Have you been stuck at a 4.7 second 40 yard dash? Or unable to jump higher than 26 inches? If you're an athlete who isn't getting results in training, it's tempting to blame it on your genes. But just how much of athletic success is related to genetics? Well, according to Dr. Michael Yessis, Ph.D., the answer is 30%.1 He believes that 30% of athletic potential is genetic, while 70% depends on environmental factors like training and nutrition. This still seems like a lot, but we have to explore further.
Say you are an aspiring sprinter and your genetic makeup dictates that you'll have 50% fast-twitch and 50% slow twitch muscle fiber composition (fast twitch muscle fibers make more powerful muscles that use energy quickly, whereas slow twitch fibers fire more slowly but have better endurance). Well, an elite Olympic sprinter may have an advantage and be born with a 75% fast-twitch composition. That's 25% more, which is definitely helpful. However, since genetics only account for 30% of success, the difference in genetic makeup of 25% only accounts for a 7.5% difference in performance (30% of 25%).
Is this enough to prevent you from setting a world record? Okay, it is. But if that world record holder is running a 9.5 second 100-meter dash, you should be able to run a 10.2. That is still a respectable time, but you can only reach that time if you reach your genetic potential. That is where the other 70% comes in.
A majority of athletes never reach their genetic potential. If you are one of these athletes, your lack of progress can only come down to a few things. The first major factor: you haven't trained long enough at an appropriate level. The second major factor: you haven't eaten or slept enough to support your training.
Now when I was an aspiring hockey player, I thought I was doing all of the right things. I trained really hard with a sports guru who was doing all of this exciting sports-specific training with me, but I never got better. I have since learned that all we were really doing was conditioning. And that part of it worked; I could compete and train all day long. But I never really improved as an athlete until I discovered the underlying principles of successful training.
To reach your genetic potential, you have to master the foundation of movement. That means being able to lengthen your muscles to absorb force in position, and to be able to do so many times at high velocity. Any training directed elsewhere is not only a waste of time, it can actually prevent you from reaching your potential. (Of course there is also training time spent on your sports skills or team strategy practices, which is okay. We're talking about the time spent training for performance.) The stronger this foundation, the more speed, power, and skill you can build upon it -- and the higher you can climb towards your genetic ceiling.
References:
1- Build a Better Athlete, Dr. Michael Yessis. 2006: Equilibrium Books, Terra Haute, Indiana






