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bruceprice wrote:
Thank for the responses 1 Man Island and Batman!
Most importantly, Batman- my deepest sympathies with your family situation. That's a lot to handle at age 33 (or any age) and I wish your wife a very swift recovery.
There's really no graceful way to segue back into our relatively trivial conversation but I hope your training is keeping you sane during trying times.
The fact that you both are well over 200 lbs raises an interesting question about the ideal size for a runner. Everyone knows that strength relative to body weight is crucial and provided you stay lean, I would think that ratio should increase the more muscle you add. The average sprinter however seems to be about 6-0, 185... so clearly at some point extra muscle becomes a negative.
I guess upper body muscle is only needed to the extent that the arms/shoulders counteract torso rotation so a 400lb bench press isn't necessary and just burdens the legs with more weight to carry. And sprinters' legs, at least compared to body builders, are pretty slender so maybe massive muscles create too heavy a lever to move quickly.
Anyway, I'm fairly close to the ideal size- maybe 15 more lbs of muscle, 5lbs less fat, and slighly lighter frame.... but even with that I'd never be a 10sec guy or even an 11sec guy so clearly there's more at play.
The fact that you can move that fast at 230lb is pretty impressive, Batman. Have you ever tried a 100m or 200m at 100% effort? Sounds to me like you'd be around 12.5 and 26. I think I may have asked you in the other thread what your times were like when you first started and you didn't remember. I guess I'm looking for someone to tell me that they started out slow and made steady progress because that would keep me motivated. Well, looking forward to hearing future updates from each of you.
Thanks for the kind words regarding my wife. It's tough, but it's amazing what you can handle when you have no choice.
As I mentioned in the other thread, I ran a hand timed 100 in 12 and change. Bodyweight was closer to 205# at the time though (I've got a fairly big/heavy frame). Never done a timed max effort 200. Also, my training/progression was way to haphazard to offer a time-line. Like I said though, I made a quantum leap when I (semi)figured out good sprint mechanics. Gains thereafter came much more slowly.
If you can afford it and it's important enough to you, I suggest investing in a reputable weekend "speed camp" of some kind where someone who knows their onions can break down your stride and make corrections. You may find it helps get you moving noticeably faster. Failing that there is lots of free info out there, but there is something about having somebody else evaluate what you're doing (and preferably reviewing video with you) that you can't get reading and practicing on your own. Our perceptions are skewed and we what we think we are doing often bears little resemblance to what we are actually doing.
All the best.
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