5 Easy Ways to Improve Your Sprint Speed

1. Warm Up

The harder you run, the more vital it is to warm up your muscles. Walk and easy run for a minimum of five to 10 minutes, and include dynamic exercises or drills such as high knees, butt kicks, and skipping to further prepare your body to run fast. Try this 5-minute warmup routine to open up and stretch your hips, quads, hamstrings, and back

2.Perform Rolling Starts

Try this drill to feel the difference between walking, jogging, running, and sprinting. Start by walking, and increase your speed every 10 seconds until you reach a sprinting speed. As with any high-intensity workout, a little goes a long way. Work into high-intensity sprint training gradually to allow your body to adapt to the demands of the workout, and stick with it to see improvements in your running fitness and overall health.

3. Perform Heavy Sled Drags

Another way to practice efficient acceleration at the start is to perform Heavy Sled Drags for 10 to 15 yards. To be considered “heavy,” the weight on the sled should be close to your max Squat. The key here is to achieve triple extension on the back leg while powerfully driving your front knee forward. Then drive your front foot down and back into the ground to propel yourself forward instead of reaching out and “pulling” yourself forward. Perform 3-5 sets of 10 to 15 yards with 3 minutes of rest between sets.

4. Drive Your Arms

Hold your arms in a bent position at 90 degrees, and drive your elbows straight backward to create momentum. The position helps ensure that your movement and force travel in the same direction. It’s a more exaggerated arm swing than a jog. Move your arms through a wider range of motion with your hands coming up as high as your chin and backward toward your butt. But try to avoid letting your arms cross the centerline of your body. Everyone’s natural mechanics are different, but doing so will cause rotation in your torso, which leads to inefficient running.

5. How you breathe

To breathe while running at faster speeds takes practice. Use both your nose and mouth while inhaling and exhaling to get the maximum amount of oxygen to the muscles. Also, try belly breathing fill the diaphragm, not the chest, with air on each inhale.