How to be a faster runner

A holistic model of training

A lot of runners want to get faster, or stronger, or run further. Ideally without doing lots of extra miles or a lot of hard speed work. Don’t get me wrong, those strategies can help, but balancing running with your life – and all the other demands that entails – is the secret to becoming a faster runner for normal runners.

So how do you become a faster runner? By considering running as part of a holistic pyramid of training.

Running - the actual running, the different types of running, sessions etc – come at the top of a solid foundation of training. To achieve your goals – whether that’s a sub 20 minute 5k or running until you're 90+ – requires building on a strong support system.

Let’s break it down.

Layer 1: The foundations

These are the building blocks to any exercise regime.

·       Sleep – sleep is the magic drug for recovery. During sleep, increases in blood flow and hormone production repairs your muscles and reduces inflammation. [1] It also keeps you healthy as a human, which is fairly important. The general rule of thumb is 8-10 hours per night, with an extra 1 minute per mile ran that week. Running 25 miles/week? That’s an extra 25 mins in bed per night.

  ·       Nutrition – food is fuel, for our daily life and our training. As we are complex creatures though, nutrition is far more than inserting 2000/2500 cals per day. It’s about the total overview of your diet, timing, and quantity. [2] Carbs, fats, proteins, fruit and vegetables, with attention to macronutrients, and sure some of the extra tasty stuff are all important for runners, but will vary for individuals. Getting the balance right is as much art as science.

  ·       Hydration – humans are majority water. When running, our core temperature increases, which we cool down by sweating. If we become dehydrated, core temperature keeps increasing, making the heart work harder to pump blood to where it’s needed. Performance can then decrease (over 5k, dehydration can cost you 80 seconds while over 10k, this can be 2 mins 40). This is not because of body weight - the oft-cited rule that for every 1% of body weight, pace slows by 2% has since been queried. [3] Instead, the impact is due to not listening to your body’s signs of thirst. So ditch the calculator, and drink to thirst. Also note - overhydration can be more dangerous than dehydration. Even more important to sip when your body tells you to.  

  ·       Wellbeing – running is often used to boost endorphins and support better mental health. Yet stress and anxiety can equally impact your run. A bad day at work, a period of concern over a loved one, buying a house – i.e. life – triggers the sympathetic nervous system, i.e. your fight or flight response. That response can make you feel energised, but it can also impact your motivation and your rate of perceived effort. [4] I.e. running is good for your wellbeing but be kind to yourself.

Layer 2: The essentials of training

These elements not only help you prevent injury, but crucially improve your mobility and capacity for aerobic power. They make you stronger, in more ways than one.

If you break running down, it is a series of isolated, unilateral movements. Essentially, it’s a series of hops. The essentials of training recognise your body as a whole, ensuring you are training to enable your body to withstand those hops more efficiently, and ultimately quicker.

·       Strength – running is a series of isolated movements, with every part working in perfect harmony to propel you forward. As we’re humans, some of our parts are naturally stronger than others, and they tend to overcompensate for the weak parts. Strength work helps to correct any imbalances. It reduces injury risk and improves running economy and performance; with emerging evidence that it is so effective, it could supplement high volume training. [5]

  ·       Flexibility – running requires force to move forward; and with force comes impact. While flexibility is often reduced to stretching or used interchangeably with mobility, it is essentially the ability of your body parts to move through the full range of movement. With our limbs like levers, we want to ensure that we are ensuring maximum efficiency, whilst working together as part of the total body system. So while a lack of flexibility in a particular part of your body may not impact performance there, it can cause pain elsewhere. [6]

  ·       Cross-training – the human body hates doing the same thing. This is why with running we don’t just run the same easy miles; we mix it up. Cross training – referred to anything which supplements your main exercise (running) – helps build your overall fitness while reducing the repetitive stress on your body caused by running. This comes even more relevant when recovering from injury, but it can also be used to give your body – and a mind – a bit of a break. [7]

Layer 3: Skills

Running is a skill. To improve, it needs practice. Having built the foundations and looked at the body as a whole, the third layer is the more technical one, where having a coach – or at least access to YouTube – can really help. Drills and exercises are the key to running skills’ improvement.

·       Agility – agility is the ability to change direction quickly and accurately, particularly in relation to unpredictable events. [8] Some types of running require greater agility, e.g. trail running, but anyone that’s encountered a loose dog while out for a run can benefit from greater agility. Agility also improves the mind/body connection and enables you to perform more complex movements; useful for when you’re tired at the end of the long run and dragging your feet.

  ·       Balance – balance is the ability to stay on your feet. With running as a series of hops, being able to land strongly and securely on your centre of gravity stops you from toppling over, and therefore reducing injury risk. Particularly helpful for your ankles, having greater balance will enable you to run both smoother and faster. [9] And also stay on your feet when that loose dog appears.

  ·       Coordination – coordination is the ability to connect your body movements together. Running involves a lot of processes. Keeping upright, being stable, steering and powering stride, all within the short timeframe of a step requires reflexes and cognitive processes to be working at maximum efficiency. [10] Greater coordination will enable your reflexes to be quicker, meaning that when you dodge that dog – you do so in the right direction.

  ·       Technique – i.e. form and including cadence. From your ankles to your head, there are certain positions and ways of holding the body which will enable you to run faster with less effort. Getting your arm swing right, for example, can reduce the energy cost of running and make you more efficient, [11] while increasing cadence can reduce impact forces [12] , particularly helpful for those with knee injuries. A word of caution however. While form correction is helpful to beginners and those with niggling injuries, often the best rule of thumb is if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.

Level 4 – Running

At the top of the pyramid is the running itself. From easy to VO2 max, from volume to frequency, the components of a running schedule will build on the previous levels to maximise performance, i.e. make you a faster runner.

Sounds easy, right?

Yet I have not met a single recreational runner who ticks off all elements of the training period. Maybe you hit the gym, swim and eat really well – but live off 6 hours sleep per night. Maybe you perform all your drills, regularly stretch and do yoga and ensure you are the perfect level of hydrated – but you have a stressful job and regularly grab late night snacks to keep you going.

You’re human. You have a life. And you run.

The point of the training pyramid is to put your running into context and show what else could be impacting your running.

So next time you pick up an injury, absolutely look at strength and flexibility but also maybe balance and your cadence. Next time you hit a plateau, or don’t perform well in a session, check whether you’re sleeping, eating, drinking and staying relaxed. Even on a daily basis, consider adjustments. Had a rubbish night sleep? Ditch the tempo and go for an easy run. Recovering from a hamstring injury? Avoid hills and speedwork for a bit. Going on holiday? Run if you can, but if not go for a swim.

Taking the holistic approach will ensure you stay fit, healthy and happy. And a fit, healthy and happy runner is a faster runner.

[1] The Better Sleep Guide for Runners: The Science on Why, How to, and Natural Supplements - Runners Connect

[2] Nutrition for runners: Everything you need to know (runnersworld.com)

[3] The Truth About Dehydration and Optimal Performance - Runners Connect

[4] The Effects of Stress on Physical Activity and Exercise - PMC (nih.gov)

[5] Resistance Exercise for Improving Running Economy and Running Biomechanics and Decreasing Running-Related Injury Risk: A Narrative Review - PMC (nih.gov)

[6] Do Runners Really Need to be Flexible? - Runners Connect

[7] Effects of cross-training. Transfer of training effects on VO2max between cycling, running and swimming - PubMed (nih.gov)

[8] Agility (scienceforsport.com)

[9] All In The Balance | Runner's World (runnersworld.com)

[10] Uniqueness of Human Running Coordination: The Integration of Modern and Ancient Evolutionary Innovations - PMC (nih.gov)

[11] The metabolic cost of human running: is swinging the arms worth it? | Journal of Experimental Biology | The Company of Biologists

[12] Effect of Increasing Running Cadence on Peak Impact Force in an Outdoor Environment - PMC (nih.gov)