Base endurance training

Vo2max Defined: For years V02max has been referred to as a gold standard of aerobic fitness. It is simply a physiological index that can be measured while you are exercising. The problem is that expensive equipment is needed to make the actual measurements, so the test is inaccessible to the public at large. During the […]

The concepts of VO2 kinetics and the O2 deficit Article at a glance: The concepts of VO2 kinetics and the O2 deficit are introduced; The importance of VO2 kinetics to exercise performance is explained; New research on interventions that influence VO2 kinetics is presented; Practical recommendations for enhancing VO2 kinetics and exercise performance are provided. […]

Oxygen kinetics – start smart for a mean finish! The way your body transports and uses oxygen during the initial stages of vigorous exercise might not sound very exciting, but new research suggests that understanding this process and adjusting your pre-race preparation accordingly can result in truly remarkable performance gains. Professor Andy Jones explains Endurance […]

To find out which level of intensity is right for you, first work out your intensity ‘domains’ If you are serious about training at the right intensity, or find that the sessions set for you are too easy or too difficult, then perhaps you aren’t ‘normalising’ your intensity correctly. When training programmes for endurance athletes […]

Why long, slow training runs may be best after all For some time now, experts have been downgrading the value of long slow workouts for endurance runners in favour of briefer bouts of high intensity exercise. But now a Spanish study, which followed eight well-trained sub-elite endurance runners during the six-month lead-up to their national […]

Everything you need to know about running technique Some things about running are pretty obvious. By now, nearly everyone knows that running 1200- and 1600-metre intervals at 95% VO2max (5K speed) is a good way to improve maximal aerobic capacity. Almost all runners know that completing two-mile intervals at 10K velocity is great for lactate-threshold […]

The quickest way to get your fitness back after a lay-off is to find a three-minute hill! Let’s say that things are going really well with your training. You’re steadily getting fitter and racing faster as you get ready for that big race in a couple of months. But then – disaster strikes! Your Achilles […]

What are the absolute limits to human performance levels? Everything’s up to date in Kansas City – they’ve gone about as far as they can go! The song in question, in a musical set in the 1890s, was actually written a hundred years later; the irony lay in the hindsight. In each generation over the […]

Adenosine triphosphate is often called the universal energy donor, but a better label would be the body’s ‘primary energy currency’ Phosphocreatine: Your body’s primary energy currency Adenosine triphosphate is often called the universal energy donor, but a better label would be the body’s ‘primary energy currency’ When your muscles need energy, your body knows three […]

The day of the two-hour marathon It is May 6, 2024. London Marathon day. The date set by Lord Bedford of Shaftesbury after detailed discussions with the Ministry of Climate Control. The day when running 42.2 kilometres should be perfect. Millions are gathered around the course, and a battery of television cameras are focused on […]