Topic: Research

Spirulina Increases Exercise Performance

By: Natural Products Insider

Posted on: 02 Feb 2010

Spirulina supplementation induced a significant increase in exercise performance, fat oxidation and glutathione (GSH) concentration, and attenuated the exercise-induced increase in lipid peroxidation, according to an article published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (2010;42(1):142-151). Nine moderately trained males took part in a double blind, placebo-controlled, counterbalanced crossover study. Each subject received either 6 g/d of spirulina or placebo for four weeks. Each subject ran on a treadmill at an intensity corresponding to 70 percent to75 percent of their VO2max for two hours0 and then at 95 percent VO2max to exhaustion.

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The Lactic Acid Myths

by Matt Fitzgerald

January 26, 2010

Everything you’ve been taught about lactic acid is wrong.

There are many myths about lactic acid.  Perhaps the greatest of all is the notion that there is lactic acid in the human body.  There is not.  The body actually produces lactate, which is lactic acid minus one proton.

The difference between lactic acid and lactate is, for all practical purposes, semantic.  But other popular beliefs about lactic acid (or, as I will properly call it from this point forward, lactate) are about as wrong as wrong can be.  Most triathletes believe that lactate is an end product of anaerobic muscle metabolism that causes local muscle fatigue by increasing the acidity of the tissues to the point where they no longer can function effectively.  In fact, we now know that lactate is an intermediate link between anaerobic and aerobic muscle metabolism that serves as both a direct and indirect fuel for muscle contraction and delays fatigue in a couple of different ways.

Our new understanding of the nature and function of lactate is interesting to all athletes who are curious about how the human body works.  But does it make any practical difference?  Does the new science of lactate suggest a different approach to training than the old science did?  I would suggest that it does call for a subtle tweaking of the standard approach to endurance training, but no major overhaul.  Before we get to that, however, let’s take a closer look at how the classic beliefs about lactate were exposed as myths and replaced by an almost opposite explanation.

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Enhancing Running Economy

November 25, 2007

Owen Andersen

Research links five training strategies with economical running

Running science evolves, but our views about running do not.

We still believe that lactic acid is a "waste product" which causes fatigue and soreness, even though it is actually a key muscle fuel. We think that high-mileage training is the most-effective way to boost aerobic capacity, even though high-intensity efforts work better. We swallow the idea that low ferritin levels produce tiredness, even though the ferritin-fatigue connection does not exist. We hold fast to the notion that strength training is "anaerobic" and can't boost VO2max and endurance performance, despite the fact that certain kinds of strength training create major upswings in both aerobic capacity and racing ability.

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WORKING THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE VO2MAX EQUATION

Owen Andersen

RESEARCH SAYS THAT HITTING 100 PERCENT OF VO2MAX IS KEY

As a runner's maximal aerobic capacity (VO2max) increases, his/her performances generally improve.  A novice runner can often enhance VO2max by 20 to 25 percent with as little as 12 weeks of running training; an experienced runner might boost VO2max by 4 to 7 percent in the same time frame, given the right workouts.  Each 1-percent advance in VO2max can be linked with a one-half to 1 percent upgrade in race performances.

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What Happens When You Replace Aerobic Running With Explosive Training?

October 29, 2007

Owen Andersen

Great new research from Finland reveals that adding simple, explosive routines to running workouts can produce major gains in performance for endurance runners. This is true even when the explosive drills replace regular running in the weekly schedule and thus lower total training volume (1).

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OVERUSE MUSCLE DAMAGE IN RUNNERS: ARE THE PERFORMANCE EFFECTS "ALL IN THE HEAD?"

Owen Andersen

Scientists say muscle overuse changes RPE but not lactate threshold .....

Exercise scientists have not been certain about the effects of exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) on endurance running performance.  In mice forced to run downhill for extended periods of time (an activity which creates mayhem in the murids' quads), endurance capacity falls by about 65 percent during subsequent, sub-maximal running efforts (1)

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Cycling may shortchange bones

By Jeannine Stein

22nd Oct 2007

Bone density increases from exercise involving more impact than cycling, such as running or soccer. A little high-impact exercise can help prevent osteoporosis, experts say. CYCLING is terrific exercise, hitting the cardiovascular system and major muscle groups simultaneously -- but it may not be the best thing for building strong bones. Compared with male runners, male cyclists appear more likely to have lower-than-normal bone density.

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Working The Right Side Of The VO2Max Equation

October 11, 2007

Owen Andersen

Research Says That Hitting 100 Percent Of VO2Max Is Key

As a runner's maximal aerobic capacity (VO2max) increases, his/her performances generally improve. A novice runner can often enhance VO2max by 20 to 25 percent with as little as 12 weeks of running training; an experienced runner might boost VO2max by 4 to 7 percent in the same time frame, given the right workouts. Each 1-percent advance in VO2max can be linked with a one-half to 1 percent upgrade in race performances.

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Ball State Study Finds That Top Distance Runners Stay Healthier Longer

5th Oct 2007

By Marc Ransford

It may sound simple, but exercise — particularly the strenuous workouts of highly competitive distance runners — contributes to a healthy, long-lasting life, says research from a new Ball State study.

The first longitudinal study of the performances of elite distance runners found the cardiovascular and respiratory systems of such highly trained individuals decline at a slower rate over time as compared to moderately trained and untrained individuals.

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The Mechanics Of Max Running Speed

September 26, 2007

Owen Andersen

New Research From Finland "Brakes" It Down

Most athletes who run (and most coaches of athletes who run) would like to create training which optimizes maximal running velocity. After all, scientific research reveals that max running speed is an excellent predictor of competitive performance among endurance runners (1). Plus, the optimization of max velocity has obvious advantages for sprinters and soccer players.

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