Move Fitness May Newsletter

Ever since I was a little kid I was fascinated by sprinters. I remember watching the 1968 Olympics and being in awe of how quickly the athletes could cover 100 meters. Okay, truth be told, I was also in awe of the statement made on the medal stand by Tommie Smith and John Carlos. A film has been made about it. You can watch the trailer here. But I digress.

More than 40 years later I'm still in love with sprinting because it's beautiful to watch and it has practical value. If you're being chased by a rabid dog or an Uzi toting psycho, you need to haul ass. In those situations a slow steady jog will get you only one thing: dead. Not to mention that sprinting burns calories at a ridiculously high rate and can help you build strength. On a superficial note, which body would you rather have: a sprinter's or a marathoner's? I rest my case.

And yet most people who run, insist on the slow steady jog. I know countless marathoners, but virtually nobody who goes out to run sprints. I'm not sure why this is as running fast is exhilarating not to mention way more efficient than running slow. Maybe we've read the fable about the tortoise and the hare one too many times.

In any event, I recently read an awesome post about sprinting at Fitness Spotlightand I wanted to share a few of the author's key points here. Perhaps they will inspire you to go out and rev up your engine.

How quickly you cover ground comes down to:

Stride Length x Stride Frequency

To increase your stride length you need to be more powerful. Think about cheetahs, pronghorn antelopes, and wildebeests.

To increase your stride length most folks try to reach further out with their foot. Wrong! This causes a breaking action that will actually slow you down. What can help, however, is increased strength in your glutes and hamstrings as you want to push the ground away from you with more force. Barbell squats and deadlifts are a good choice as are certain plyometric drills. If these exercises are new to you work with a qualified trainer before attempting them on your own.

Punk Rope, which playfully mashes up recess and boot camp, requires little equipment, involves no choreography, and is not fueled by traditional "fitness" music. Punk Rope is about honoring our innate desire to play, building community, and celebrating the power and spirit of rock and roll. Punk Rope is for everybody, from young children to senior citizens, and it happens everywhere from community centers to college rec centers to health clubs to schools to skating rinks and beyond.

You can learn more about Punk Rope at www.punkrope.com. We'll be featuring a June class! Register Now