Do you run slowly? Do you want to increase your speed and run faster? What should you do? Can you solve this problem or it cannot be changed because it is related to the form of your body? Running faster is not impossible or even difficult; it is easier than you may think. There are simple and easy-to-follow tips that can help you to achieve your goal and run faster. Do you know anything about these methods? You can discover more about them through reading the following tips. Some of the tips that are presented to you here are related to exercising and exerting more effort to improve your performance and increase your speed when you run, while the others are more associated with your unhealthy lifestyle and what you do every day to affect your speed while running in an unbelievable way. Let’s get more information about what can help you to run faster.
♦ The number of your steps
Try to count your steps per minute while running. The fastest and most experienced runners can run about 180 steps per minute. Can you do this? Try to achieve this number to make sure that your performance improves.
♦ Use a treadmill
It can help you to improve your speed and practice running faster gradually. It is also beneficial to you if you do not have a place to practice running as you can run in the same place without the need to move in a wide place. You can even use it at your home without the need to go to the gym.
♦ Keep stretching daily
Stretching regularly on a daily basis especially before running is extremely beneficial to you since it helps you to increase your flexibility and reduce injuries while running.
♦ Use a jump rope
You may ask yourself, why do athletes use jump ropes while exercising? Using jump ropes is not limited to young children who use it while playing, it is also used by others who play sports and want to improve their health and the shape of bodies. Using jump ropes helps you to jump faster since it is chiefly based on using your feet and running fast to be able to jump the rope. The faster you move your hands with the rope that you hold, the faster you will need to run to be able to jump the rope.
♦ Wear light sneakers
Avoid wearing heavy sneakers as they will lower your speed while running. Purchase those light sneakers since they allow you to improve your movement, increase your speed and make your feet more comfortable. You will also save more energy by wearing light sneakers as you will not feel that you are wearing something on your feet which encourages you to run faster.
♦ Try to keep fit & strengthen your muscles
If you are fat, you have to forget about running fast. You cannot run faster until you lose weight. Losing weight is not enough as you have to be fit by doing exercises which allows you to strengthen your core muscles. Having strong muscles will help you to increase your speed and energy.
Doing exercises such as ball crunch, hip raise, back extension, arm/leg reach, Russian twist, leg lifts, tin soldiers, butt-kicks, lunges, pike stretches, hacky sacks and planks several times, about four days, a week is enough for you to increase your speed and strength.
♦ Do you know how to breathe when you run?
It is important to learn how to breathe properly while running. You have to practice breathing fast and deeply using your nose and mouth to be able to provide your body with the largest amount of oxygen. Instead of filling your chest with air while breathing, try to fill your stomach which is known as belly-breathing.
♦ Do not eat sweets
Do you look for a source of energy? You can depend on pasta and whole grains instead of eating sweets that can provide you with the needed energy but will increase your weight which slows you down and prevents you from increasing your speed.
♦ What should you eat?
You have to eat lean meat, chicken, dairy products, eggs, foods that contain iron, carbohydrates and zinc, whole grain cereals, veggies and fruit with their peels.
♦ Do you like drinking coffee?
If you are one of those who like drinking coffee, go for it. Drinking coffee and other caffeinated drinks is believed to increase your speed while running, so you can drink it before starting the race.
♦ Drink a lot of water
It is essential for you as a runner to keep hydrated in order not to reduce the amount of oxygen that your muscles need. Avoid drinking too much water in order not to cause over-hydration.
♦ Yoga for runners
Practicing yoga is helpful for you as a runner. There are several positions that are especially presented to runners to help them increase their speed, become more flexible and quickly recover.
♦ In order to run faster, you have to be smarter
What does this mean? Will I run with my brain? If you want to run faster than others, you have to be smarter than them. This means that when you start running, you should not start running very fast because you will feel tired very quickly before others and this will make you end the race with running slowly which will encourage others to surpass you and win the competition. Start slowly and increase your speed gradually.
♦ Do not turn your head when you run
Avoid turning your head around you when you run because it wastes your time and makes you run slowly without feeling that you do that. Look ahead and focus on the prize that you are going to get or the point that you want to reach before others. This will help you to run faster and concentrate more.
Other tips that can help you to run faster
Learn how to run properly (the right form and position while running), get enough sleep, wear less clothing, rest your body for one or two days per week, try hill repeats to increase your confidence and improve your speed, do tempo runs, try fartleks, listen to music especially those songs with high tempo and finally look for someone who can encourage you to run faster.
