The structure, location and general properties of slow and fast skeletal muscle fibres
Skeletal muscles contain two fibre types. Slow fibres sustain low-level effort for a long time. Fast fibres produce powerful, rapid contractions but tire quickly.
Real World
Mo Farah's legs are dominated by slow-twitch (Type I) fibres rich in myoglobin and mitochondria for sustained aerobic running, while a shot-putter like Ryan Crouser relies on fast-twitch (Type II) fibres with large glycogen stores for explosive power.
Exam Focus
Link each structural feature to its function — e.g. 'many mitochondria' alone scores nothing; add 'for aerobic ATP production' to gain the mark.
Evaluation Scaffold
A four-step framework for high-quality evaluation. Use this for 'assess', 'evaluate', and 'to what extent' questions.
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