Brewer - RUNNING SCIENCE: revealing the science of peak performance

Running and science While elite athletes work with scientists to maximize their performance, runners of any standard can help to fulfill their potential and run more healthily through the lessons learned from research.

At the same time, the sport of running has shown phenomenal growth, with many millions of people across the globe now taking part in a sport that for many years was confined to highly trained, elite runners. In particular, endurance running has become the domain of the normal person, with marathons and even ultramarathons now featuring individuals who in the past would never have competed in such events. This growth in mass participation running is fertile ground for running scientists, because these recreational runners still want to do as well as they can, even if they might not be standing on the podium at the end of their race. Many will not have a coach, but most will want to learn and appreciate how best to prepare and compete, and how to get the very best they can from their bodies. This is where science can help. It may not be able to turn a recreational runner into an Olympic champion, but science can help any runner to more from their performance, stop them making certain mistakes, and, above all, improve their enjoyment of the sport.

The scope for science to impact on running is immense. It can contribute to all running distances, from sprints to ultramarathons, and there are few, if any, areas of running where a better understanding and application of science cannot make a genuine and worthwhile difference. This book takes a closer look at all of these areas, firstly by better understanding the science of running, and then by demonstrating with practical illustrations and examples how this understanding can be used to enhance running performance.

John Brewer

The structure of our bodies, including bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments, is our anatomy, whereas physiology is the manner in which the body functions to create a living organism. The human body is a complex organism that constantly adapts and regulates itself to support life, with many systems interacting to ensure that it functions effectively. While human beings have evolved in a manner that means all of us have a similar generic structure, each individual differs as a result of their inherited genes. Science, however, has shown that we can make changes to our bodies, particularly through exercise. The body can adapt to the stimulus of running through positive changes to many of the anatomical structures and physiological processes that support life, and these changes can not only improve running performance, but could also create long-lasting health benefits.

Why do I get out of breath so easily?

In order to run, the body has to produce energy. This occurs as a result of the breakdown of either carbohydrate or fat within the muscles, and for low- and moderate-intensity running this process always uses oxygen. Approximately one-fifth of the air that we breathe into our lungs consists of oxygenthe rest is mainly nitrogen, along with small amounts of other gases such as carbon dioxide. Oxygen is transported across the membranes of the lungs to attach to hemoglobin in the blood. With each beat of the heart, oxygen-rich blood from the lungs is pumped to the exercising muscles, where it combines with fat or carbohydrate to produce energy. At the same time, blood that is low in oxygen is pumped away from the muscles and back to the lungs.

The amount of energy needed to run at any given speed will vary from one person to another, and this in turn determines how much oxygen the exercising muscles require. Someone who uses a lot of energyperhaps as a result of poor technique or a high body fat percentagewill need more oxygen, and be less efficient, or economical, than a runner with good technique and low energy expenditure. This is known as running economy and it has a real impact on performance.