Is there any benefit to living and running at 4,000 feet versus sea level?
Is there any benefit to living and running at 4,000 feet versus sea level?
BYU seems to make it work.
GWT wrote:
BYU seems to make it work.
Good point.
Does anyone has a more scientific contribution?
No.
If you live there the difference is not that big to sea level. You might get a little slower over time because of less leg turnover but the effect is probably minimal. You will have that more in 6-8000ft.
4000ft is also not high enough for an altitude running camp. There is just not differential to sea level.
Also not scientific but based on evidence.
I could feel a difference for a couple of weeks from running in Las Vegas where I grew up (2000') vs BYU where I went to school (4600').
Yes there is a benefit. Take a look at a DA calculator that drag racers use. Other factors besides elevation can change the air density above 4000ft too.
This is completely anecdotal but at 4,000 feet, I can tell a difference from home (1,0000 feet) but just barely. I had a few college teammates from about 4,000 feet and they seemed to come back after the summers in pretty good shape. I think it has a slight benefit, but like all higher altitudes that benefit can be offset by fatigue if you are not careful to temper yourself while you acclimate which i think could be hardest at 4,000 feet because the difference is so slight
Thanks for the feedback and info.
A slight benefit for sure and the assumption would be that you would have easier, more-frequent access to time spent at higher altitudes, yes?
Painted wrote:
A slight benefit for sure and the assumption would be that you would have easier, more-frequent access to time spent at higher altitudes, yes?
Very slight benefit, I would think. It's probably more mental than anything.
To feel a real difference you need to get up to 6-7,000ft.
If you live there you will have an advantage for higher up stuff.
I think everyone knows that it's living at altitude, not training up there, that produces the adaptation. Anyway, people have sometimes run pretty fast times, even for longer races, at around 4,000ft/1,200m. It may be that the slightly-reduced oxygen is offset by lower air resistance.
But yeah, in general there will be an effect but a slight one. Altitude effects are exponential and not linear, which is why the difference between, say, 5,000ft and 7,500ft is noticeably greater than the difference between 5,000 and 2,000.
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