Sunday 25 October 2015

Back to Basics Chapter 2 - ENERGY SYSTEMS

Hi all

Mark here from Alltone Fitness and BNG Boot Camp Reservoir. With Summer literally around the corner, now is the perfect time to try group personal training bundoora or our personal training mill park. Your first session is only $5 with no contracts or membership fee's. If group fitness bundoora is more for you then try out our heart pumping boot camp northern suburbs for only $2, hurry as spots are limited.

Chapter 2 of our back to basics blog series covers the energy systems of the human body. All human activity from running to sleeping requires energy. The food we eat provides us with the fuel we need to carry out daily activities we participate in. Fats, carbs and proteins are broken down in the body and converted into energy. The breakdown of food to produce energy can occur under two conditions. ANAEROBIC: Without sufficient oxygen present or  AEROBIC: With sufficient oxygen present.

Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) is the basic unit of energy in the body. ATP is energy which has been created in the muscle cell and is the fuel for muscular contractions. As ATP is constantly being used, it needs to continually be produced and resynthesised.There are only limited amounts of ATP stored in muscles, once this store is used up other energy systems must produce ATP. This is acheived via three main energy systems which brings us to the next energy system ready to help out.

Adenosine Triphosphate - Creatine Phosphate (ATP-CP)
Named afetr the two energy molecules involved in the system - ATP-CP. Creatine Phosphate is stored in muscles in small amounts, its role is to provide energy for ATP resynthesis in muscle cells when there isn't enough time to break down fuels such as glucose. There is no oxygen required in this system so it doesn't require a complex series of reactions. This is an important energy sysytem for exercises or sports which involve explosive and high intensity movements such as sprinting and pure strength training. This energy system is only available in short periods of time, usually around 0-10 seconds of max effort. Once this all out effort is to continue for more than 10 seconds then an additional source of energy must be found. This takes  us to the next energy system.

Lactic Acid System.
After creatine phosphate runs out and energy is still required to continue at high intensity, ATP can be supplied via the breakdown of carbs being glucose. This process is called anaerobic glycolysis, this is the breakdown of glycogen to glucose and produces lactic acid as a by product. All the cabs we consume are broken down to glucose, this glucose can be stored in the muscle cells and the liver in the form of glycogen. The lactic acid system energy system can sustain the anaerobic generation of ATP FOR 45-60 seconds at around 90% intensity. If a person is wanting to continue exercising beyond this point they can do so with use of the aerobic energy system.

Aerobic Energy System
This an extremely important energy system because we use it for everyday living. It is the system we use for everyday activities like walking.  Its called the aerobic system as it produces energy in the presence of oxygen. As the duration of exercise increases the muscles use more amounts of oxygen and produce carbon dioxide and water as by products. The breakdown of glucose in the presence of oxygen is called aerobic glycolysis The complete aerobic breakdown of 1 glucose molecule is able to produce a total of 36 ATP molecules.

 So next time your in the gym and feel the fatigue set in, remember that your body is going through a complex process while drawing upon different energy systems in order for you to keep working hard.

I hope you found this informative and useful

Mark - Alltone Fitness www.alltonefitness.com.au

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