preview

Endurance Training Essay

Decent Essays

Endurance plays a major role in many athletic activities. Without endurance training, many athletes would not be able to compete in their respective sports. Endurance training involves low resistance and high repetitions, but what exactly does this do to your body and how does it do it? For starters, endurance training increases the level of certain aerobic enzymes, which are needed for the breakdown of fuels to produce energy. Enzymes are proteins that speed up metabolic reactions; they release and transfer energy. Enzymes are influenced by many factors: 1) Temperature- activity is increased when the muscles are warm, therefore warming up before the actual activity is very important 2) Acidity- lower Ph levels …show more content…

Endurance training causes only limited gain in muscles. Muscles not involved in training may actually lose strength. However, there may be an increase in myofibrils, but no significant increase in muscle fibers. Evidence has shown that fast-twitch fibers take on oxidative capabilities and assume the properties of slow-twitch fibers. Long distance runners have as much as eighty- percent slow-twitch fibers. Training also causes an increase in the ability of fast-twitch fibers to utilize oxygen. Endurance training also affects cardiac performance. The most obvious change that training brings about is a decrease in heart rate at both resting and at a fixed intensity. The stroke volume at all levels of physical activity is increased. The leads to a decrease in blood pressure. There is also an increase in cardiac output; cardiac output is the primary determinant of oxygen transport. Respiratory performance is affected by endurance training. It increases the endurance of chest muscles, which minimizes the loss of respiratory performance. Training also reduces the time it takes to reach a steady breathing rate once the exercise has begun. The ventilatory demands are decreased for four reasons: 1) Increase in muscular efficiency 2) Decrease in ventilatory drive 3) Reduction in sensitivity of carotid chemorecptors 4) Lesser production of lactate Endurance training can cause changes in your endocrine/hormonal system. Studies have shown

Get Access