unCoachJasonTM
VO2max
The monthly newsletter of RunCoachJason.com
Dr. Jason Karp, running & fitness coach, consultant, freelance writer
Director & Coach, REVO2LT Running Team™
July, 2008
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In
this issue:
VO2max Distance Running Clinic Comes to San Diego
Coach Jason to Speak at USATF/USOC Emerging Elite Coaching Camp
Enzymes
New Consulting Services
Training Programs
In
Press
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VO2max Distance Running Clinic Comes to San Diego
On
July 19th, 2008, RunCoachJason.com will hold its second annual VO2max
Distance Running Clinic for runners, coaches, and fitness professionals at the Marina Village
Conference Center in San Diego, California.
Named after the most popular physiological variable related to distance
running, the VO2max Distance Running Clinic will transform your
running. Speakers include
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Coach Jason to Speak at USATF/USOC Emerging Elite Coaching Camp
This month, Coach Jason will be speaking at the USATF/USOC Emerging Elite Coaching Camp at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA from July 24-27, 2008. The Emerging Elite Coaching Camp, a joint venture of USA Track & Field and the United States Olympic Committee, brings together some of the top track and field coaches in the U.S. with the goal of developing elite athletes to medal potential in the Olympic Games and World Championships. For more information, go to http://www.dyestatcal.com/coaches/clinics/2007-2008/July%2008/Emerg_Elite.html.
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Enzymes
Enzymes
function as biological catalysts
that speed up chemical reactions. In the absence of enzymes, chemical
reactions would not occur quickly enough to generate the energy needed to
run. The amount of an enzyme also controls which metabolic pathway is
used. For example, having more aerobic enzymes will steer metabolism
toward a greater reliance on aerobic metabolism at a given submaximal speed.
Enzymes are also activated or inhibited (i.e., their effectiveness in speeding
up chemical reactions can be either increased or decreased), determining which
metabolic pathways are functional during certain cellular conditions.
Thus, enzymes essentially control metabolism and therefore control the speed at
which you fatigue.
A number
of studies have documented an increase in enzyme activity in response to
aerobic training. One of the first among these was published in 1967 in Journal
of Biological Chemistry, in which aerobically trained rats increased
mitochondrial enzyme activity, increasing the mitochondria’s capacity to
consume oxygen. More recently, a study published in Journal
of Applied Physiology in 2006 found that citrate synthase (a key enzyme of
the Krebs cycle) activity significantly increased by 37 percent in novice runners after
13 weeks of training during which weekly mileage increased from 15 to 36.
Similarly, sprint training induces changes in the anaerobic enzyme profile of
muscles and also increases aerobic enzyme activity, particularly when long
sprints or short recovery between short sprints are used. For example, a
study published in Journal of Applied Physiology in 1998 found that sprint
cycle training three times per week for seven weeks using 30-second
maximum-effort intervals significantly increased both anaerobic and aerobic
enzyme activity. Research on changes in enzyme activity with
sprint running is currently lacking.
Metabolism is also regulated by its patriarch—oxygen. The availability
of oxygen determines which metabolic pathway predominates. For example,
at the end of the metabolic pathway that breaks down carbohydrates
(glycolysis), there is a fork in the road. When there is adequate oxygen
to meet the muscle’s needs, the final product of glycolysis—pyruvate—is
converted into an important metabolic intermediate that enters the Krebs cycle
for oxidation. This irreversible conversion of pyruvate inside your
muscles’ mitochondria is a decisive reaction in metabolism since it commits
the carbohydrates broken down through glycolysis to be oxidized by the Krebs
cycle. However, when there is not adequate oxygen to meet the muscle’s
needs, pyruvate is converted into lactate. An associated consequence of
this latter fate is the accumulation of metabolites and the development of
acidosis, causing your muscles to fatigue and you to slow down.
The more aerobically developed you are, by focusing on increasing your mileage
and lactate threshold runs, the more you’ll steer
pyruvate toward the Krebs cycle and away from lactate production at a given
pace. That’s a good thing, because the amount of energy you get from
pyruvate entering the Krebs cycle is 19 times greater than what you get from
pyruvate being converted into lactate. While pyruvate will always be
converted into lactate given a fast enough speed, the goal of training is to
increase the speed at which that occurs.
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New Consulting Services
In addition to their consultations for runners, RunCoachJason.com has recently added phone consultations for coaches and fitness professionals to their list of services. If you want to learn more about specific aspects of training to take your athletes or clients to the next level, or you want the opportunity to have your fitness and running questions answered immediately, you can talk to Coach Jason live. For a list of consultation topics and to book a phone consultation with Coach Jason, go to http://www.runcoachjason.com/consulting.
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Training Programs
Want to improve your running or train for a specific race like a 5K or marathon? With RunCoachJason.com, you’ll get a specific, science-based training program suited to your needs, regardless of your fitness level. To purchase Coach Jason’s popular customized training programs for beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels, go to http://www.runcoachjason.com/customprograms.
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In
Press...
Training
Characteristics of U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifiers, my research
article documenting how the best marathoners in the U.S. train, with
comparisons made between men and women and elite and national-class runners,
appears in the Summer, 2008 issue of New
Studies in Athletics, the official technical publication of the
International Association of Athletics Federations.
Much
has been written about strength training for the runner—everything from
lunges while holding dumbbells to calf raises on the edge of a stair to
endless repetitions of abdominal crunches while balancing on a big,
The Top 3 Cardio Workouts,
my article on the top three fitness-inducing, fat-burning cardio workouts,
appears online at Personal
Training on the Net, an online education resource for fitness
professionals.
Resting Metabolic Rate, my article that
discusses the contentious issue of the effect that weight training has
on resting metabolic rate and weight loss, appears in the July, 2008 issue of the United Kingdom’s
Ultra-Fit magazine.
High
School P.E. Class Revisited, my article that revisits the old school
exercises you did in high school gym class, appears in the Summer, 2008 issue of Duke
City Fit. An
excerpt of the article also appears
in the July/August, 2008 issue of IDEA Fitness Journal, the
premier trade magazine for personal trainers and fitness professionals.
My Fitness News contributions on intense
exercise for a
healthy heart, oral contraceptives and weight gain, and alleviating asthma
symptoms with fish oil appear in the July, 2008 issue of Oxygen
magazine.
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To
view past newsletters, go to http://www.runcoachjason.com/newsletter.
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unsubscribe from this newsletter, e-mail jason@runcoachjason.com
with the word “unsubscribe” on the subject line.
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©2008
Dr. Jason Karp.
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