VO2max

The monthly newsletter of RunCoachJason.com

Jason Karp, professional coach, consultant, freelance writer

October, 2006

*******************************************************************

In this issue:

IDEA Personal Trainer Convention

VO2max Distance Running Clinic

Customized Training Programs

Integrating Science with Application—Tapering

VO2 Kinetics

Dissertation

In Press

*******************************************************************

Lactate Threshold

On October 7, Coach Jason will be speaking on “Lactate Threshold: Best O2 Bang for Your Buck” and “Planning Clients’ Training with Periodization” at the IDEA National Personal Trainer Convention at the Hilton hotel in New York City.  If you’re in the New York area come learn how to train most effectively.  IDEA Health and Fitness Association is the world’s largest association for health and fitness professionals.  For more information and to download the event brochure and clinic schedule, go to: http://www.ideafit.com/ptrainer/index.asp. 

 

On October 15, Coach Jason will be speaking on “Preparing for Your First Marathon” to the Albuquerque, New Mexico chapter of Team in Training at New Mexico Sports and Wellness – Riverpoint.

*******************************************************************

VO2max Distance Running Clinic

On December 2nd, 2006, RunCoachJason.com will hold its first annual VO2max Distance Running Clinic for runners and coaches at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.  Named after the most popular physiological variable related to distance running, the VO2max Distance Running Clinic will transform your running.  Speakers include professional coach and Ph.D. candidate Jason Karp, exercise physiologist Dr. Robert Robergs of the University of New Mexico, and U.S. Masters record holder and 2:08 marathoner Mbarak Hussein of Kenya (now a U.S. citizen).  Enjoy a laid back atmosphere with other runners and coaches while you learn the best scientific methods to take your or your athletes’ performance to the next level.  For more information, go to http://www.runcoachjason.com/clinic.  To receive a brochure via mail, e-mail your address to jason@runcoachjason.com.

*******************************************************************

Customized Training Programs

Want to run your best for a 5K, 10K, half-marathon, or marathon but can’t make a long-term commitment with a coach?  Remember, you can always purchase my popular customized training programs for beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels.  Just e-mail jason@runcoachjason.com.

*******************************************************************

Integrating Science with Application—Tapering

If you’re planning on running a marathon this fall, chances are you’re already thinking about your taper.  Research has shown that tapering results in changes in biological markers that reflect a reduced training stress and an increased recovery, and that improved performance (from 0.5% to 6%) is more likely to occur after a period of reduced training. 

 

Most studies on tapering in runners have examined the effect of 1-week tapers on short distance events, and have found that the intensity of training is more important than either the training volume (weekly mileage) or frequency.  Reductions in mileage up to 60-90% have been found to be beneficial.  So you can reduce both your weekly mileage and the number of days you run per week as long as you keep the intensity high.  For example, studies using a low volume/high intensity taper for 1 week (e.g., an 85% reduction in mileage and 5x500 meters at 800-meter race pace with 6-7 minutes recovery, decreasing by 1 rep each day for 5 days) have found improvements in running economy and 5-K performance, and increases in aerobic enzyme activity, blood volume, and time to fatigue at 1,500-meter race pace compared to a moderate- volume/low-intensity taper (e.g., 6 miles at 60% VO2max, decreasing by 1.25 miles each day for 5 days) or a taper with no running at all.  There has been little research on the effect of tapering on long-distance running, with one study finding that tapering (85% reduction in mileage for 1 week) did not affect half-marathon performance (run on a treadmill to control for other variables), and that performance was similar to that of runners who didn’t taper.   

 

The duration of your taper is one of the most difficult aspects to determine since the answer will vary for each runner.  It depends on the severity of the training load, your level of fatigue, and the distance of your upcoming race.  Also, the time frame separating the benefits of a successful taper from the negative consequences of insufficient training has not been clearly established by research.  Research on swimmers has revealed that 2 weeks seems to be the longest time to receive the benefits of a taper before detraining begins, with many athletes needing longer to fully recover from hard training.  Before a marathon, most people taper for 2 to 3 weeks, using a 1-week taper before shorter races. 

 

In addition to the research, many of my decisions concerning the taper depend on the strengths and weaknesses of my athletes and what has yielded positive results in the past.  I typically have my athletes begin cutting their mileage 3 weeks before the marathon (or up to a week later if they haven’t been running high mileage), with the first week at 70% of peak training mileage, the second week at 50%, and the week of the marathon at 35% (not counting the marathon itself).  I keep the intensity high during the first week, including one interval workout at 3K race pace and one moderately-long run (13-15 miles) with about half at lactate threshold pace.  I begin to decrease the intensity slightly during the second week, including two short- to medium-distance runs (5-10 miles)

at marathon race pace.  The week of the race, I include one interval workout early in the week at either lactate threshold pace or slightly faster, cutting back on the distance of the intervals and the number of reps.  The final week also includes a daily progressive reduction in mileage that mirrors the pattern of the weekly reduction.

 

So if you’re running a marathon this fall, take care in planning your taper—and good luck on race day!   

*******************************************************************

VO2 Kinetics

As may be obvious during the first few strides of your run, VO2 increases dramatically, plateauing within 2 to 3 minutes.  When you stop running, VO2 decreases until it returns to its resting value.  A study published in

International Journal of Sports Medicine in 2006 found that the rise and fall of VO2, called “VO2 kinetics,” are related to the type of runner.  The time for VO2 to reach a steady-state value at the start of exercise and the time for VO2 to return to its resting value after exercise are both significantly shorter in long-distance runners compared to middle-distance runners.  The researchers suggest that this difference is related to training volume, since the greater the weekly mileage, the less time it takes for VO2 to increase at the start of a run.

*******************************************************************

Dissertation

Data collection has finally begun on my dissertation (Yippee!), which examines the entrainment of breathing frequency to stride rate in highly-trained distance runners.  If you’re a highly-trained male runner in the Albuquerque, New Mexico area and want to be a subject, e-mail jason@runcoachjason.com.

*******************************************************************

In Press...

Put the Dumbbells Down: Why Distance Runners Don’t Need Strength Training, my point:counterpoint article on strength training and distance running, along with my response to Dr. Michael Yessis’ opposing viewpoint, appear in the October, 2006 issue of Running Times.

 

If you missed my popular article—The Errors of Our Running Ways—in the July/August issue of Running Times, you can catch its reprint in the Fall, 2006 issues of Duke City Fit, Colorado Runner, and The Coach, the United Kingdom’s track and field coaching magazine.

 

My Fitness News contributions on exercise and brain power, women and big muscles, protein for muscle growth, and stretching and injuries appear in the October, 2006 issue of Oxygen magazine.

 

Recover for Optimal Results, my article that discusses strategies for recovery from hard workouts, including refueling, rehydrating, reducing inflammation, and tapering before an increase in training load, will be posted this month at http://www.PTontheNet.com, an online education resource for fitness professionals.

 

My Fitness News contributions on training your back, squat depth, periodization, choosing your parents, abdominal crunches, and eccentric contractions appear in the November, 2006 issue of Oxygen magazine, on newsstands in October.

*******************************************************************

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

*******************************************************************

To unsubscribe from this newsletter, e-mail jason@runcoachjason.com with the word “unsubscribe” on the subject line.

*******************************************************************

©2006 Jason Karp.  All rights reserved.