Aghast wrote:
Longer legs, longer stride, more strength, same stride rate = faster time
The key to this is more strength. Anyone that understands sprinting understands you want to put more steps down and have fast turnover because it's about accelerating, not just velocity of running.
Races like 10ks take the acceleration factor out of the equation which is why you don't need incredible strength to run that fast. It's also why longer strides work for longer distance runners because it's about turnover that's sustainable with the longest strides.
Sprints are about power mostly. Long strides mean you have to put more power down per stride to accelerate yourself at the same rate. You cover more ground, but you have less of a chance to push off that ground and accelerate rather than just maintain velocity.
This principle has always goverened sprinting. If you want to run faster (sprint) to kick in a 10k, you shorten your stride, lean forward, and increase your turnover. You're attempting to put more power down over the same distance rather than maintaining your velocity.
It's the problem that "Nuh Uh Bolt's not a doper!" people have. He defies wisdom on sprinting.
This theory guides sprinting up until acceleration doesn't control the event some tranistion around 400m. Which is where you start seeing skinnier runners (because it's not about power and acceleration). Nearly everyone in the 100m and 200m races are jacked because it's POWER that governs that race. You want more strides.