Best way to improve leg speed - form drills, sprints or something else?

Hill bounding and down hill strides

Thanks for the advice. I found some info on how to do that here-

https://www.nazelite.com/what-the-hecks-a-hill-circuit/

One question I do have though is, if this is a workout or something like strides which can be done at the end of an easy run?

SlowHobbyJogger wrote:

one question I do have though is, if this is a workout or something like strides which can be done at the end of an easy run?

Yes

Is that a 'yes' to 'if this is a workout?' or is that a 'yes' to 'something like strides which can be done at the end of an easy run?'

confused'boutyes wrote:

Is that a 'yes' to 'if this is a workout?' or is that a 'yes' to 'something like strides which can be done at the end of an easy run?'

Yes strides can be done after easy runs, also do them before workouts to get your ,muscles going.

A good way to develop speed and power is to join an adult soccer league, plus it's fun.

Old Man 2 Lapper wrote:

A good way to develop speed and power is to join an adult soccer league, plus it's fun.

Totally agree on the fun part. Grew up playing soccer and played indoors till last year when i messed up my ankle. Feels like running is a better hobby for my old age:D. I have reasonable leg strength from soccer/lifting(can squat upto 235 lbs) but my legs just don't seem to turn over fast.

Appreciate the advice.

Hill bounding and down hill strides wrote:

confused'boutyes wrote:

Is that a 'yes' to 'if this is a workout?' or is that a 'yes' to 'something like strides which can be done at the end of an easy run?'

Yes strides can be done after easy runs, also do them before workouts to get your ,muscles going.

Thank you, sir!

Hi there, I'm in a similar boat as you in terms of experience/speed/age, but I don't fully understand your basic question regarding leg speed. Do you mean cadence (step frequency)? Or something else?

You shouldn't necessarily run at a particular cadence, but it wouldn't hurt to quantify where you're at. The whole focus on cadence in the running world, anyway, is more that it's related to efficiency, as low cadence can indicate overstriding, where you're hitting the brakes with each step. I personally wouldn't worry if you're not overstriding (landing way out in front of your center of mass). This would be more apparent in pictures/videos than any cadence measurement. After all, elites often have a slower cadence than me, but they're running like 80% faster in a given race distance, and they look a whole lot better doing it.

For reference, I'm ~21:00 5k now, and do my easy running at 9:10 to 8:40 pace lately, and my cadence is usually somewhere around 170-175 at that pace. As I get tired when doing faster-paced running, like at the end of a race or at the end of long intervals, my cadence naturally increases to 190+. Last 5k I ran, I started at probably 180 and finished around 190, with a very steady pace. I would say across the board these cadences are all relatively high, especially for my speed and height (6'3"), and thus my range of motion is pretty low. So I've been trying to make a point of running my fastest repeats (like 200-400m at ~6:00 mile pace, striders at sub-5:00 peak pace) with a relatively lower cadence, around 180, to work on opening up my stride while focusing on other aspects of form, like good knee drive and toe-off.

If you do want your cadence to be higher, the thing you can do right now is just run faster - it should naturally increase from the effort of going faster. For example, 200m in about 45-46s, and 400m in 1:30-1:33, using a metronome if needed to hit a target cadence (unless something feels "wrong" when you try it, don't get yourself hurt trying to force a form change!). Get used to that feeling and feed it back into slower paces.

Do you have a watch or device (like Garmin HRM-Run strap) that can measure your cadence so you know what range you're in at different speeds? I've got a Garmin with the HRM-Run, and I can configure it to show my cadence in real time on the watch face. On an easy run, you could start off with your typical running form, then practice gradually taking shorter, quicker steps while not speeding up. But honestly, if you aren't getting hurt, and your form overall is okay, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Hi there.

I don't generally try to hit a particular cadence or considered it important. But it's really obvious from when I run with others and race videos that I do turn over my legs lower. As any self-respecting nerd, I confirmed my suspicion by checking the cadence on my watch- it's almost always around 165. It get around 170 when I'm pushing the pace(like a track workout. Though admittedly I don't do much of it) . Last 5k, started around 165 and finished around 170. Like you, I never believed in an absolute number as ideal for cadence but I was curious as to if my sluggish turnover was a problem + if I can fix it.

Re the footstrike- definitely not a heel-striker. Actually I seem to barely land my heel based on wear pattern + again race pics + videos . I'm guessing that's coz of my soccer background. I'm just more comfortable on my toes.

From your experience, it sounds like throwing in a few track workouts should also help.

p.s. It's a little freaky that you posted today. I hadn't been here since last wednesday and decided to see if anyone else replied. Also to the soccer guy- ended up jumping in a pickup game on wednesdayand tweaked my groin. Out for a couple of weeks again. Definitely getting too old to jump in without proper warmups :P

do strides after most of your normal runs, that will help your body learn to run quicker. Do them roughly 50-100 meters (or 10-20 seconds). Practice running quick but also staying as relaxed as you can.

Run with people as fast or just a little faster than you are.

The easiest thing to gain in training is raw muscle.

The next easiest is endurance.

The hardest thing to gain in training is speed.

You need at least one specific speed workout per 7 to 9 days.

It could consist of the following:

Warmup: Depends on the weather (If the weather is 50 degrees or cooler you will not be able to run hard!)

Cold days = long warmup: 1 mile jog; stretching; running drills; 4 x 60 strides

Base workout = Could be 8 x 30 meter flys. You will want to do these on a track. You run

1 flying 30 per straightaway with 10 meter acceleration zone and 10 meter deceleration (Yes, this is a 4 lap workout.)

(When decelerating keep the knees high~~~this will prevent soreness)

Other ideas could be 5 x 80 with each one faster than the previous. 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95% Long rests

Or 2 x 4 x 60 meters Long rests

Uphill repeats

Downhill repeats

Jump Rope

Warm Down jog

Keep the intensity high but the volume low. The next day should be Recovery.

*Of course this is not a complete training plan.

The people around you are going exactly the same speed. How you achieve that speed is meaningless.

I have a similar problem, low cadence. Added to that I also have a mild heel strike.

I do strides after each easy run and rather than do them for raw speed/distance, I do them with increasing cadence.

I also do 4 x 200m repeats prior to my tempo run. Again I don't focus on raw speed but rather high cadence. I measure myself by how far down the track I get while still feeling at ease rather than seconds on the clock. This makes the first half of the tempo run much easier.

Note: the increase in cadence is not excessive. My legs don't look like Wylie Coyote chasing the Roadrunner. But rather just pick it up by five to ten percent. I did some quick calculations and if you lifted your natural cadence from 165 to 175, a 6% increase, you would knock over a minute off your 5K time.