VO2max

The monthly newsletter of RunCoachJason.com

Dr. Jason Karp, running & fitness coach, consultant, freelance writer

June, 2006

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In this issue:

Customized Training Programs

Phosphagen

Testing VO2max

Can Exercise Make You Smarter?

Athlete Spotlight

Consulting

In Press

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Customized Training Programs

Want to PR at a 5K, 10K, half-marathon, or marathon but can’t afford a coach?  RunCoachJason.com offers customized training programs for beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels.  You can purchase your own customized program by e-mailing jason@runcoachjason.com.

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Phosphagen

Having started out in this sport as a sprinter (running 12-flat for 100 meters and 59.2 for 400 meters in 8th grade, maybe I should have stayed one), I’ve always been a fan of sprinting.  There’s something fascinating about humans’ raw speed.  With Justin Gatlin recently matching the world record for 100 meters in 9.77 seconds, let’s look at where he got all that energy from.

 

Of humans’ three energy systems, the fastest way to regenerate ATP for muscle contraction is to use your muscles’ store of creatine phosphate and their small store of ATP.  No carbohydrates, fat, or protein—and certainly no oxygen—are used.  That would take too long.  Creatine phosphate, a high-energy compound, is broken down into creatine and a phosphate ion, with the phosphate ion free to combine with ADP to form ATP.  The phosphagen system (also called the ATP-CP system) is the predominant energy system used for races lasting up to 10 seconds.  The muscles of sprinters like Justin Gatlin have a large store of creatine phosphate and many fast-twitch fibers to power their sprinting.  Like other aspects of your physiology, the phosphagen system readily adapts to training, with the major changes being an increase in how much creatine phosphate your muscles store and an increase in creatine kinase, the enzyme that catalyzes the chemical breakup of creatine phosphate.

 

To train the phosphagen system, run short, very fast sprints lasting 5 to about 15 seconds with 3 to 5 minutes rest between each repetition.  The long rest periods allow for creatine phosphate to be replenished in the muscles so it can be reused for the next interval.  One of the common workouts of the legendary Carl Lewis was 4x200 meters at nearly top speed with 5 minutes rest between each repetition.

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Testing VO2max

VO2max is the most often-measured variable in exercise physiology.  However, it’s hard to compare VO2max values between people when obtained from different laboratories.  There are many testing variables that affect the determination of VO2max, including the mode of exercise used, whether a treadmill test incorporates increases in grade, the motivation of the subjects, the environment in which the test is conducted (such as altitude or a hot and humid environment), the measurement system used, the sampling interval for respiratory gases (such as 1-minute, 30-second, 15-second, or breath-by-breath increments), the open-ended goal of the test (which requires subjects to continue exercising until they no longer can), and the duration of the test and its stages.  The shorter the test protocol, the larger the increments in workload during the test, and the greater potential for premature fatigue before the attainment of a true VO2max.  The longer the test protocol, the greater the chance that peripheral and psychological fatigue may limit someone’s ability to continue.  Long tests can also cause a significant increase in core temperature, resulting in a redistribution of blood flow away from the exercising muscles and toward the skin to dissipate heat.  Less blood flow (and therefore less oxygen) to the muscles at maximal workloads would cause a lower VO2max to be observed.  Research has shown that the optimal test length is between 8 and 12 minutes.

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Can Exercise Make You Smarter?

Want to get smarter?  Go for a run.  A number of studies have shown that exercise improves fluid intelligence, which includes problem-solving ability, memory, learning, and pattern recognition.  Improvements in cognitive function with exercise training are even more observable as people age.  Based on research with mice, scientists believe that exercise enhances the connections between pre-existing nerve cells in the brain and enhances the formation and survival of new nerve cells.

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Athlete Spotlight

Dianne Flynn

 

Originally from Toronto and now living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Dianne began working with Coach Jason to improve her marathon performance.  Having made big improvements on her own in 2003, from 1:44 to 1:30 in the half-marathon and from 4:00 to 3:19 in the marathon, her goal is to break 1:30 in the half-marathon and 3:00 in the marathon.  She recently placed 16th at the Mississauga Half-Marathon in Ontario.

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Consulting

Coach Jason is currently available as a fitness consultant for television, radio, and print media.  If you or someone you know is a member of the media and is looking for a fitness consultant, contact Coach Jason at jason@runcoachjason.com.

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In Press...

My Fitness News contributions on exercise on an empty stomach, lactic acid and fatigue, free weights vs. machines, and hiring a personal trainer appear in the June, 2006 issue of Oxygen magazine.

 

The Errors of Our Running Ways, my article that examines four common mistakes—going out too fast in a race, doing speed work without first doing enough aerobic mileage, running workouts too fast or too slow, and not eating after a workout—with advice on how to correct them, appears in the July, 2006 issue of Running Times, on newsstands in June.

 

The Magic of Muscles, my article that describes the physiology of muscles and how they work, appears in the July, 2006 issue of Her Sports magazine, on newsstands in June.

 

Workout Express, my column that details a 30-minute cardio workout, an accompanying playlist of songs, and a single “must-do” strength exercise, appears in the July, 2006 issue of Shape magazine, on newsstands in June.

 

My Fitness News contributions on interval training, downhill running, and menstrual cycle and bone health appear in the July, 2006 issue of Oxygen magazine, on newsstands in June.

 

I’m also quoted in the June, 2006 issue of Writer’s Digest and the July, 2006 issues of Fitness and Best Life, on newsstands in June.

 

Also look for coverage of my research on chocolate milk as a post-exercise recovery beverage in the June, 2006 issues of Fitness, Shape, and Outside magazines.

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To view past newsletters, go to http://www.runcoachjason.com/newsletter.

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©2006 Jason Karp. All rights reserved.