Running is one of the most common forms of exercise with minimal equipment needed. It has been a popular form of either hobby, recreational sport, or performance-based competitive sport for many. Running is also a significant performance indicator for many team-based or individual sport such as football, soccer, basketball etc.
It is not uncommon for many to perform many individual or at times unique pre run activities to physically prepare themselves for running. The main aims of these activities are to prepare the body physically for optimal performance and to prevent injuries. This is a great concept. However, every warmup or pre-training activity must be specifically targeted towards the physiological demands of the exercise or sport. Hence running must be treated as a unique sport and every individual must undertake physical activation protocol more commonly known withing the scientific community as post activation potentiation (PAP).
What is Post Activation Potentiation (PAP)?
PAP is a physiological factor that improve power production of an individual following a bout of loaded exercise that is similar to the movement pattern of the desired activity or sport. For example, a loaded glute exercise prior running can improve muscular force production of the glute for running performance. However, the loaded exercise must be specific to the desired movement. For example, a loaded glute exercise such as banded clams and split squat will improve power output of the lower limb for running performance not overhead log press. Currently there are plenty of research reporting the benefits of loaded exercise eliciting the potentiation response to improve running performance.
Benefits of PAP
Current research has established a strong correlation between athletic performance and muscular power output of an individual. An individual can improve many factors of their running performance by executing the right PAP exercise at the right phase of their training. Majority of force production from long distance running comes from the muscles of hips, knees and ankle performing hip flexion & extension, knee flexion & extension and ankle dorsiflexion & plantarflexion among other lower limb movements. The correct PAP protocol can improve power output of these muscle groups thus improving stride length, air time, ground contact time among other factors. Current evidence shows repetitive over utilisation of a specific muscle group performing a movement pattern compensating for another weaker muscle group can significantly increase the risk of injury. For example, an individual with weaker ankle or calf muscle in plantarflexion can overload the hamstring in knee flexion and increase the risk of hamstring injury. Similarly, weaker glute muscle in hip extension can increase the risk of lower back pain or knee pain. Hence, an individual must be correctly assessed by an experience professional that has good understanding of one’s athletic demands and specific goals and develop the right PAP protocol at that point in time.
The Most Common Protocols for PAP
The exercises selected to induce potentiation must be specific to the desired movement pattern. The movement demands of the lower limbs for running have been discussed previously. Current research evidence provides a diverse range of exercise selection at varying intensity with a range of rest time before the primary activity. It is recommended that muscle groups such as glutes in hip extension and lateral stability, hamstring performing knee flexion in forward propulsion and extension in deceleration, and calf muscles performing plantar flexion and dorsiflexion can be considered. The load consideration should be similar to the demand of the task. For example, higher intensity exercises such 3RM squat or loaded split squat for sprint performance compared to high volume glute clams, glute bridges for long distance running. The rest time prior performing the task based on current research can be between 3-12 minutes for optimal potentiation. It is important to consider that the PAP must not induce fatigue that impacts the net performance of the running.
The primary goal of any activation protocol for any forms of running should always be to develop performance capacity for an individual and reduce the risk of injury from running. It is important to choose the right activation protocol at the right time for the right person after a thorough assessment by an experienced professional.