Re:
Top Sprinters sprint, obviously they'd train in their chosen field, but it isn't ALL they do. to constantly improve their sprinting ability and time, they have to focus on WHAT makes you a good sprinter. Makes sense, right? A golfer has to focus on what makes a good swing, on what assists in a great short-game. They go to the fundamentals, the basics, and PERFECT those, and when the individual pieces are NEAR perfect, then the performance can run in tip top shape.
A sprinter would squat, perhaps do jump squats, free squats (with no weight, and see how many they could do as fast as they can), hamstring work such as you'd find in powerlifting gyms (reverse hamstring raises), calf raises, run up hills, etc.
If you wanted to be the BEST Sprinter, you would do MORE difficult sprinting, so that when it came time to SPRINT, your performance has already been ABOVE that of the level you actually spring at.
If it was sprinting at 40 yards, then you might do weights on your back in a backpack, or something similar. Or as they do in football, you'd tie off to a resistance rope and just pull like crazy. There were some guys in the NFL, little ones with stump-like legs that went 20-40 yards without being yanked back.
To hit your PEAK 40 time and thereby build legs that would make you the best, you'd go OVER and above the basic sprinting, and therefore your legs would be gynormous.
Isn't that what you do in lifting? Your body, presently, is only "CONDITIONED" for the level of regular lifting and physical activity you live by daily. If you chose to raise your physical fitness or changed your lifestyle in some way, you'd alter body. Alter lifestyle (i.e. work construction) or set about on a fitness program, and your strength, stamina, overall body composition will change.
To move your muscle up, your muscle must have a reason to exist. Therefore, get on the treadmill of lifting, and put the focus on lifting and growing strength in a specific manner and muscle will come. Realistically, you could lift a weight 100 times, or just 1 time, but neither is in the range to create growth or hit the muscle fibers. If you chose a range like, 5 reps for some, or 12, whatever, and then worked to increase WITHIN that range, you'd grow. It's like doing pushups, how would you effect an increase in pushups?
A-Unit