7 Best Ways to Improve Your Running Speed as Well as Endurance

Running is one of the most convenient forms of exercise that does not require any equipment. It is an extremely popular cardiovascular exercise as it can easily be modified according to your fitness goals.

Running reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases by improving heart health. In addition, running also helps in getting quality sleep, feeling more energetic, improving immune system, etc.

If you are a runner looking to improve your running speed and endurance, this article is for you. It will also benefit people who are beginners and looking for running-related tips.

Without further ado, let's get started:

#1 Being Consistent

Working consistently is very important to achieve anything and the same goes for running. Being consistent will help you in improving your running speed along with your endurance. Start increasing the duration of the run by 5-10 minutes every week. Within a few weeks, you'll be running for about 30 mins at a stretch!

#2 Eating For Endurance

Various research and studies have shown that good nutrition goes a long way in increasing running speed and endurance. Be mindful of your macronutrients - i.e carbohydrates, fat, and protein intake. While the protein will help in strengthening the muscles, carbohydrates will provide fuel for better workouts. You should also assess your calorie intake and remove the foods that don't offer good nutrition.

People can also consider taking help from a nutritionist for a proper diet structure.

#3 Letting Your Body Recover

More distance and time in running would mean you are challenging yourself consistently. So you must ensure that your body is getting proper recovery time in between sessions.

A good recovery routine would include a proper diet, sufficient rest, and stretching. This will provide optimal rest for your body and will make you feel refreshed. Letting your body recover will enable you to improve your running speed and endurance.

#4 Include strength training

Some studies have shown that adding strength training exercises a few times a week will help in improving your running economy. Strength training will help you in the consolidation of the muscles and working on the core.

Strength training will prove beneficial for building running speed and endurance. Full body strength training will target your important muscle groups. Be consistent with training to increase your stamina.

Thus, surely include strength training in your workout regime for improved speed and endurance for run.

#5 Progressive Run Workout

Progression run workout means steadily increasing your running speed. This helps in both boosting running speed as well as endurance. The mechanism of a progressive workout comprises of starting the run slow and progressively going faster.

These methods help aid in body recovery and decrease fatigue. Besides improving running endurance and speed, the other advantage of progressive running is that it enables the body to warm up, which lowers the risk of injury.

#6 Mindset

Being mentally prepared to run is just as crucial as any step on this list. Work on your mindset and prepare it to undertake more challenges. Prepare your mind to push yourself further by running the extra mile. For instance, breaking down the time or distance of running will seem less intimidating than thinking about covering the full distance.

Hence, mindset also plays a vital role in building endurance and running speed.

#7 Incorporate Hill Training

Hill training is one of the most effective methods that will help you in building speed and endurance for running. It will help in working on your running economy which will eventually lead to a better running speed along with developing an endurance base.

You should definitely include hill training in your regular regimen for better running endurance and speed. Plus, running in nature is a good change and will be refreshing.

Takeaway

While working on improving stamina, it is essential to understand that it will take time to notice an improvement. Don't be disheartened if you don't see results immediately. Prepare an appropriate plan and start following it consistently. Rather than looking at running as some task, approach it as something that you enjoy. Always pay attention to your body while you train.

We hope that the techniques outlined above will help you in improving your running speed and stamina. Happy running!