Abstract
The economy of running has traditionally been quantified from the mass-specific oxygen uptake; however, because fuel substrate usage varies with exercise intensity, it is more accurate to express running economy in units of metabolic energy. Fundamentally, the understanding of the major factors that influence the energy cost of running (Erun) can be obtained with this approach. Erun is determined by the energy needed for skeletal muscle contraction. Here, we approach the study of Erun from that perspective. The amount of energy needed for skeletal muscle contraction is dependent on the force, duration, shortening, shortening velocity, and length of the muscle. These factors therefore dictate the energy cost of running. It is understood that some determinants of the energy cost of running are not trainable: environmental factors, surface characteristics, and certain anthropometric features. Other factors affecting Erun are altered by training: other anthropometric features, muscle and tendon properties, and running mechanics. Here, the key features that dictate the energy cost during distance running are reviewed in the context of skeletal muscle energetics.
Highlights
Importance of energy cost to run (Erun) to Distance Running PerformanceEndurance running performance is determined by a combination of physiological, anthropometric, and biomechanical factors
We review the general factors that influence the energy cost of running, and try to put them into the context of understanding the role that muscle contraction and muscle energetics plays in contributing to variability in the Erun
In further support the cost of generating force hypothesis, several authors have shown an inverse relationship between Erun and ground contact time (Williams and Cavanagh, 1987; Chapman et al, 2012; Di Michelle and Merni, 2014). These results suggest the speed-associated increase in Erun is a result of the elevated muscle energy cost associated with generating greater peak forces over a shorter period of time
Summary
Human Performance Laboratory, Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada. Erun is determined by the energy needed for skeletal muscle contraction. The amount of energy needed for skeletal muscle contraction is dependent on the force, duration, shortening, shortening velocity, and length of the muscle. These factors dictate the energy cost of running. It is understood that some determinants of the energy cost of running are not trainable: environmental factors, surface characteristics, and certain anthropometric features. Other factors affecting Erun are altered by training: other anthropometric features, muscle and tendon properties, and running mechanics. The key features that dictate the energy cost during distance running are reviewed in the context of skeletal muscle energetics
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