Goal 4 - Improve Your Neuromuscular Conditioning

Your muscles will not work unless you tell them to. You communicate with your muscles through the vast network of nerves and nerve receptors in your body. It is just like phone lines. Your nerves are like the phone and cable lines that run underground. Your nerve receptors, which are located in your muscles, are like the individual phones. A signal in sent from your brain, routed through your network of nerves and arrives at its intended nerve receptor in your muscle. You muscle then carries out whatever command was sent.

This neuromuscular system needs to be trained and strengthened just like your muscles, bones and tendons. Many of your initial strength and endurance gains are related to neuromuscular conditioning. Before you start training you may have a limited number of nerve receptors that are activated. Training will activate or “wake up” more of those receptors. More active receptors will improve your endurance and make you stronger.

You can improve your neuromuscular conditioning in several ways:

Progressive Long Runs

Increasing the distance of your long runs will activate more receptors and improve your endurance. It will also improve the “fatigue resistance” of your neuromuscular system. When your muscles begin to accumulate minor damage due to the repetitive impact of running, a signal is sent to your brain that damage is occurring. Your neuromuscular system responds by limiting the signals sent to your muscles. In effect, they begin to “shut down” your muscles to prevent further damage. Progressively longer runs will condition your central nervous system to allow signals to continue even in the presence of minor muscle damage.

Goal Pace Running

If you are planning on racing your marathon or if you want to run at a specific pace you should always include goal pace running. Your neuromuscular system will become more efficient at communicating that specific pace to your muscles. Your body will learn the pace and you will become a much more efficient runner at that pace.

High Intensity Running

When you run faster your muscles must learn to react at a faster pace. Slow, easy running does not do a very good job at training your neuromuscular system for fast running. Including high intensity running will fine tune your neuromuscular system and make you a more efficient runner at all speeds, including slow, easy running.

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