Are you built for Speed or Endurance?
likitisplit
Posts: 9,420 Member
I got the "Coach" special issue of Runner's World magazine, which has some amazing tidbits.
One is a test to see the composition of your muscle fibers - whether you have more fast twitch fibers (speed) or slow twitch fibers (endurance)
What you do is find your 1-rep-max with either leg presses or bench presses.
1) Warm up with 10 reps with a light weight.
2) Do 5 reps with medium-heavy weights
3) Do 5 reps with heavy weights. Progressively increase the weight until you've reached your limit. That's your 1-rep-max. Try to find this within 8 tries to avoid fatigue.
4) Recover for 5 minutes.
5) Find 75% of your 1-rep-max.
6) Lift this weight as many times as you can.
Results:
1-8 reps - Strength athlete: Sprints, weight lifting, jumping and throwing sports. Training: Short intervals with full recovery. 6-8 reps when strength training.
9-11 reps - Combination athlete: races of 5ks to 10ks; shorter duathlons and triathlons; tennis; rowing and stage cycling. Training: long runs of 10 - 30k, intervals of 200 to 1500m with recovery, 8-12 reps when strength training.
12 reps - Endurance athlete: races of 10k to marathons, ultramarathons, triathlons, distance swimming, cross country skiing. Training: Long runs. Longer intervals with shorter recovery breaks, 12 to 14 reps when strength training.
My results: Having misread the instructions, I did 11 reps at my 1 rep max (which sound strange, but when I increased the weight 5 pounds, I couldn't move it at all). When I decreased it to 75% of my 1 rep max weight, I could do it all day. It was a recumbent leg press machine, but I could have easily done 30, so I think I'm a solid "endurance athlete" (hahaha). However, I think I'm going to target the 10k to half marathon range because that's what interests me the most. Nice long runs that don't push you past glycogen depletion. So it's about running, not about either fueling or sprinting.
One is a test to see the composition of your muscle fibers - whether you have more fast twitch fibers (speed) or slow twitch fibers (endurance)
What you do is find your 1-rep-max with either leg presses or bench presses.
1) Warm up with 10 reps with a light weight.
2) Do 5 reps with medium-heavy weights
3) Do 5 reps with heavy weights. Progressively increase the weight until you've reached your limit. That's your 1-rep-max. Try to find this within 8 tries to avoid fatigue.
4) Recover for 5 minutes.
5) Find 75% of your 1-rep-max.
6) Lift this weight as many times as you can.
Results:
1-8 reps - Strength athlete: Sprints, weight lifting, jumping and throwing sports. Training: Short intervals with full recovery. 6-8 reps when strength training.
9-11 reps - Combination athlete: races of 5ks to 10ks; shorter duathlons and triathlons; tennis; rowing and stage cycling. Training: long runs of 10 - 30k, intervals of 200 to 1500m with recovery, 8-12 reps when strength training.
12 reps - Endurance athlete: races of 10k to marathons, ultramarathons, triathlons, distance swimming, cross country skiing. Training: Long runs. Longer intervals with shorter recovery breaks, 12 to 14 reps when strength training.
My results: Having misread the instructions, I did 11 reps at my 1 rep max (which sound strange, but when I increased the weight 5 pounds, I couldn't move it at all). When I decreased it to 75% of my 1 rep max weight, I could do it all day. It was a recumbent leg press machine, but I could have easily done 30, so I think I'm a solid "endurance athlete" (hahaha). However, I think I'm going to target the 10k to half marathon range because that's what interests me the most. Nice long runs that don't push you past glycogen depletion. So it's about running, not about either fueling or sprinting.
0
Replies
-
I'm definitely and squarely in the endurance group. I joke with my young friend who runs half marathons at a 6:30 mile pace that I was born WITHOUT fast twitch muscles.0
-
My DNA says I am more inclined to sprinting. Unfortunately I don't have enough weight at home to come close to maxing out a bench press or leg press. In a few month's time I have quickly outgrown the weights we bought for most exercises (guess that enforces the fast-twitch muscle theory).
Nevertheless, I am working up to half-marathon distance by September. I'll probably stay at that distance for a while as I build speed before hopefully doing a full marathon sometime in later 2014.0 -
Very interesting! I would be willing to bet huge amounts of money that I fall into the endurance category. I am pretty sure I'm fast twitchless! I do want to get faster (I'd be thrilled with a 10 min pace), but distance is my goal.0
-
My lack of fast twitch fibers was one of my main excuses for not wanting to be a runner.
Hahahahahahaha!0 -
My lack of fast twitch fibers was one of my main excuses for not wanting to be a runner.
Hahahahahahaha!
Mine, too!0
This discussion has been closed.