Strides- How They Can Help Make You Speedier!

Many runners have never heard of a simple technique that can help make you speedier on race day– strides (also referred to as striders).

• What are strides (striders)? Striders are short bursts of speed that you do after an easy run or before a race.
• How fast should a stride be? Do your strides at your mile race pace.
• How long should a stride be? Aim for 25-30 seconds (decelerate during the last 5 or so seconds). They are meant to be quick, and you will do a few repetitions.
• How long do I recover in between strides? Jog back to your starting point and let your breathing and heart rate slow down. When you’ve recovered, do your next stride.
• How many striders should I do? Start with one or two after an easy run. As you progress, you can add on more.
• When should I do strides? Add your strides after an easy run (you can also mix them into the run if you prefer). It’s a great way of adding in a little speed without making it a speed workout, sort of sneaking in speed! Strides are also great to do about 10 minutes before the start of a race. The extra burst of speed and race pace helps get you and your muscles in the mind set to run fast!

Running/training related: This past weekend I did a 10 mile long run on Sunday and felt pretty good. It was a beautiful fall-like morning for a run along the Shining Sea Bike Path (pretty much my favorite place in the world for long runs!). I left the house around 11 a.m. and ran from my house up to my in-laws in North Falmouth. I didn’t start to get too warm until about the last 2 miles. I had breakfast, but I think I should have eaten more earlier in the morning because I got REALLY hungry about half way through the run! Thankfully I had brought some energy chews– I ate the whole bag– 1/2 at 45 minutes and the other half about 15 minutes later. Next time I will either leave earlier or eat more! So far, half marathon training is going well and I am still liking the Run Less, Run Faster plan!