The ability to run is useful for everyone from an average person who may need to run to actually survive some day, all the way up through athletes who run as part of their profession.

For something so important, why is it that so many people refuse to try to do it? In my years as a personal trainer I can’t count how many times people said, “I can’t run”.

Translated: “I’m not willing to put forth the effort to run.”

Well, the ability to run could literally save your life someday, so I’ve put together this primer that discusses what it takes to learn how to run really fast, and I have divided it up into 3 easily digestible sections.

Angle of Attack

One of the things to consider with any exercise program is that the human body is not a static machine that only works under very precise conditions and at very precise angles.

Quite to the contrary, the human body is actually a multi-dimensional machine that needs to be trained in a multi-dimensional manner in order to perform at peak efficiency.

When it comes to running, that means changing the angle at which you put pressure on the bones, tendons, ligaments, and muscles that are used while running.

The easiest way to do that is to simply run on surfaces that are not perfectly flat. Although running indoors on a treadmill has advantages such as precise measurement of the activity itself, if all you ever do is run on a treadmill, you will limit the growth of the musculature that is used while running.

Ways to increase both the angles of stress that are put on your muscles as well as to increase the use of supporting muscles and connective tissues include:

  • Running up and down hills, although modifying your gate on the downhill side to avoid shin splints
  • Running on different surfaces such as grass, sand, or running cross country though fields and wooded areas

Cross Training

To receive a similar benefit to changing the angle of muscle usage when running, do things other than just running, even if your primary goal is to increase your speed or capacity for running.

Your body can only handle so much pressure, especially when pressure is repeatedly put on the same bodily tissues over and over again over the long-term. Any long-distance runner can attest to the fact that knee and hip problems are an occupational hazard for any veteran runner.

One of the best ways to increase your running speed and capacity, and also to avoid injury, is to work on your cardiovascular endurance by doing activities other than running. The cardiovascular system is as much a part of being a good runner as the musculoskeletal system, so train it accordingly.

Some good ways to cross train your running muscles as well as your cardiovascular system include:

  • Hiking
  • Rollerblading
  • Moderate to high intensity bicycle riding and indoor exercise bikes
  • Stair steppers to work the calf muscles, and stair climbers to work the bigger leg muscles
  • Elliptical or other revolution-based cardiovascular training machines at your local fitness facility

Interval Training

One of the most effective but often overlooked training modalities is called interval training. In a nutshell, interval training involves constantly changing the rate of intensity for any given exercise, forcing your body to learn how to adapt to constantly changing energy needs.

Interval training is normally done on a timed basis, although it can also be done both indoors and outdoors by basing your training intervals on distance or geographical objects. Indoors, you can measure distance on most exercise equipment, and outdoors you can use such things as telephone poles, trees, houses, or pretty much anything that can be seen while exercising outdoors.

Basically all you need to do is decide what amount of time or what distance you are going to run at a given level of intensity, and then once the time or distance goal has been reached, you switch to a higher or lower level of intensity. For example:

  • Run for 3 minutes at your normal comfortable running speed, and then run as fast as you can for 1 full minute before dropping back to your normal speed
  • If running outside, run at your normal speed for 5 lengths between telephone poles, and then run full-out for 2 lengths before slowing back down again.

The possibilities are endless, and you can change them up to keep from getting bored with the same routine, and to keep your body constantly adapting to a new training situation.

This has the effect of exercising both your muscles as well as your cardiovascular system through a greater range of use, giving you a distinct advantage when it comes time for a race, a competition that you have with yourself, or possibly even the need to run for your life!

A side benefit to interval training is that the confusion it causes with your bodily systems tends to lend itself to both a higher metabolism, as well as a very rapid loss of bodyfat.

Conclusion

Running may not be for everyone, and there are people who truly can’t run due to some sort of physical condition. However, most people can run.

If you are one of those people who has been saying for years that you can’t do it, don’t you think it’s time you started pushing your body to its limits, and seeing some amazing results from that effort?