Train Your Body to Run Farther
Exercises to Support Your Slow-Twitch Muscle Fibers
I’ve never loved the name “slow-twitch” muscle fibers. The word “slow,” in and of itself, doesn’t carry much of a positive connotation, especially in today’s society (something that I also don’t love). So to call a muscle fiber “slow-twitch” implies a delayed response.
Here’s the thing. Slow-twitch muscle fibers are designed for endurance. While the name may carry less glamour as its fast-twitch counterpart (you can read more about them here), you cannot train your legs to run farther without focusing on this hub of fibers that possess a high density of capillaries, which help bring blood to the muscles.
Yes, the slow-twitch muscle fibers generate less power and strength than the fast-twitch fibers, but they are much slower to fatigue. During aerobic activity, these fibers are activated to provide energy to the body. Without their ability to re-fire over and over and over again, your muscles would burn out, making it nearly impossible to continue in an assertive state.
Fun fact. Slow-twitch muscle fibers, in a healthy body, are not delayed to respond. At all. In fact, your body accesses slow-twitch muscle fibers first. If what you are doing demands more power than the slow-twitch fibers are able to generate, then the fast-twitch fibers are recruited for additional assistance.
It’s important to note that every muscle possesses some of each type of fiber. We could not look at your exposed quad with definitive certainty about a ratio of slow- to fast-twitch fibers. The ratio is impacted by genes and your choice of activities.
The really interesting part?
You are never actually gaining or losing muscle fibers.
While scientists believe that fibers are split about 50/50 between slow- and fast-twitch muscles for the general population, they also know that some of the fibers are actually hybrid fibers.
What does that mean?
You can train these hybrid fibers into functioning as you need them to function in order to support your lifestyle (gawd, the body is so cool). And this is exactly why I focus as much on mobility as I do strength in the TL Method.
So, you want to run farther? Great. Your protocol should be to train for your specific fitness goal and trust that your muscle fibers will adapt.
Aside from a definitive endurance-related program, here are four exercises that you can easily do at home to support your slow-twitch fibers:
Passive Squat to Forward Fold
Sit down with your butt in between your heels and your toes pointing out. Take an inhale at your lowest passive squat and then on your exhale point your toes forward and find a forward fold. Use your breath and go slow.
Scorpion
Lying flat down on your stomach, creating a T with your arms, slowly roll from one side to the other, rotate around your body and feel a stretch in the front of your shoulders and hip flexor.
Bent Over YTA
Hinge forward from your hips with your feet about hip width distance apart. Keep your gaze slightly in front of you. Lift arms in front of body to shoulder height at a 45-degree angle keeping thumbs up (palms facing each other) and pinching shoulder blades back and down (Y). Move arms straight out to side with thumbs up (T). Move arms to the side of the body with thumbs up, retract and depress shoulder blades (A).
Dead Hangs
Use a secure overhead bar. Use a step or bench so you can easily reach the bar with your arms. You don’t want to jump straight into a dead hang. Grip the bar with an overhand grip (palms facing away from you). Aim to keep your arms shoulder-width apart.Move your feet off the step or bench so you’re hanging on to the bar. Keep your arms straight. Don’t bend your arms and stay relaxed. Hang for 10 seconds if you’re new to the exercise. Work your way up to 45 seconds to 1 minute at a time.
Whether or not you want to run farther for fun or you’re trying to increase mileage to run a competitive race, the strength and mobility portions have equal importance to the physical running. If the cardio comes easier to you and you’re struggling to create a consistent routine, I get it. I created the TL Method to provide full-circle support.
If you’re interested in a free week of workouts, fill out the form below, and don’t forget to check out my tips for increasing speed here.