New Study Suggests Humans Could Run As Fast As 40 MPH
Rarely do we take the time to stop and consider just how complex and amazing our bodies are. It is understandable after all, as the busy world around us can be quite distracting. But the record breaking times set by Usain Bolt this past summer have piqued the interests of scientists in the perceived limits of the human body.
Where once the maximum top speed of a human being was thought to be around 28 mph, a new study suggests that a trained runner could achieve speeds of 40 mph, or perhaps even more. If true, it could mean that human-powered mobility might be more practical than previously thought.
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The study, entitled “The biological limits to running speed are imposed from the ground up,” suggests that the human body might be even stronger than it is given credit for. Using a high speed treadmill, the researchers studied the force applied to the foot when running forwards, backwards, and hopping around on one foot. The top speed of a runner was thought to be limited by the amount of force a foot could take when coming in contact with the ground.
What the research found was that hopping around on one foot produced as much as 30% more force than running at full speed forward. They also found that the muscle contractile speeds on the leg set the limit for how fast a human can run, and their research suggests a maximum top speed of 35 to 40 mph.
Obviously only the best trained, most fit people can go even 20 mph or faster. But it certainly makes one wonder about the possibilities. Perhaps as we, as a species, come to better appreciate our bodies, we might figure out a way to get the most out of it and apply that to mass transit or personal transportation.
How cool would it be to be able to run at almost highway speeds though? Pretty cool, I reckon.
Source: Eureka Alert | Image: Phil McElhinney
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January 26th, 2010 at 3:33 pm
That might apply to highly trained athletes, but is useless when talking about people that get winded “running” to the store in their SUVs.
January 26th, 2010 at 4:08 pm
You’re right MaxHedrm. The average person these days means extrememly unfit.
January 27th, 2010 at 11:27 am
The other problem here is that these are all theoretical tests. They say nothing about the energy required to keep you stable while running, or whether that level of speed could be achieved in anything approaching “real world conditions.”
What makes the cheetah so flaming cool is not just that it runs over 50mph, but that it can do so across the African plains–over grass, dirt, uneven terrain, etc.
January 27th, 2010 at 11:56 am
Um, no. It means nothing at all for human-powered mobility. They’re talking about peak sprinting velocity. The force-production required for those speeds cannot be maintained for more than a few seconds due to energy-systems limitations and the muscle fibers involved.
Humans are actually pretty efficient at self-propelled long-distance travel. We just can’t do it all that fast.
January 27th, 2010 at 12:02 pm
“Most fit” can run 20 mph? Not really. Most decent high school track guys should hit 20 mph, that corresponds to 22.5 seconds in the 200 meters, and that’s sustained, overall speed. I know…I ran sub-22, and didn’t even qualify for state (had better luck in the 400m). It’s even easier to hit that for 40-50 meters in the middle of a sprint. If kids actually were busy all day, working in the fields, hunting gazelles or whatnot, I bet a heck of people would be able to hit 20 mph at least during their prime from 16-28 or so.
January 27th, 2010 at 2:05 pm
I saw a show somewhere diagnosing ancient man’s footprints that suggested they ran quite a bit faster than today- wish i could cite.
Seems its more an issue of fast twitch muscle than anything else.
January 27th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
If the fastest speed our most likely predator, say a cougar of the non-human variety, can hit is 40 mph, then I say the top speed for a human would be about 41 mph. If not, you’ll not know about it.
January 27th, 2010 at 6:04 pm
I can get to the fridge and back at 65 MPH during half time. Does that count?
February 3rd, 2010 at 11:55 am
Great stuff here