Energy System Training

I hope everyone is well motivated and being consistent in our efforts to reach our goals.  We are going to get into some scientific principles of training.  Energy system training to be specific.  There are generally two types of metabolism.  Those that tax primarily the aerobic system and those that tax the anaerobic system.  Now all activities, not just sports involve both systems.  However, usually one system is more dominant than the other.

We get energy from food sources which the body will convert into ATP which is necessary for muscle contractions and nerve transmission.  The system that we are using will determine how the body produces the ATP that will be used.  The phosphagen and glycolysis stages are used mostly for anaerobic metabolism as this will provide ATP the fastest.  The Krebs Cycle and Electron Transport Chain (ETC) are used for the aerobic system because although it takes longer to produce the ATP, ultimately more of it is usable.  Now without getting into how ATP is made in each stage we can just discuss how this can help our training. 

We know exercise that taxes the aerobic system is longer duration and at a lower intensity because of the way the ATP is produced.  Anaerobic exercise will be short duration but at a much higher intensity because here we receive our ATP much quicker but in lesser quantities.  How can this influence our training for sport?  Be specific about which system is more dominant in your sport.  Do you sprint for 15 seconds and then usually recover or do you jog at a steady pace for a longer duration?  Once you know which system dominates your sport you can adjust your training to be more sports-specific.