Course Meeting Times
Classroom seminars: 1 session / week, 2 hours / session
Workout sessions: 2 sessions / week, 1 hour / session (weekday), 2 hours / session (weekend)
Course Overview
This seminar will help students relate MIT's Chemistry GIR (General Institute Requirement) to sports! We will be focusing on the three components of the triathlon — swimming, cycling and running – with a slight emphasis on running. There will be two components to the seminar, a classroom and a laboratory. This will be an exciting way for students to study and apply chemistry knowledge to the improvement of their biological systems.
Classroom Component
The classroom component will introduce the students to the chemistry of their own biological system. We will be looking at nutrition (to understand how to fuel and rebuild your body), anatomy and physiology (to better build your system) and also how the body can be improved (or hurt) through physical activities. To better understand the three sports, we will examine the chemistry of equipment and the event, including: swimming (wetsuit making, swimsuit manufacturing, how chlorine affects you), bicycling (including a field trip to a bicycle shop), and running (hopefully including a guest speaker to come and talk to us about how running shoes are manufactured). We will also look at ways your body deals with exercise through building up and repair of muscles, improvement in lung and cardiovascular capacity and the chemistry of supplements and their effectiveness.
Laboratory Component
The two components to the laboratory portion of the class are training for and completing a triathlon; and a running study. Students not interested in completing the triathlon can still participate in the course, but you need to maintain a physical exercise program throughout the semester.
For the triathlon training, we will schedule a 1-hour session on Thursday afternoons and a 2-hour session on Saturday mornings to do the swim/bike/run brick workouts focusing on the week's themes. Students can also earn 2 PE (physical education) credits if they attend at least 80% of the supervised triathlon training workouts.
To help with triathlon performance, we will be having pre-and post-term tests of cardiovascular fitness, body mass index (BMI), and maximal oxygen uptake (VO2), as well as a general fitness evaluation, at the MIT Zesiger Center athletics facility. With some help from some guest triathlete speakers, we will provide sample 16-week training schedules to help the students complete their PE credit.
Students will earn additional PE credits if they complete the Mooseman Triathlon (either the Olympic distance for 2 PE credits or half-Ironman distance for 4 PE credits) in New Hampshire in early June.
New for this year is the optional participation in a running shoe study sponsored by Newton Running. There will be scheduled 3 running workouts a week and the goal of the study is to compare running shoes and speed. The complete protocol is available upon request. Upon completion of the study, the students may keep their Newton running shoes and will earn 2 PE points.
Seminar Goals
The seminar is designed to look at the science of a triathlon from a molecular/chemical/biological point of view. We will be able to use our own bodies to see how exercise affects the system, through observations written in a training journal and through blood glucose monitoring before and after a workout. We will also improve the overall fitness of the class through daily training for a triathlon.
Summary of Requirements
Required
- Attend classroom sessions, do the readings
- Laboratory: pre- and post-term fitness assessments, training journal and must maintain your choice of physical fitness program throughout the term
Optional, for a maximum of 4 PE points
- Complete > 80% of the triathlon workouts = 2 PE points
- Complete the Newton running shoe study = 2 PE points
- Compete in the Mooseman Triathlon = 2 or 4 PE points
Grades
This 6 unit seminar is pass/fail. An extra 2 units or 4 units of PE credit are available if you complete either the Olympic or Half-Ironman Mooseman Triathlon.
Calendar
Course calendar.
| WEEK # | TOPICS | KEY DATES |
| 1 |
Introduction Talk about triathlon Sign up for fitness evaluation
| Baseline fitness assessment |
| 2 |
Review of chemistry, anatomy and physiology of the body Injury prevention (with Steve's bike crash outfit) Running and heart monitors Fitness testing results
| |
| 3 | Training your body: lungs, muscle, and repair and maintenance | |
| 4 |
Nutrition: fueling your body, the best training foods, calories, daily requirements Steve's show and tell
| |
| 5 | Running clinic with Danny Abshire, Newton Running: proper running form, how to run in Newton shoes | |
| 6 |
Epigenetics: reprogramming your body through gene regulation Steve talks about his ironman New Zealand race
| |
| 7 | Science of swimming, with Bill Paine, MIT masters swimming coach | |
| 8 | No class (spring break) - continue training | |
| 9 | Science of bicycles Wind tunnels, with guest speaker Kim Blair, MIT Sports Innovation Triathlon preparation
| |
| 10 | Energy metabolism | |
| 11 | Chemistry of cheating: illegal substances and how athletes are tested for them; effects on your body; e.g. anabolic steroids, EPO | |
| 12 | Legal means of manipulating your body: e.g. glutamic acid, isoleucine and lysine | |
| 13 |
Chemistry of clothing: swim suits through the years, running and cycling gear Steve's show and tell
| |
| 14 | Triathlons, with guest Jimmy Riccitello (Steve Lyons' coach) | |
| 15 |
Triathlon logistics, transitioning, and tapering Steve talks about his ironman Arizona experience Course evaluation
| End of term fitness assessment |
| 16-17 | No class meetings (finals week): continue training | |
| 18 | Race week: Mooseman triathlon | Race days |
