It's hard to find any runners who don't want to run faster. Amateurs and professionals, juniors and senior athletes - everyone wants to increase their running speed. Why does it depend? How to learn to run fast? If we abstract from the relief and weather conditions, then there are only two factors: genetics and training.
Our genes encode information that will determine the functioning of all cells, organs and the body as a whole. How fast will the athlete's muscles be? How will the cardiovascular system react to physical activity? Why are some people better at short distance running, while others are better at long distance running? If we abstract from the terrain and weather conditions, then running speed depends on only two factors: genetics and training.
Further:
Muscles and heredity
There are about 600 muscles in the human body, most of which are used during running. Skeletal muscle itself is a bundle of thin longitudinal fibers - myofibrils, which include the contractile proteins actin and myosin, which provide movement. Myofibrils come in several types, the ratio of which in the muscle is determined by heredity. To a large extent, a person’s speed performance and his “prospects” not only in running, but also in other sports will depend on this ratio.
Priority
Before starting any activity, decide on your priorities: arrange the planned events in order of their importance, starting with the urgent and more significant. You should learn to divide or classify tasks into urgent ones, which must be completed within a specified time frame, and important ones, which must be completed, but are not so limited by time frames
Important may be not only those tasks set by a higher-level manager, but also those that directly affect other employees, forcing them to stand idle. As an example: in furniture production, first of all, you should take on cutting the material, so that everyone who will work with it will not be idle, and then - on other work if you have several operations assigned to you.
Slow and fast muscle fibers
Based on the speed of contraction, a distinction is made between “slow twitch” or slow (ST from English slow twitch) and “fast twitch” or fast (FT from English fast twitch) muscle fibers.
Slow or ST fibers
Thin, relatively weak, but at the same time resistant to fatigue. They are well supplied with blood and have a higher amount of myoglobin, which gives them their characteristic red color (red fibers). ST fibers contain many mitochondria and are characterized by high levels of aerobic enzyme activity. The amount of ATPase enzyme is small, which causes the low rate of contraction. Slow fibers are most adapted to static or prolonged monotonous loads of low intensity: maintaining a pose, light running.
Fast or FT fibers
Fast-twitch fibers are thicker than ST fibers and produce more force but also fatigue more quickly. These fibers are less perfused and have less mitochondria, lipids, and myoglobin than ST fibers (described as white fibers). Unlike slow fibers, fast fibers contain mainly enzymes for anaerobic glucose oxidation (glycolysis). Glycogen (carbohydrates) and creatine reserves are used as the main sources of energy. Due to their high contraction speed and rapid fatigue, these fibers are capable of short-term and high-intensity work: fast running, 100m sprint, for example.
Fast fibers can be divided into two subtypes. Their difference is in the method of obtaining energy: the first ( subtype A ) can use oxygen to obtain energy by oxidizing carbohydrates and fats, the second ( subtype B ) practically do not use oxygen.
The predominance of FT or ST muscle fibers will largely determine the speed potential of the athlete. If there are more fast myofibrils in the body, you can achieve high results in short-distance running, as well as in sprint swimming, weightlifting, martial arts and other sports disciplines, where the impulse, explosive work that FT provides is primarily important. muscle fibers. If slow-twitch muscle fibers predominate, there will be much more prospects in long-distance running, as well as: in long-distance swimming, road cycling, cross-country skiing, rowing, triathlon, etc., that is, in those sports where aerobic activity plays a major role. energy generation system.
In most people, the ratio of different types of myofibrils in muscles is approximately the same: 50 to 50%. But this is no reason to despair. Firstly, you can try to develop in sprinting or long-distance running, gradually adapting your muscles and your body through training. And secondly, middle-distance running, cross-country, as well as middle-distance swimming, many team sports (football, basketball, etc.) and even... chess are well suited. After all, this will have much more health benefits than TV, social networks or complaining about bad heredity.
Elite sprinters can have up to 80% fast myofibers in their muscles, while marathon runners, on the contrary, have up to 80% slow ones. But potential is only a more favorable starting position. Without training, he remains a potential!
How to improve your learning ability
If you constantly act according to a pattern, over time your memory weakens and your concentration decreases. Habit does not allow us to use our potential. In order for new information to be well absorbed, so that it is easier to find solutions in non-standard situations, you need to maintain mental flexibility. The brain must constantly process new information, look for non-standard solutions and ways. In order for the nerve cells to awaken to active activity, you need to train constantly.
D.L.: It is very correct if there is the possibility of rotation in the accounting department. For six months I sit on some accounts, and for the next six months I can sit on others. The opportunity to switch so that in two or three years I could master the entire accounting department in depth. And two years later I am assigned to draw up a balance sheet instead of the chief accountant, he delegates it to me. He, of course, will double-check everything, but, in general, I do consolidated management or tax reporting myself. In such a situation, my desire to move forward will not disappear. From a young age you need to accustom yourself to constant development. To build a process of continuous learning, the accounting department can subscribe to two or three professional journals. The main thing is that they are actually read regularly, so that every week a specialist learns something new and interesting in his field.
A.S.: It is useful to have a subscription to the mailing list of professional publications, for example, Accounting Online. This allows you to be aware of all changes coming into force and planned in order to understand how to rebuild your work. In a separate table I record what changes are planned and copy the link to the source there
And when the time comes, for example, another year comes, I already know what has changed and what is important for me to take into account. I also collect data in tables on how the minimum wage changes in different years, rates for calculating contributions, etc.
It's not the most immediate information, but it's always there when I need it.
In order for information to be well absorbed, a person must have developed short-term or operational memory.
A.L.: There are special exercises to improve memory. Written speech also develops intellectual abilities well. And it’s handwritten. Because fine motor skills are involved in this process. It is useful to read fiction. Reading means new words, new stories. Drawing is also useful. This is training for the synchronous work of two hemispheres. As a result, the reaction speed increases, thought processes accelerate, and a person reacts faster to new situations.
You shouldn’t take on many aspects at once. It is a myth that a person can simultaneously solve several problems and study materials on several large-scale topics. In this case, the efficiency decreases significantly. It's better to concentrate on one thing at a time. And only then take on another task.
Also, the ability to assimilate information is affected by such trivial things as physical activity, nutrition, and walks in the fresh air.
D.L.: You need to eat natural food, eat more vegetables and fruits, but eat less meat, and move a lot. And at the time of learning, it is better to keep yourself completely hungry, then the information will be absorbed even better. Because when we are very full, especially fast carbohydrates and some sweets, this, on the one hand, feeds the brain, and on the other hand, all the information that we remember quickly burns out. And we need long-lasting carbohydrates, various cereals without milk, cereals, fiber, carrots. All this contributes to the absorption of information.
Helpful advice
Want to know how to develop memory? Read about this in the article “Rules for a Good Memory.”
Want to keep your mind sharp? Read about how and what kind of mental exercises you need to do.
Can the number and ratio of ST and FT fibers in the body change?
The data is not yet final. Some studies show that the ratio of ST and FT myofibrils does not change as a result of training and is completely determined by genetics. Other studies show that aerobic training increases the content of slow myofibers. True, such changes are very limited and do not exceed 10%.
At the same time, during training, the number of mitochondria in the muscles can change, and, accordingly, their ability to generate energy with the participation of oxygen. It is also important for speed, especially over long distances. In addition, training leads to muscle fiber hypertrophy and the percentage of muscles will also change.
In untrained people, fast fibers are usually glycolytic, that is, type B predominates, and slow fibers are oxidative. This will be enough for mini-sprint races of 20-30 m to the bus stop or, for example, to the entrance from the meeting with the neighbor's dog. But of course, it is absolutely not enough for competitive sprinting and, especially, fast running over medium and long distances. There is no way without targeted training.
Mitochondria are unique organelles in which glucose or fatty acid molecules are broken down through a cascade of reactions into carbon dioxide and water, resynthesizing ATP necessary for muscle contraction. At the same time, it does not form lactic acid molecules, which “acidify” the muscle, as during glycolysis. Due to the appearance of additional mitochondria, fast muscle fibers in their oxidative potential are converted from glycolytic to intermediate, and the transition of intermediate fibers to oxidative is also possible.
Even if your genetics don’t work out, by training regularly you can significantly improve your performance and achieve good and sometimes excellent results!
Plans for every day
If the work is not monotonous, you are faced with a large-scale goal, stretched over time over months, it needs to be fragmented. Moreover, it needs to be broken down to such a level that the notebook, the role of which is now played by organizers, contains entries for every day. Especially if you are not an ordinary worker, but have at least several people subordinate to you.
Daily tasks and self-control will stimulate you, help you achieve small victories, see progress, and allow you to learn how to work quickly. At the beginning of each working day, if you have subordinates, we hold a “planning meeting”, where we summarize the results of the previous day and distribute tasks for today. If the plan is large-scale and involves the same type of work, we conduct such events less frequently, controlling the process and not allowing employees to slow down or even increase it.
Maximum oxygen consumption
The role of muscles in ensuring speed qualities is great, but, of course, not absolute. After all, in order for muscles, as well as other vital organs, to receive oxygen, the coordinated work of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems is necessary.
The most well-known indicator describing the connection and efficiency of these systems and muscles is maximum oxygen consumption (VO2 max), which shows the amount of oxygen (in milliliters) that a person is able to consume within 1 minute.
On average, MOC in young untrained men is 45 ml/min/kg, in women – 38 ml/min/kg.
As a result of training, not only does the number of mitochondria in the muscles increase, but also physiological adaptations occur such as an increase in blood plasma volume, systolic heart volume and stroke volume, tissue capillarization and, ultimately, such adaptations cause an improvement in the efficiency of oxygen transport to muscle cells and its use, and this is the key to improving performance in medium and long distance races.
MOC depends on genetic factors, age, gender, and is also closely related to muscle mass and quite accurately reflects the level of training.
Up to 20 years of age, the MIC value increases, from 25 to 35 years of age there is stabilization, and from 35 years of age there is a gradual decrease in MIC.
By age 65, maximum oxygen consumption decreases by about a third.
Let's not waste time
This applies to office workers and other people whose activities are closely intertwined with the computer. An important problem with the low efficiency of their work is spending a lot of time on social networks, watching movies, playing online games and on forums.
If you access the Internet via Wi-Fi or have sufficient Internet traffic, you can surf from a tablet or smartphone, this does not change the situation.
Here, no prohibitions other than working on the network through an Internet browser will save you if a person does not gather his willpower into a fist and independently stop wasting his working time on unnecessary things.
Economy of running
Although knowledge of VO2 max will be quite informative, in long-distance competitions what is more important is not the maximum that can be squeezed out of oneself, but the submaximal speed that the athlete can maintain throughout the entire distance. And this speed will depend on MIC, and on the ability to utilize fats, the ability of buffer systems to fight “acidification” with lactate, on running technique, which allows optimal use of the body’s resources, breathing, etc. Actually, all this is united by such an integral concept as running economy . Running economy can vary among runners with the same VO2 max by up to 20%. In well-trained athletes with similar VO2 max values, running economy is the best predictor of performance.
Therefore, it is the increase in running economy that will improve performance, and therefore speed, in long-distance runners.
Summarizing the above, I would like to emphasize that an athlete’s running speed will be largely determined by his genetics.
At the same time, proper training can significantly increase running speed due to adaptation processes occurring in the muscles, respiratory and cardiovascular systems.
Choose a job you like
You can buy anyone a dog, but you can’t make everyone’s tail wag. If we rephrase the proverb in our own way, it will turn out: money can make anyone work, but not everyone can love what they do.
Based on the fact that most of your free time from sleep will be devoted directly to work and everything connected with it (getting to the workplace, then back home, preparing for the work day), the workplace must be selected in such a way that it is not only financial brought benefits. The work should be enjoyable, arouse interest, and bring pleasure.
Interview with Dmitir Nikolaychuk
What exercises do athletes use in practice to develop running speed? How can amateur runners increase their running speed?
Professional athletes are best versed in matters of speed development. Dmitry Nikolaychuk shared approaches and “secrets” for learning to run fast .
- Hello, Dima! Our readers will be interested in learning about the experience of a professional athlete. Please tell us what approaches are used to develop speed among amateurs?
– It’s hard to call me a professional athlete. I would say that I am simply a professional, since my main job is scientific activity plus coaching practice, which, however, does not at all prevent me from competing at official competitions. Although after each podium at the National Championships, the club and coach tell me that it’s enough to mock others with this approach and way of life.
- So here it is. The main approach when working with amateurs is to do no harm.
