BIOMECHANICAL MODELING OF HUMAN MOTION WITH APPLICATIONS TO SPRINT AND DISTANCE RUNNING

Abstract

An athlete may be near exhaustion because his muscles have depleted their supply of ATP, and oxidation and glycolysis have not yet been able to replenish the muscles with their primary source of energy. In order that the time relations of these processes offer some practical hints, a simplified "pay-off" theory for the "best" possible way to reach a desired velocity is examined, in terms of its physical appropriateness and mathematical foundation. The derivation of the basic equations under quite general assumptions is provided. A discussion of the physical interpretation of the state and control parameters is given, and a solution of typical simplified problems is obtained.