Anaerobic/Lactate Threshold Training

        Have you ever tried running as fast as you can for a mile or two!? After a few minutes, your legs and arms start getting heavy, and then your legs start burning. You start to slow down gradually as your legs feel like they are cement blocks no matter how bad you fight it. This occurs because of the lactic acid build up in your blood?

       

        Your anaerobic system is how your body creates energy without the presence of oxygen.1 When your body doesn’t have enough oxygen to make energy lactic acid is created as a by-product. Lactic and the hydrogen ion is what causes muscle fatigue. The extra hydrogen ion’s raise the ph level in the muscle cells. Lactic is used to provide energy, but is done so at a slow rate. You can train your body at specific level that helps delay the onset of lactic and hydrogen ion’s in your body. The training involved is called anaerobic threshold or lactate threshold training and is right before your body switches from the aerobic system to the anaerobic system.2 After knowing your vVO2 max you can go for a lactate threshold run at 85-90% of your vVO2 max for your chosen duration. Depending on experience, the longer duration you run, the closer you want to be towards 85% and the shorter duration spent running the closer you want to be towards 90%. Everybody has a different lactate threshold and the less experienced you are the lower your lactate threshold will be. Your lactate threshold should be a hard effort, not uncomfortable; a pace to where you can say a word or two, and hold for a few miles without going all out.2 The goal of lactate threshold training is to move the lactate curve to the right so you can run at a faster pace before your body starts to accumulate lactate.

 

As you can see there is specific training to help improve your performance when you are wanting to see how fast you can run for a mile or two. Lactate threshold training should only be done 2-3 times a week. Since this type of training is a hard effort your body needs time to recover from the workout.   

       

1 Vigil, J. I. (1995). Road To The Top. Albuquerque, NM: Creative Designs

2 Larkin, D. (2014, March 17). Lactate Threshold: What it is and How Do You Leverage it in Training? Retrieved January 29, 16, from http://running.competitor.com/2014/03/training/lactate-threshold-leverage-training_96998