-6, 60 seconds) then Sprint (level: 8-9, 30 seconds). After you complete your cycle, you should also have a cool down run to help your heart rate return to normal.

A HIIT session involves a warmup period, several short, maximum-intensity efforts separated by moderate recovery intervals, and a cooldown period. The period of alternating effort and recovery intervals typically lasts a total of 15 minutes. HIIT is an excellent way to maximize your workout if you are limited on time as well.

Studies by Tabata[1], Tremblay[2] and others have shown this method to be more effective at burning fat and maintaining, or building, muscle mass than high-volume, lower intensity aerobic work-outs. A study by Gibala et al[3] demonstrated 2.5 hours of sprint interval training produced similar biochemical muscle changes to 10.5 hours of endurance training and similar endurance performance benefits. According to a study by King [4] , HIIT increases the resting metabolic rate (RMR) for the following 24 hours due to excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, and may improve maximal oxygen consumption (VO2 max) more effectively than doing only traditional, long aerobic workouts.[5][6][7][8] Long aerobic workouts have been promoted as the best method to reduce fat, as fatty acid utilization usually occurs after at least 30 minutes of training. HIIT is somewhat counter intuitive in this regard, but has nonetheless been shown to burn fat more effectively. There may be a number of factors that contribute to this, including an increase in RMR, and possibly other physiological effects.

  1. Tabata I, Nishimura K, Kouzaki M, et al (1996). "Effects of moderate-intensity endurance and high-intensity intermittent training on anaerobic capacity and VO2max". Med Sci Sports Exerc 28 (10): 1327–30. PMID 8897392. 
  2. Tremblay A, Simoneau JA, Bouchard C (1994). "Impact of exercise intensity on body fatness and skeletal muscle metabolism". Metab. Clin. Exp. 43 (7): 814–8. PMID 8028502. 
  3. Gibala, Martin J; Jonathan P. Little, Martin van Essen, Geoffrey P. Wilkin, Kirsten A. Burgomaster, Adeel Safdar, Sandeep Raha and Mark A. Tarnopolsky (September 15 2006). "Short-term sprint interval versus traditional endurance training: similar initial adaptations in human skeletal muscle and exercise performance". J Physiol 575 (3): 901-911. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2006.112094, http://jp.physoc.org/cgi/content/short/575/3/901. Retrieved on 23 July 2008. 
  4. Jeffrey W. King, East Tennessee State University Thesis
  5. Smith TP, Coombes JS, Geraghty DP (2003). "Optimising high-intensity treadmill training using the running speed at maximal O(2) uptake and the time for which this can be maintained". Eur. J. Appl. Physiol. 89 (3-4): 337–43. doi:10.1007/s00421-003-0806-6. PMID 12736843. 
  6. Rozenek R, Funato K, Kubo J, Hoshikawa M, Matsuo A (2007). "Physiological responses to interval training sessions at velocities associated with VO2max". J Strength Cond Res 21 (1): 188–92. doi:10.1519/R-19325.1. PMID 17313282. 
  7. Helgerud J, Høydal K, Wang E, et al (2007). "Aerobic high-intensity intervals improve VO2max more than moderate training". Med Sci Sports Exerc 39 (4): 665–71. doi:10.1249/mss.0b013e3180304570. PMID 17414804. 
  8. Esfarjani F, Laursen PB (2007). "Manipulating high-intensity interval training: effects on VO2max, the lactate threshold and 3000 m running performance in moderately trained males". J Sci Med Sport 10 (1): 27–35. doi:10.1016/j.jsams.2006.05.014. PMID 16876479. 

 

Integrating Other Fitness Components 

Endurance Training:

Aerobic running: Running done at low-intensity speeds so that oxygen intake and oxygen output are the same; therefore this type of running can be sustained for a long period of time.

·        The ability to prescribe aerobic exercise is necessary to address the cardiovascular endurance requirements of a conditioning program

·        For Healthy individuals a training zone can be calculated using a % of predicted maximal heart rate (MHR)

o       220 - Age (20yr) = 200 bpm predicted MHR

o       70% MHR = 200 x 0.70 = 140 bpm

o       90% MHR = 200 x 0.90 = 180 bpm

o       Training zone 140 to 180 bpm

H.R.M. - Acronym for Heart Rate Monitoring. Measured in Beats Per Minute, HRM allows athletes to measure their body's response to the moment-to-moment changes in physical activity. The use of HRM is frequently credited with making workouts more efficient and effective.

·        Be progressive with the duration, intensity, and frequency, increase as the individual becomes more conditioned

o       3-5 days/week       15-60 min      70%-90% MHR

·        Use a variety of Modes

o       Running, bicycling, swimming, walking (Hiking), cross training, etc.

  • Fartlek (Running) - Swedish for "speedplay." A medium-distance run that has short-distance speed bursts dispersed throughout the workout.

Endurance Training Session has 3 Parts

1.      A warm-up: build-up to the target HR

2.      A training period: maintain your HR in the training zone

3.      A cool-down: back down to resting heart rate

 

Concurrent Strength and Endurance Training

  • ·        Strength and power can be compromised, especially in high-velocity muscle actions by the performance of high-intensity endurance work

  • ·        Anaerobic performance may be negatively affected

  • ·        Development of max VO2 is not compromised when concurrent training is performed

  • ·        Endurance is not negatively affected by concurrent training.

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Date this site was last updated 01/06/2009 08:53:51 PM

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