Best leg lengths for a runner and biker?
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2015-01-24 6:10 PM |
643 | Subject: Best leg lengths for a runner and biker? I had this question in my head for a while: What's the "best" leg setup for a person for a runner and a biker? I seem to remember the optimal runner and biker body profile to be different. I say this because a friend is the same height as me but my knee is about an inch higher but we both wear 32inch pants. He's slower than me but is also married with two kids so it's not apples to apples comparison at all. I guess my question is, is there a natural preference to someone with more legs than upper body and is it better to have longer thighs or calves? Obviously nothing we can do to change who we are but I'm just curious. |
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2015-01-25 1:46 PM in reply to: 0 |
Veteran 2842 Austin, Texas | Subject: RE: Best leg lengths for a runner and biker? Originally posted by Blastman I had this question in my head for a while: What's the "best" leg setup for a person for a runner and a biker? I seem to remember the optimal runner and biker body profile to be different. I say this because a friend is the same height as me but my knee is about an inch higher but we both wear 32inch pants. He's slower than me but is also married with two kids so it's not apples to apples comparison at all. I guess my question is, is there a natural preference to someone with more legs than upper body and is it better to have longer thighs or calves? Obviously nothing we can do to change who we are but I'm just curious. Would be curious to hear if anyone has done a study on it (and it's too much work for me to ask the Google!). Actually, I'm going to dig around a bit and see. Of particular interest to me, as I have odd proportions - long torso and short legs (on a not exactly tall body to start). A flight surgeon once said to me, "So, God cheated you out of your legs... but that's OK, as at least you probably won't break them both when you eject." (apologies to those who've heard that story before) Always wondered, as I've progressed in the different disciplines at different rates (for similar effort, as near as I can tell), if that was part of it. Probably a small part, if at all, but interesting! Matt ETA: Did some looking. Found relatively few scholarly articles (not many people giving grant money to studies confirming that thin, muscular, long limbed beasts are fast, I guess), but a few links that were at least interesting. Mostly, there's no clear answer, as there are lots of exceptions to any rule - and apparently more so in triathlon than in many other sports (again, not a surprise given the nature of the event). Seems most land on a lean, average proportioned person (thick ectomorph or thin mesomorph - take your pick), but lean and "averagely" proportioned (with maybe a nod to long limbs for size) might be in the eye of the beholder still! There are outliers (interesting thread on ST that referenced Matty Reid - who then commented on it as well... very cool), but he fits that build - just a taller version. Had hoped to see more about differences within each discipline, but one of the links below at least lays that out. Nothing about which is most important for tri - more that it's best to be well proportioned for all three rather than perfectly proportioned and purpose built for one (again, not high on the surprisometer). One interesting point was a suggestion that in ITU draft legal racing having a "runner's build" was best - more so than in non-drafting. LOTS of articles about losing weight and being skinny, but that's not the question (and *I* think that many of those miss the power-to-weight ratio thing and wrongly focus on just getting skinny - not to "Race Weight"). Would love to hear if others have more direct references or studies! http://www.insidescience.org/content/why-olympic-rowers-and-runners-have-different-physiques/752 http://triathlon.kiwi/Anthropometric%20Profiles%20of%20Elite%20Triathletes.pdf http://www.triathlonmag.com.au/training/36-training/7538-best-body-shape-for-winning-kona Edited by mcmanusclan5 2015-01-25 2:16 PM |
2015-01-25 3:51 PM in reply to: 0 |
Veteran 2842 Austin, Texas | Subject: RE: Best leg lengths for a runner and biker? Addition: "Dinosaur build" was recommended for cycling (all legs, no arms). Thought that was funny... Mostly saw "long femur, high power-to-weight" as "best." Exceptions all over the place, but that fits the TdF generalist - which is what most people associate with cycling (rightly so or not). Running was thin, thin, and thin. Not very helpful on leg length from what I found (although I was admittedly definitely tri-biased in skimming along through the interweb). Can you tell that I have some power washing on the honey-do list today?
ETA: best quote I've seen (or at least tied with, "When the hammer drops, the bull$h1t stops"): "Thus, individual successful performance is linked to discipline and talent rather than to a specific anthropometric profile." From this article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3944541/ And to the cycling specific question: "None of the strength, power, or anthropometric variables correlated significantly with TT laboratory performance." From this article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23238091 Ok, now I've got to move along... Edited by mcmanusclan5 2015-01-25 4:09 PM |
2015-01-25 4:31 PM in reply to: mcmanusclan5 |
643 | Subject: RE: Best leg lengths for a runner and biker? Thanks for research! I looked a little and couldn't really come up with anything and thought I'd ask. But it would make sense that given two people with equal training and equal V02Max, would one be "naturally" faster due to that person having a longer femar or a longer tabia and at what ratio? I'm sure the dinosaur build (awesome name, lol) would benefit a lot since you have less weight up top but that can be controlled via working out or not working out instead of being born that way. So many exceptions to the rule that it would be hard to say for sure. Going to keep looking randomly though. |
2015-01-25 11:08 PM in reply to: Blastman |
Pro 5892 , New Hampshire | Subject: RE: Best leg lengths for a runner and biker? I honestly don't think it really matters... Old school thought was the taller cyclists can generate more power, but that has been debunked. It was also thought that longer legs should give runners an advantage. Well Rinny is one of the fastest (male or female!) runners and she's not a very tall person, nor does she have very long legs. |
2015-01-26 6:55 AM in reply to: audiojan |
Master 8247 Eugene, Oregon | Subject: RE: Best leg lengths for a runner and biker? Might make some marginal difference for sprints or middle distance, but for the distances usually run in tri (5 km to marathon) many of the world's top pure runners of both genders and various ethnicities are not only seriously skinny but rather short. You will find some top runners in the medium to slightly tall range but rarely larger than that--too much extra weight. Basically, they are incredible cardio systems on very resilient sticks, with a token upper body along for the ride, in most cases. |
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