I want to run faster but don't know how

Disclaimer: All I am writing below is through my personal experiences.

Hey Ryan,

The first thing I noticed right away is that you didn't include strength training. If you are eating right, I don't think energy is an issue for you, it's moreso endurance, lactic acid build up and conditioning your muscles. One key item (for me anyway) is strong muscles=endurance=run longer and faster.

I always promote strength training to anyone who does endurance training because: 1) It prevents injury and 2) Allows you to use your muscles more efficiently and the best one: 3) losing weight so you can run faster! HOWEVER, it's very important to do these strength training exercises properly (proper form). Trust me, I worked at a gym teaching people how to use equipment and majority of the time the pictures on the machine do not do much in terms of proper positioning. When you work your muscles out wrong, you can end up overcompensating for a muscle that has not been worked out, causing injury and the like. So proper form and strength training is key.

Another thing I would probably recommend after you are used to strength training is High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts. Youtube for some workouts that you can follow. They are very fast short bursts of workouts that look easy but are really hard. They are my favourite type of workout because: 1) They can be 15-30mins long, 2) You don't need equipment, 3) I found that my muscles get stronger faster and 4) You burn more calories than just pumping iron. HOWEVER (again) you need to make sure you are not sacrificing form. Just like I mentioned above, you really need to make sure you are doing the exercises with proper form. Don't worry about going super fast.

I personally like Zuzka Light, but now she makes you pay for her workouts =/ But her free workouts are still online: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgs64gij3mw

To answer your questions:

1) Stick with 10km as your longest distance. You always want to run a little further than your goal. I don't want to throw a million things at you, but this might be helpful: You might want to consider trying negative splits. Negative splits are when you run slower for the first half of the race and speed it up for the last half. It's a more conservative approach to using your energy efficiently and properly. Research has shown that running at a even split (constant speed) at your race pace is more of a risk for hitting the wall faster. Reason being that you are using a lot of energy for the full length of the race (for an even split) rather than a fraction/half (because you are running at a more comfortable and slower pace, leaving more energy in the tank). When I say slower, I mean an extra 10-15 seconds per compared to your race time.

Are you doing 10:1s? I wasn't sure. If you're not, I'll be happy to explain that to you as well. It's a fairly simple run 10 mins, walk 1 min. I use this moreso for long race distances (half marathon and marathon).

2) My boyfriend makes fun of my run for this, but I do what he calls the 'truffle shuffle'. It means that I hardly lift my legs to run. When I do that, I don't spend much energy lifting my legs for each step. The bigger and higher steps you take, the more energy you expend. Plus when I do my truffle shuffle, my impact against the pavement and ground is smaller, thus causing less injury.

3) Explained in my strength workouts above.

4) I'm not very knowledgeable in this area, but at least one speed work? I need someone else's opinion on this. I have a book on Running by John Stanton if you want to borrow it.

Hopefully you can get something out of that. I am still trying to figure out why I can't get any faster too, so hopefully there will be more advice.

--Lisa

I don't blame you, most people don't like weight training because it is hard. But doing a hard workout will get you results. I would start off using the machines to get a feel for what muscles you should be working out. Find a workout buddy! Maybe someone here will join you for strength workouts

I'm thinking of trying out the Power one.

Thanks for your advice, Dave!

Thanks. I would really like to have the foot pod. I am putting it on my list to Santa :-)

I already purchased a metronome for $20 and used it once already.

www.metronomes.net/SeikoDm50.htm

I am 6'2" and I also found it difficult to keep 85 cadence for more than a few kilometres. There are a few youtube clips on this topic and they recommend gradually increasing your cadence. I hope to work on my cadence once a week for the next few weeks. I will let you know if I can increase it past 85.

Here is a picture of metronome clipped to my RoadID wrist strap. It is light so I don't even notice it. I probably get some strange looks when people on the side walk hear me run by though. Beep, beep, beep, beep...

Hi guys,

I have been reading a book called Run Less Run Faster. It has a great philosophy for triathletes since it promotes three runs a week and at least 2 other cardio workouts like cycling or swimming. It has detailed training plans for various race distances from 5k to marathon. The book really speaks to me and I have learned a lot about training. I hope to follow it more religiously for my next race. Check it out!

Ryan

Well, yesterday was the Santa Pursuit and I am happy to report I met my race goal of under 25 minutes:

71 246 Ryan Hickey 24:38 LM40-44 8/29 63 4:56 24:38 Waterloo

Thank you to all of those who have helped me improve my running speed. I followed a basic three-day-a-week running program with a speed workout, long run, and tempo run. For each run I had a goal pace and tracked everything with my Garmin GPS watch. The goal pace for each run was set based on a 25 minute 5km race goal using tables from the Run Less Run Faster book. I also focused on faster feet by using a metronome to help me keep a faster cadence (185 bpm). Aside from Thursday night workouts, I did not do any strength training. This is an area I know I need to focus on in the future if I want to continue to see improvements.

Congrats to the other Tri group members who also achieved a personal best. It was great to see many of our group members either participating in the race or cheering on the Santas. Special thanks goes to Dave for ringing the cow bell near the top of the hill on Columbia Street as it gave me the extra boost I needed at just the right time. We have a wonderfully supportive Triathlon group and I am grateful to be a part of it!