Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least 3 km (1.9 mi). Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength.
Jack Tupper Daniels is an American exercise physiologist, running coach and a coach of Olympic athletes. On March 21, 2013, he was named the head coach of the Wells College men's and women's cross country programs. He received his doctoral degree in exercise physiology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Named "The World's Best Coach" by Runner's World magazine, he led SUNY Cortland runners to eight NCAA Division III National Championships, 31 individual national titles, and more than 130 All-America awards. Daniels outlined his training philosophies in the 1998 book, Daniels' Running Formula. He mentors and coaches some of America's top distance runners in the country.
Exercise physiology is the physiology of physical exercise. It is one of the allied health professions, and involves the study of the acute responses and chronic adaptations to exercise. Exercise physiologists are the highest qualified exercise professionals and utilise education, lifestyle intervention and specific forms of exercise to rehabilitate and manage acute and chronic injuries and conditions.
Anaerobic exercise is a type of exercise that breaks down glucose in the body without using oxygen; anaerobic means "without oxygen". This type of exercise leads to a buildup of lactic acid. In practical terms, this means that anaerobic exercise is more intense, but shorter in duration than aerobic exercise.
V̇O2 max (also maximal oxygen consumption, maximal oxygen uptake or maximal aerobic capacity) is the maximum rate of oxygen consumption attainable during physical exertion. The name is derived from three abbreviations: "V̇" for volume (the dot over the V indicates "per unit of time" in Newton's notation), "O2" for oxygen, and "max" for maximum and usually normalized per kilogram of body mass. A similar measure is V̇O2 peak (peak oxygen consumption), which is the measurable value from a session of physical exercise, be it incremental or otherwise. It could match or underestimate the actual V̇O2 max. Confusion between the values in older and popular fitness literature is common. The capacity of the lung to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide is constrained by the rate of blood oxygen transport to active tissue.
Exercise intensity refers to how much energy is expended when exercising. Perceived intensity varies with each person. It has been found that intensity has an effect on what fuel the body uses and what kind of adaptations the body makes after exercise. Intensity is the amount of physical power that the body uses when performing an activity. For example, exercise intensity defines how hard the body has to work to walk a mile in 20 minutes.
Altitude training is the practice by some endurance athletes of training for several weeks at high altitude, preferably over 2,400 metres (8,000 ft) above sea level, though more commonly at intermediate altitudes due to the shortage of suitable high-altitude locations. At intermediate altitudes, the air still contains approximately 20.9% oxygen, but the barometric pressure and thus the partial pressure of oxygen is reduced.
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a training protocol alternating short periods of intense or explosive anaerobic exercise with brief recovery periods until the point of exhaustion. HIIT involves exercises performed in repeated quick bursts at maximum or near maximal effort with periods of rest or low activity between bouts. The very high level of intensity, the interval duration, and number of bouts distinguish it from aerobic (cardiovascular) activity, because the body significantly recruits anaerobic energy systems. The method thereby relies on "the anaerobic energy releasing system almost maximally".
Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption is a measurably increased rate of oxygen intake following strenuous activity. In historical contexts the term "oxygen debt" was popularized to explain or perhaps attempt to quantify anaerobic energy expenditure, particularly as regards lactic acid/lactate metabolism; in fact, the term "oxygen debt" is still widely used to this day. However, direct and indirect calorimeter experiments have definitively disproven any association of lactate metabolism as causal to an elevated oxygen uptake.
In endurance sports such as road cycling and long-distance running, hitting the wall or the bonk is a condition of sudden fatigue and loss of energy which is caused by the depletion of glycogen stores in the liver and muscles. Milder instances can be remedied by brief rest and the ingestion of food or drinks containing carbohydrates. Otherwise, it can be remedied by attaining second wind by either resting for approximately 10 minutes or by slowing down considerably and increasing speed slowly over a period of 10 minutes. Ten minutes is approximately the time that it takes for free fatty acids to sufficiently produce ATP in response to increased demand.
Aerobic conditioning is the use of continuous, rhythmic movement of large muscle groups to strengthen the heart and lungs, as well as changes to the skeletal muscles. Improvement in aerobic conditioning occurs when athletes expose themselves to an increase in oxygen uptake and metabolism, but to keep this level of aerobic conditioning, the athletes must keep or progressively increase their training to increase their aerobic conditioning.
Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) refers to the ability of the circulatory and respiratory systems to supply oxygen to skeletal muscles during sustained physical activity. Scientists and researchers use CRF to assess the functional capacity of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. These functions include ventilation, perfusion, gas exchange, vasodilation, and delivery of oxygen to the body's tissues. As these body's functions are vital to an individual's health, CRF allows observers to quantify an individual's morbidity and mortality risk as a function of cardiorespiratory health.
Interval training is a type of training exercise that involves a series of high-intensity workouts interspersed with rest or break periods. The high-intensity periods are typically at or close to anaerobic exercise, while the recovery periods involve activity of lower intensity. Varying the intensity of effort exercises the heart muscle, providing a cardiovascular workout, improving aerobic capacity and permitting the person to exercise for longer and/or at more intense levels.
Lactate inflection point (LIP) is the exercise intensity at which the blood concentration of lactate and/or lactic acid begins to increase rapidly. It is often expressed as 85% of maximum heart rate or 75% of maximum oxygen intake. When exercising at or below the lactate threshold, any lactate produced by the muscles is removed by the body without it building up.
Incremental exercise is physical exercise that increases in intensity over time.
The Bruce protocol is a standardized diagnostic test used in the evaluation of cardiac function and physical fitness, developed by American cardiologist Robert A. Bruce.
vV̇O2max (velocity at maximal oxygen uptake), also known as maximal aerobic speed (MAS), is an intense running or swimming pace. This is the minimum speed for which the organism's maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) is reached, after a few minutes of constantly maintaining this exercise intensity. At higher paces, any additional increase in power is provided by anaerobic processes. In an incremental exercise test, it is the first speed at which any increase in exercise intensity fails to elicit an increase in oxygen consumption.
Cardiovascular fitness is a component of physical fitness which refers to a person's ability to deliver oxygen to the working muscles, including the heart itself. Cardiovascular fitness is improved by sustained physical activity (see also Endurance Training), and is affected by many physiological parameters, including cardiac output (determined by heart rate multiplied by stroke volume), vascular patency, and maximal oxygen consumption (ie. VO2 max).
Fitness instructors rely heavily on the use of music during their class as a way of motivating their clients. In addition to making physical activity and exercise more enjoyable, athletes have used music as an ergogenic aid. Most of the studies that have explored the effects of music on performance was aerobic performance. Aerobic performance is assessed by measuring specific parameters of, such as maximal oxygen consumption (VO2 max), heart rate (HR), rate of perceived exertion (RPE), and blood lactate (mmol/ L), power output (W). There is conflicting data regarding the effects of music on aerobic performance. On one hand, studies have suggested that music does increase aerobic exercise performance by influencing certain parameters, such as rate of perceived exertion and time to exhaustion. However, there are studies that rebuke this notion, stating that music had no effect on aerobic performance. The reason for this disparity among data is the construction of the tests themselves. There are several factors that need to be taken into account when exploring the effects of music on exercise. Those include: exercise intensity, the subject experience in performing exercise, and type of music.
The physiology of marathons is typically associated with high demands on a marathon runner's cardiovascular system and their locomotor system. The marathon was conceived centuries ago and as of recent has been gaining popularity among many populations around the world. The 42.195 km distance is a physical challenge that entails distinct features of an individual's energy metabolism. Marathon runners finish at different times because of individual physiological characteristics.
