How to run fast if you are short

Run ultra's

Nobody sucks that bad because of their height. Find a different reason and get back with a new thread.

Not enough information.

Number of years running, age, m/f, eating regimen, exercise regimen....height is not the primary factor.

Basic example: 4' 6" @ 140 lbs is a lot different than 5' 6" @ 140lbs.

Are you a girl or a boy?

Olympic marathon medalist Mare Dibaba is 4'11".

All time great sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Price is 5'0"

The 2008 Olympics men's marathon gold and bronze medalists were 5'3" and 5'2".

Yes, 4'6" is very short for a girl or a boy, but running is a sport where being short is generally not a disadvantage. Stay with it and see what happens.

shortperson44 wrote:

Hi when I sprint I can barely stay with my friends who are jogging. I am a Senior in high school and 4' 6" and my prs are 7:57 for the mile and 51:42 for the 5k. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

You should be able to walk a 5k faster than 51 minutes.

Stature is the least of your worries.

Like this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9Vtq94wmlk

Don't know anything about you obviously, but it sounds like you are new. When you are at this level, just continuing to run consistently, and train consistently with a group will make you better. And when you are at this level, you will get faster very quickly if you keep at it frequently, no matter if you are that short.

Ira Murchison was 5-4, he held the 100m WR at 10.1 and was an Olympic 100m finalist.

Mel Pender was 5-5 he was also an Olympic 100m finalist and a WR60.

I doubt they ever thought about their size.

It's like rhytmn, ya either have it or ya don't.

I got on top of a horse and let it do the running.

If you can't sprint a fast 100 m that is one thing.

But if you can't run much faster than 8 minutes for one mile and unbelievable slow 51 minutes for 5 k that is another problem. It is not related to being short, just start to do some training and improve. I bet you have not run much so far. My 12 year old untrained sister ran a sub 30 min 5k in her first attempt.

I'm 5'2.75" but I basically say I'm 5'3".

I had a friend who absolutely hates my guts. He would only give me backhanded compliments. And one time when I was dating a girl, he told me that I would "fail" in front of my face - he said this in front of our group of mutual friends. WTF?!?!?!?

He kept saying stuff like: "Nah, she doesn't like you" - he'd say that over and over and over.

And then he said to me: "I can probably beat you in a sprint." My friend is 5'7" and I'm 5'3". All he does is arms and back and chest, and I work out legs and run every day (middle-distance).

He used the fact that Usain Bolt has a World Record in the 100m because he's TALL. My "friend" uses that argument and says that because he's tall, he can beat me in a sprint.

Did you know that the Olympic gold medalist for the 100m for the women's event is Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce? She's only 5'0" and she beats the really tall women like: Dafne Schippers who is 5'10".

I was just too dumbfounded and shocked to realize that my friend just makes crazy statistics and assumptions just to put me down and he's an econ major. I'm in STEM, bruh. I just let him say it so he can hear how ridiculous he sounds.

I realized now that he was never my friend to begin with. All he wanted to do was to make me suffer, make me doubt myself, and lose confidence. I only listened to him because I thought he cared for my well being. It was my mistake to listen to someone who only wanted to see me fail.

For example, just because he's 5'7" and I'm 5'3", we still wear the same inseam length of 30" for jeans. He might have legs that are 2" longer than mine, but does that offer a significant advantage in a sprint or 5k?

100 meters = 3937 inches. It takes elite sprinters about 44 strides or 88 huge steps to cover 100 meters.

If you look at Bekele's form, his stride is just as long as his 6 foot competitors.

I know I'm all over the place, but the thing is that you have to realize what you can do with your body. You will have a lower center of gravity, thus you'll be able to accelerate faster. This also means your cadence (number of steps or strides you take) will be higher.

You have to show no respect for your competitors. This will only inhibit you from performing. I will post a picture of my massive legs (proportionately) if you wish to be inspired and motivated...

That mile looks like a short course.