Posts Tagged ‘African vs. White Runners’
Epigenetics in Athletics Part 2: African dominance explained?
In Part 1 on Epigenetics, we looked at some of the science behind the new field. This we’ll take more of a theoretical look and try and explore some of the possible implications. As I said in Part 1, the major finding is that these epigenetic changes can potentially impact subsequent generations. Your behavior can…
Read MoreThere is a time to rest-not halfway rest: Why Sammy Wanjiru takes Sundays off
Joe Vigil once told me essentially that if you’re not training, you’re detraining. He was making the point that every day off is a step back and preaching consistency. While I tend to agree that consistency is the most important thing, and I too have the innate obsessive compulsiveness of never taking an off day,…
Read MoreAfrican Runners powerpoint.
Training update:I went through a little bit of a rough period where my legs were pretty much fried for a couple workouts. I think the workload and all the new stimulus’ finally caught up to me. So, we backed off for a bit and I’m getting back to normal. So, my last couple workouts were…
Read MorePart 6: Kick Development
Part 6- Kick Development- A matter of strength Endurance: In the last post, I basically described how to lower lactate at race pace. If you remember the data discussed already, the ability to finish at a quicker pace seemed to rely on two things that are tied together. A. Lactate Differential B. Muscle Fiber Recruitment…
Read MorePart 4: African’s vs. Western Runners: Muscle recruitment’s role:
African’s vs. Western Runners: Part 4:Muscle recruitment’s role: Okay, so I lied slightly. Before trying to tie things up nicely and show how some of the previously mentioned findings can apply to your training, I want to mention one other topic. That is muscle recruitment. We have already looked at the finishing kick in terms…
Read MorePart 3: Why can African’s close faster than their Western counterparts?
Part 3: Why can African’s close faster than their Western counterparts? It is astonishing to see a runner like Bekele close the last 400m in 53 during a fast 10k. It’s generally recognized that most Americans can not close that fast off of even slower paces. Off of comparable paces based on their PR’s, American’s…
Read MorePart 2: Should our athletes move up?
Part 2: Should we move our athletes up? Renato Canova has pointed out that there are basically three kinds of runners for each event. You have the specialist who responds to specific training for that event best. You have the fast event runner, who comes at the event from a speed perspective. And you have…
Read MoreAfrican’s vs. Westerners Part 1:Fun with Statistics
African’s vs. Western Runners: Why do they dominate and what can we learn: Part 1- Fun with Statistics Part 2- Should our Athlete’s move up in distance? Part 3- Why can African’s close faster than their Western counterparts? Part 4- Muscle Recruitment’s role Part 5- Putting Theory into Practice Part 6- Kick Development Powerpoint presentation-…
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