My Journey to Fast Running

Fast race times are not just for the pros. Anybody can train to improve their speed as long as they put their heart and soul into running and find the right plan for themselves. Some runners do better running every day or with high mileage plans, while others do best with minimal miles and more rest days. For me, it took some trial and error and lots of research to get faster. I am questioned almost every day on how I cut my race times in such a short period of time. It did not happen overnight. I put in a good amount of work and a part of my passion is to share my story in hopes that my tips help so many of you!

Once Upon a Time, I Ran ONLY for Fun

First of all, my initial BIG improvements had much to do with the fact that I was not focused on getting faster AT ALL during the years I was racing before I decided to make this my goal. I’d been a runner since 4th grade, participating in cross country and track and field on and off until I graduated from high school. I kept running in college only because I hated the cardio machines at the gym, and running was just something I knew how to do that was outdoors. A friend of mine suggested signing up for a half marathon, which I thought was crazy at the time, but she promised me that one day running 13 miles was going to feel like what 3 miles felt like back then. She was right. I signed up for the 2009 Miami Half Marathon and was hooked, but not how I am hooked now. I did not pay attention to finish times or pacing or anything that has to do with improving at the sport. All I cared about was staying in shape and the excitement of the races once a year.

This is how I treated running up until 2016, when I randomly put on the Olympic Marathon Trials after reading about it in a Runner’s World Magazine. This was about 2 weeks after finishing my first Miami Marathon in 3:53. All of a sudden I got the urge to get faster—I figured, I actually like to run, I’m not bad at it, and the training plans I read in the magazines all seemed doable to me. A few weeks later I raced the Miami Beach Half Marathon and got my best time, 1:44, which I attribute to the motivation and adrenaline from my new found passion. That same week I bought a Garmin watch, new shoes, and signed up for the Ft. Lauderdale Half Marathon in November. Within those 8 months I spent hours researching training plans, advice and every amount of information I could to implement into my new venture.

More Miles Works

I went from running at comfortable paces 3 days a week to running 5 days, which included my long run and a speed workout that I would switch up every week. I believe it was the gradual increase in mileage and added speed work that got me a 9 minute PR in the half in only 7 months time! I was nervous to run more than every other day thinking I would get injured, but from everything I researched (and my research only comes from scholarly written studies, as I was taught in school—haha), I learned that as long as you SLOWLY add in the miles, keep it easy for the majority, and continue strengthening exercises, it can most definitely improve race times. This 100% worked for me. I ran the rest of 2016 getting up to an average of 75 miles per week.

I had already been a physical therapist at this point for 5 years, so I was super strict about injury prevention, recovery, and paying attention to my body. I raced the Miami Marathon in January 2017 and finish in 3:22—a whopping 31-minute PR! Of course, like the rest of us, I wanted more. After more research I decided to attempt the daunting 100-mile week before my next full marathon, but I knew this was going to come with some sacrifice. More miles = more sleep/downtime, more eating, and more recovery sessions. My baseline training over the summer that year was around 60-65 miles per week and I gradually added in more once the fall came around to hit 100+ miles for 3 weeks before I tapered for the race in January 2018. I cut another 16 minutes off of my PR that race. My half marathon PR came 3 weeks after that one where I cut 8 minutes from 2017.

After falling for the comments on how I wouldn’t be able to keep this up on my own, I decided to try out a coach, who initially kept me at decent mileage (although still 75% of what I was doing when I was at my best), and then dropped the milage down to 40 miles per week by the end of 2018. This actually got me out of shape and my streak was over. Since starting back up on my own this year I have gone back to my previous training plan, with much more updates, and finally feel back to my old self with even BIGGER goals!

2015: 35 miles per week —> 3:53 full / 1:44 half

2016: 75 miles per week —> 3:22 full/ 1:33 half

2017: 100 miles per week —> 3:06 full/ 1:25 half

2018: 70/40 miles per week —> 3:14 full / 1:33 half

2020: 90 miles per week —> 3:03 full / 1:24 half

Varied Speed Work

I spent the summers incorporating short speed sessions—200-800 meter repeats and Fartlek runs. During my actual marathon training, my speed sessions varied every week. I alternated between mile repeats, continuous 200m on/off 10ks, Yasso 800s, and progressive ladder workouts at the track. I rotated between these workouts every 4 weeks and was able to see improvements in each once a month when it was time to repeat them. Since 2018 I’ve learned all about the benefits of longer intervals for distance running (which intimidate me!), so that’s what I’ve been incorporating these days with amazing results. My best seasons are those where I’ve managed to stick to one track session of shorter intervals and one tempo run each week. The rest of my running is all EASY paced. Click here to see a few examples of my go-to speed sessions.

LOTS of Eating

It’s a good thing I love to eat, because marathon training allows me to eat twice as much as I used to! When I was training early on, I believed I could eat whatever I wanted. That is the most untrue statement for runners. First of all, we don’t burn as much as we think—in an hour-long run I burn around 350-400 calories. That’s probably just about a slice of pizza! Second of all—if you want to improve your performance, you must think of food as fuel, rather than pleasure…at least 90% of the time. Following a high-quality diet of the right amount of macros and calories will keep your body at a healthy weight, help you last longer during any run, and help prevent injury. In my opinion nutrition plays a bigger role in performance improvement than anything else. Once I started increasing my calories, especially carbs, I saw a massive spike in energy, better sleep, and more strength during speed sessions. Mid-run fueling switched from an intake of 200 calories (a pack of PowerBar chews) during an entire marathon, to over 1200 calories! This was a game changer for long runs and races—I am never exhausted afterwards like I used to be.

Quality Recovery

Recovery has many different sides. It includes sleep, elevating the legs, use of compression, icing, stretching, massage, physical therapy, foam rolling, and full rest days. It sounds like it requires so much time, and it does, but without these components, you risk being able to run more, hit paces, and recover from workouts quickly. This is probably my weakest area. If I skip something one day, it’s usually not my runs, strength training, or eating. I used to skip stretching, go to sleep late, and sometimes walk around too much on my complete rest day. Now, I am slowly learning to prioritize recovery—going to bed earlier, using my Normatec compression boots, getting a massage every few weeks, and stretching after every run. Since being more strict about this, I rarely get sore or feel fatigued legs on my runs—and I’m running around 90 miles per week right now!

Make Time for Cross Training

During the off season I was going to the gym 4-5 times per week for at least 45 minutes. Of course as I start to run more, I shorten my gym sessions, but make sure they stay high-quality and that I hit every muscle group. My workouts are mostly full body sessions, with a big emphasis on all core muscles, at least 3x per week. I NEVER skip the strength training—I remind myself of the time I was injured and how horrible it felt, and that is enough to get me to do the work. I also make time to go for walks and use the stationary bike—this will only be a couple times per week for 20-30 minutes.

This is MY Plan, Not YOURS!

As I mentioned in the beginning, adding in all of these components is totally doable for anyone. The only obstacle most people have is lack of time, but with a little sacrifice, and shifting of your schedule you can find time for each and every one of these components. The one thing you don’t want to sacrifice in order to add more miles is sleep—it is VITAL if you want to run well. You don’t need to run every day, and it’s actually okay to not have a full rest day. You just have to make sure at least 75-80% of your runs are easy. If you are stuck and unsure about how to structure your training to get results, a coach may be the answer—even if it’s just for one season. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me with any questions or if you’d like to join my team and have me be your coach!

A Stronger Upper Body for Better Running

The upper body plays an important role in our everyday activities. We would not be able to perform tasks such as reaching, pushing, lifting, pulling, and grasping objects without sufficient upper body strength. During walking and running, our arms help propel us forward by the act of swinging in coordination with the opposite lower limb. The arm swing is what aids in controlling the upward force developed by the leg swing, keeping us moving horizontally, either forward or backward.

The arm swing in running is driven by the shoulder muscles. Even when we try to restrict our arms from swinging, our shoulder muscles are still contracting. While our legs swing during this motion, our torso rotates. The remainder of our upper body muscles, including the abdominals, entire back and chest, and even the neck muscles, control this rotation.

Weak Arms = Fatigue

Runners with poor upper body strength will fatigue much quicker in longer runs. As mentioned above, the biomechanics of running involve the entire body working together to create the running movements of leg and arm swing, pelvic stabilization, and torso rotation. Since the arms contain smaller muscle groups than most of the rest of the body, if they do not have sufficient strength to begin with, once they tire during running, the other muscle groups must begin to work harder throughout the remainder of the run. The shoulder muscles will need to work harder to continue propelling the weak arms, which will cause them to fatigue and then limit the amount of arm motion. At this point the core and torso muscles will need to create a stronger rotation to counteract the leg swing. The pattern will continue the fatigue downwards to the legs. In this case, for whole body endurance purposes, having a stronger upper body will help a runner last much longer.

The Purpose of Good Posture

A component to proper running form is good posture. Running with a forward head posture or rounded shoulders will make it more difficult to swing the arms and rotate the torso efficiently. This may lead to similar fatigue as described above or even injury to other joints below and most likely back pain. 

• Run Tall Proper posture begins with making sure to run tall—basically keeping the head facing forward with the chin parallel to the ground and keeping the shoulders back. This will help open up the chest and ensure more efficient breathing, improving endurance. Keeping the head in the appropriate position and shoulders back to create this tall posture requires strong upper back muscles. These muscles will pull the shoulders back by squeezing the shoulder blades together. Effective exercises to help achieve this strength are upper back rowing and reverse fly exercises. It is important to also include stretching for the chest and shoulder muscles, as having tightness in these areas will contribute to rounding out the shoulders and preventing a tall posture.

• Arm Swing Overall shoulder strength is beneficial since the shoulders are the driving force to the arm swing. Deltoid exercises such as straight-elbow forward and side raises are examples of simple strengthening exercises. Proper running form also includes elbows bent as close to a 90-degree angle as possible and limiting the arms and hands from angling in front of the body. This bent position is the job of the bicep muscles; therefore adding in a few variations of arm curls will help achieve this strength. Another effective way to strengthen all components of the arm swing is mimicking this motion with a pair of light dumbbells while performing a leg exercise such as walking lunges or step-ups.

• Stable hips The rest of the upper body, from the mid-back to the lower abdominals, is the main component for the torso rotation and pelvic stabilization in running. The torso should mostly be kept as stable as possible with a rotation that flows with the amount of leg swing. Deep core muscles that connect to the spine are in charge of keeping this stability. Most abdominal exercises such as leg raises, crunches, and planks, should be performed with the pelvis rotated slightly backward as to limit arching the back. This posterior pelvic position will contract these deep core muscles. 

• Trunk Rotation Rotation is achieved mostly by the obliques in the core, which can be strengthened by floor exercises such as the dead bug and Russian twist exercises. Performing walking lunges with a torso twist to the side of the stepping leg is a great combination exercise for the obliques, as well.

If you are looking to improve running form, endurance, or even set a PR, consider including several exercises for the upper body. Although this means you have to set aside a bit more time for exercise, it will be well worth it. A stronger upper body means more efficient breathing, better posture, and improved biomechanics with every step of running. All of these outcomes will lead to lasting longer while running and decreasing your risk of injury and pain along the way.

Sources

Beattie, Kris, et al, The Effect of Strength Training on Performance Indicators... : The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, Online, Aug 19, 2019

Pontzer, H., et al, Control and Function of Arm Swing in Human Walking and Running, Online, Aug 19, 2019