Aerobic & Anaerobic Speed Training
Speed is vital in almost all sports ranging from long-distance running to basketball. Although speed plays a major role in determining your performance in a competition, agility, power, endurance and strength also influence your performance and skills, especially your susceptibility to injury and fatigue. Therefore, you need to train a combination of aerobic and anaerobic speed to maximize your abilities.
Although aerobic speed refers to relying on oxygen to produce energy, anaerobic speed -- without oxygen -- plays a critical role in your aerobic capacity. VO2max is one measurement of aerobic capacity, which is the maximum volume of oxygen that your muscles consume per minute, says running coach Jason Karp, Ph.D. Both types of speed training require a high VO2max to excel in performance, even though long-distance running and cycling may not seem to require high-intensity training. In a 2007 study published in "Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise," subjects who trained in high-intensity interval training at 90 to 95 percent of the maximum heart rate improved their VO2max significantly higher than those who performed moderate, steady-pace endurance exercise. Therefore, anaerobic speed training can improve your aerobic capacity to perform better in aerobic exercise.
Your body produces lactate as an alternative fuel source to delay fatigue when there isn't enough oxygen available, especially during high-intensity aerobic speed training. When the rate of lactate accumulation exceeds the rate of lactate removal from your blood, your body enter anaerobic threshold in which your body transitions from aerobic respiration to anaerobic respiration. Anaerobic threshold is one key measurement to determine speed endurance, which allows you to maintain speed and durability during endurance activities, such as the marathon and cycling. A high anaerobic threshold resists fatigue as long as your body have a steady supply of oxygen and carbohydrates to assist in fat metabolism, which provides a major source of fuel during endurance exercise. The last thing you need is a muscle cramp when you're about to cross the finish line.
Strength and Speed
Don't ignore the benefits of hitting the weight room to improve anaerobic speed. High-intensity strength training can improve sprint performance when you accelerate. In a study published in "British Journal of Sports Medicine," 17 elite soccer players performed a strength training session of half squats followed by a bout of 10-meter shuttle runs and 10-meter sprints. Those who were able to squat the most amount of weight had the shortest time in both running tests. However, having maximal strength doesn't reduce VO2max.
Speed training and conditioning isn't a cookie-cutter program. Aerobic and anaerobic speed must be specific to the activity or sport in which you play. The movement patterns for speed in marathon running is very different than soccer and basketball. This training philosophy stems from the SAID principle -- specific adaptation to imposed demands -- which states that your body will adapt and get better at whatever you specifically train it to do. Therefore, marathon runners should have balance between aerobic and anaerobic speed training and should focus primarily on steady forward motion and stride of running with a few lateral and cutting and turning movements to avoid obstacles on the road. Basketball and soccer players need to focus more on anaerobic speed while conditioning themselves to maneuver in different directions quickly and safely.
- Sports Fitness Advisor: Speed Training Section
- Athletics Weekly: Using Oxygen Effectively
- Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise: Aerobic High-Intensity Intervals Improve VO2max More Than Moderate Training
- British Journal of Sports Medicine: Strong Correlation of Maximal Squat Strength With Sprint Performance and Vertical Jump Height in Elite Soccer Players
- Run Coach Jason: An In-Depth Look at Lactate Threshold
- Better Movement: The SAID Principle
- Sports Fitness Advisor: Speed Endurance
- Doug Pensinger/Getty Images Sport/Getty Images