Naomi Miller

Online Walking and Jogging

Mr. Schumacher

Based on this article, do you feel it is more important to prescribe workload intensities based on
max efforts or by lactate threshold? Explain your opinion in detail.
I feel that it depends on the situation, where in some the lactate threshold is better and others where
the VO2 Max is best. When you are trying to improve your ability to perform exercises that push the
lactate threshold, such as distance running, it is best to follow the guidelines of the guidelines of lactate
threshold. This is because the lactate threshold is more accurate for distance activities, because it is not
as affected by outside factors, and because studies have shown it to be more accurate for such
activities. However, if you are doing an exercise such as sprinting a short distance, Vo2 Max is more
important in my opinion. This is because, for shorter distances, the lactate threshold would take to long
to reach in order to be as important in a race. Therefore, if you are training to sprint, it is better to judge
your training times based off of your Vo2 max times, which are derived from your race times.
What is your opinion on using the term anaerobic threshold for lactate threshold?
Based on the information from this article, I believe that the term isnt completely accurate and
should rather be replaced with the term lactate threshold. This is because not only does it mis-
describe the way the systems function, but it does not fully describe the lactate threshold as well. It only
suggests that theres anaerobic respiration, when theres much more going on. When you reach the
lactate threshold, which is an indication that your body isnt removing lactate as fast as it is produced,
your body is using more fast-twitch muscles, and there is an imbalance between glycolysis mitochondrial
respiration- much more than anaerobic respiration. Also, while to some degree its true that the body
begins to use anaerobic energy systems when it hits this threshold, its not true that its the only system
being used; the anaerobic systems are simply being used to help the aerobic systems.