Usain Bolt: Biomechanics and muscle physiology

For me, there are few things more spectacular than Usain Bolt's performance in the 100 m and 200m sprint, especially the 200m in the Beijing Olympics when he won by what seemed like a mile in a 19 second event. I almost fell of the chair I was sitting on when I watched the event.  Over the next few weeks, we'll be taking a journey to learn more about muscle physiology, starting with the molecular level (think calcium again), the contraction of a sacromere (muscle fiber), and up to knowing the origins, insertions, and actions of individual muscles. 

To get you excited and more interested in muscle physiology and the musculature system, here is a nice video about the biomechanics of Usain Bolt's sprinting.