How do I become fast?
We are often asked this question and the answer is very simple:
Run fast! Really fast. What does that mean? To run fast over a longer period of time, you need not only endurance, but a few more components.
Motor skills
At the end of the day, every movement is a programme stored in the brain. Running is no exception. If you always run at the same speed, at the end of the day you have no programme to run faster. On the contrary, it is often the case that the movement pattern is so ingrained that one has a running style at a very specific speed and makes every effort to break out of it.
Furthermore, very roughly speaking, we have two muscle fibres, fast and slow. If the fast ones are never trained, they can't perform! We are changing that now.
Really fast running over short distances of 30, 100 and more metres helps to break up the movement pattern and to maintain and train the fast muscle fibres. There are different ways of training.
You can run 50-metre series at almost maximum speed with a flying start and a few minutes rest in between. For starters, 6 to 8 repetitions are enough. Sore muscles are guaranteed.
The number and length of intervals can then be extended. It should be noted that 100 or 200 metres (depending on ability) is the upper limit for "really fast running", as beyond this distance, effects other than speed are trained.
Incorporating these workouts 1-2 times per week will give you a wider motor range to draw from and you will find that your actual intervals (mostly 1000s, 2000s and 3000s), while still cardiovascularly challenging, are much easier motor-wise.
Warm up!
It is very important to warm up conscientiously before these new stimuli, as we put a lot of strain on the tendons and connective tissue with these short but fast stimuli. These structures become stronger through training, but only if we prepare them for the load and do not overdo it.
Patience and basics!
Sprints, speed and jumps are tempting stimuli in training because subjectively "much goes further". Nevertheless, you should not use these means in an inflationary manner. Why?
1) The body needs time to process them.
2) Intensive stimuli are only carried by loose basic training.
There are no shortcuts in training.
Have fun at the training! If you have any questions, please contact: fgonline@fitnessgoesoffice.com