Aerobic Training Development for Rugby

By Frederick Claro




Aerobic endurance (where the energy necessary for muscular contraction relies on an
oxidative metabolism as opposed to anaerobic, where the energy is produced without the
presence of oxygen) is the foundation of most sports. Why, because as soon as a physical
effort is lasting more than roughly a minute, the aerobic pathway will steadily take over
the energy production for the contracting muscles. Very few sport activities are 100%
anaerobic (effort produced without the need for oxygen), and these sports are explosive
and not lasting more than a few seconds such as Olympic weight lifting, diving, and some
track & field disciplines like the 100m sprint, and most throwing disciplines. Even
though these sports are purely from an alactic built range of efforts, some good aerobic
capacity will help these athletes to recover faster between bouts and between training
sessions.

All team sports heavily rely on a strong aerobic base for the players to perform at their
optimum potential. In most instances, team sports will proceed through bursts of high
intensity muscular activity very specific to each of the sports, with the game being
intermittently stopped mainly when the ball is out of play or players are requiring medical
attention. Rugby is the typical example of a power sport played intermittently and where
an increased level of fatigue will affect the players technically, tactically and
psychologically. For those who still didnt really realize it: your enemy is not the
opposition butthe fatigue induced by high intensity play, which being mostly
anaerobically developed will leave muscles and blood flooded with excess lactic acid, the
inevitable byproduct of prolonged and/or repetitive anaerobic efforts.

As mentioned in another fact sheet in this section about endurance training, rugby players
must be able to sustain repetitively during 80 minutes, bouts of sub-maximal and
maximal intensity efforts. If anaerobic endurance is paramount, aerobic endurance will
help players to last the full game in minimizing the negative effects of fatigue as it is
known that all factor being equal, the last experiencing the least fatigue specifically at the
end of the game, has the greater chances of winning the game

If we categorize rugby through the work it physiologically generates or its ergo-genesis
in an 80 minutes format, we find that motion analysis studies have shown rugby to be:
60% aerobic
30% anaerobic lactic
10% anaerobic alactic

In extensio a high aerobic endurance will:
Help players repay the oxygen debt which occurred after high intensity efforts
during resting times
Help players to recover quicker during shorter recovery time through an increased
volume of O2 brought to the blood and the muscles cells
Help players to recover faster between training session and games

How do players develop their aerobic capacity?

By training smartly to increase their maximum O2 uptake also called VO2max. It is
expressed in ml/kg/min (milliliters of O2 per kg of body weight and per minute). It is a
very good idea for a player or a coach to know individual VO2max as it will help as a
reference to develop it further. A normal, non trained male adult has a VO2max between
36 and 40 ml/kg/min. It is considered today that rugby players should have a VO2max
comprised between 56 and 60 ml/kg/min or more. Some differences being made between
the different players positions as the physiological demand of the game will be different
for a prop, a flanker or a winger.

It is generally admitted that the best way to develop VO2max is through interval training,
but when looking into the procedures of these commonly standardized training where
athletes/players are asked to run specific distances a certain amount of time with a set rest
interval, it is obvious that these training protocols lack one of the most important variable
to take into consideration: individualization, or to be player specific in training
development. To avoid any confusion, we must state that rugby players need to develop
specifically their VO2max and not their Lactate Threshold (LT) running capacity, which
would be more typical of endurance athletes. Most of the action time in rugby will induce
either beyond LT running bouts through repetition (where lactic acid will accumulate) or
will involve pure strength/power alactic bouts such in rucks/mauls and ball contest in the
tackle area. In the light of these elements, players need to develop their VO2max through
quality, personalized interval bouts run at maximum velocity sustainable at VO2max.
How?

The very first step would be to assess and estimate the players actual VO2max, which
will be the base for further development. This can of course be done with accuracy in a
laboratory but could be costly and logistically unpractical if the facilities are not nearby.
Self assessment of VO2max can still be made accurately through tests such as the test of
Luc Leger (1984), or the Cooper test (originally designed in 1961 and tested in the
USAF). Tests protocols are as follow:

Leger formula for VO2max calculation: For rugby purposes, the distance of
3,000m will be the most convenient and realistic for testing. After a good warm
up, players run 3,000m on a track all out. Players must finish the run exhausted.
Time is recorded per individual. By dividing the distance in meters by the time
converted in second, the vVO2max or velocity at VO2max of each individual will
be determined (in m/s) on that particular run, multiply then the result by 3,600 and
we obtain the vVO2max of the player in km/h. From there the formula goes as
follows: VO2max (ml/kg/min) = 3,5 x vVO2max (km/h)


Lets take an example: A player is running 3,000m in 12min10sec or 730sec,
his/her velocity is: 3,000 / 730 = 4.10m/s vVO2max = 4.10 x 3,600 = 14.76
km/h
From there his / her VO2max = 3.5 x 14.76 = 51.66 ml/kg/min

The Cooper test involves players to run on a track as far as they can during 12
minutes. Formula to calculate VO2max from the test is:
VO2max = 22.351d 11.288
Where d is the distance run in km
Lets take again our above example: the player run say 3km in 12 min
VO2max = (22.351 x 3) 11.288 = 55.76 ml/kg/min

As we can see there is a difference between the two, mainly due to the fact that the
coefficient used by Leger takes into account more physiological parameters than the
Cooper formula, and is therefore probably more accurate.

One important consideration must be brought to view here: Any one who already tried to
run as far as possible, all out for 12 minutes will agree that it is merely impossible and
that indeed VO2max will not be triggered constantly during the run and therefore there
might be an underestimation of the real VO2max and vVO2max. This was taken as the
basis for the work of world endurance expert Professor Veronique Billat from the
University of Lille in France in 1994 through 1998. After numerous studies and field
tests, she determined following the work of Astrand and Rodhal (1986) that trained
athletes will be able to sustain an average of 6 minutes maximum time running at
vVO2max. She then induced the check on vVO2max on a 6 minutes (360 seconds) test
rather than the too long 12 minutes where runners will not achieve VO2max 50% of the
time. From there her research has shown that the actual running at vVO2max was the best
way to develop VO2max in trained athletes, and that one session of interval training
based on individual vVO2max per week was enough to increase the vVO2max and
therefore the VO2max significantly in just 4 weeks (Billat, 1998).

Based on the work of Professor Billat, and considering the fact that training for intervals
at vVO2max will be beyond LT training and develop VO2max, it is definitively an asset
to develop VO2max for rugby players, using individualization and high intensity bouts
customized for each player.

Protocol for Billat training sessions:

Each player runs all out for 6 minutes on a track, distance is recorded
Divide distance by 360 to get the speed
Multiply result by 3600 to get vVO2max in km/h

Lets take an example: a player is running 1,650m in 6 minutes, what is his/her
vVO2max?


vVO2max = 1,650m / 360s = 4.58m/s x 3,600 = 16.49 km/h
This will be the minimum speed inducing a maximum O2 intake with the player.

From there interval sessions will be elaborated as follows:
30-30: 30s run at vVO2max and 30s recovery at 50% vVO2max
From our previous example: 4.58m/s x 30s = 137m in 30s with 68m recovery run in
30s. Player runs this pattern until he/she cant complete it any longer (being 5m from
the mark twice in a row on the vVO2max bout)
Once the player is familiar and has adapted to this 30-30, he/she can move to:
60-60: same protocol but based on 60s
Once easy on this and used on interval training, player can move to a longer
interval pattern: 5 x 3 min at vVO2max with 3min recovery at 50% vVO2max
From our previous example: vVO2max = 4.58m/s x 180s = 824m in 3 minutes with
422m in 3 minutes recovery run. Once it becomes easy, keep the bouts unchanged,
dont increase, but decrease the recovery time to 2min30s and then 2min.

Advantage of the method:
It is 100% individualized as no one runs at the same speed
It maximizes the time spend to run at actual vVO2max
It is easy to re-assess the process. Players must do so every 4 weeks, retest on
a 6 min run, which should show an improvement as the player should run
further, recalculate vVO2max and adapt the intervals to the new developed
vVO2max
It can easily apply for cross-training activities, such as biking, swimming or
rowing

Training frequency: 1 to 2 sessions per week.

I believe this is the best protocol to noticeably develop players VO2max. Retest
players on a new 3,000m at the end of the aerobic endurance development phase and
each player or coaches will recalculate his/her the new VO2max.

What about the traditional long steady runs? These are ok during the Transition and
early Preparatory phases to burn excess fat for weight control and maintain the blood
vessels network necessary to bring O2 to the muscles when needed. It is now widely
admitted that long slow runs dont have much to do with the specificity of rugby.

Aerobic endurance is also developed through team and units technical and tactical
sessions arranged to tax the aerobic system primarily and preferably in alternation
with anaerobic training.

Keep your training sessions smart and sharp for best results!

References: Physiologie et Methodologie de lEntrainement, V. Billat, DeBoeck ed,
2003