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Sprint Endurance

August 14, 2005 10:10 AM

I recall running now and then with some faculty at Texas A&M when I was there in the 1970s. I didn't know a lot then compared to now, so I ran like everyone else. I lifted weights too, which most of these runners did not do. More to the point, I never liked the slow, agonizing pace these guys ran at. I prefered to run hard and then walk and then run hard again.

Once in a while I would go on a longer run with these guys around the stadium and outer rim of campus. About half way through I would pick up the pace and then just sprint over the last part of the course. I wasn't trying to beat anybody, but I could run them all down and just blow past them in the latter part of the run.

I was never a particularly good distance runner, so why was I able to do this? This abstract gives some clue.

Sprints and Endurance from JAP.

No wonder I could run these guys down. My sprint training, intuitive though it was, elevated my endurance far beyond what slow jogging could do.

Notice the importance of intensity and brevity. Just 15 minutes of max sprinting over a two week period, with a day or two rest in between. I do these cycle sprints about twice a week. Then I sprint after fly balls and running the bases a bit hard when I go to softball practice. Altogether, half an hour to an hour of sprinting a month.

Try it, you'll like the results. Know your limits. Use good form. Don't time your runs. Don't run tired (this ruins your form). And let it happen. In three months there will be a world of change. Your body composition will dramatically improve too. No steroids needed to gain the benefits of sprints. You will find they can be a playful activity. I love to race my grandchildren.

· Evolutionary Fitness

Comments

Posted by: Flower Online [TypeKey Profile Page] at September 27, 2006 8:37 AM

Great information

Posted by: Werner [TypeKey Profile Page] at September 26, 2005 8:09 AM

Dr. Devany,

How do you work the sprints in with the weight training, Tabata, and walking you do and avoid ovetraining?

Thanks,

David

Posted by: David [TypeKey Profile Page] at August 15, 2005 1:35 PM

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