Getting faster at running requires one thing before anything else: an aerobic base. Runners who jump to speed work before building consistent mileage at easy effort get injured quickly and improve slowly. The sequence that works: 6–8 weeks of consistent easy running (3–4 sessions per week, 25+ km/week) → add strides → add one interval or tempo session per week → build quality progressively. Most recreational runners see their first meaningful pace improvements within 8–12 weeks of starting structured speed work. The methods below cover every type of speed session in order of appropriate introduction.

Use our Pace Calculator to find your target training paces from your most recent race result, including interval pace, tempo pace, and easy pace. Our training plan hub integrates these sessions into structured builds.

Before Speed Work: Build the Aerobic Foundation

Speed training applies high mechanical stress to muscles, tendons, and the cardiovascular system. Without an adequate aerobic base, this stress arrives before the supporting structures have developed sufficient resilience — producing injury rather than adaptation.

The aerobic base prerequisite:

• At least 6–8 weeks of consistent running (3–4 sessions per week)
• Weekly mileage of 25+ km sustained consistently
• No current injury or pain during easy running
• Easy runs genuinely feel easy — completing them without significant breathlessness

If you’re not yet at this point, easy base running is the speed training that matters most right now. The aerobic base is the foundation every other session is built on — see our VO2 max guide for the physiology of why aerobic base development precedes effective speed work.

Step 1: Understand What Actually Makes You Faster

Running speed is determined by two variables multiplied together:

Speed = Stride Length × Cadence (steps per minute)

To run faster, you need to increase stride length, cadence, or both. Elite runners achieve both — they take longer strides AND more steps per minute compared to recreational runners. The common misconception that faster running means shorter steps is wrong: it means more efficient steps, with each one propelling the body further forward.

The four key speed factors:

Aerobic capacity (VO2 max): The ceiling on sustainable pace. Raised by Zone 2 base running over months, not sprints.

Lactate threshold: The fastest pace you can sustain aerobically. Raised by tempo and threshold runs.

Running economy: How much oxygen each stride costs. Improved by better form, strength work, and strides.

Speed: Pure neuromuscular capacity to move fast. Developed by short, fast intervals and hill sprints.

Most beginners lack in all four. The methods below address each one in the sequence they should be introduced.

Step 2: Improve Running Form (Free Speed)

Better running mechanics reduce the energy cost of each stride — meaning the same effort produces more speed. These are the form improvements with the greatest impact:

Cadence: Most recreational runners run at 160–165 steps per minute. Increasing to 170–180 steps per minute at the same effort reduces overstriding (the most common efficiency killer) and typically reduces injury risk. Increase cadence by 5% over several weeks using a metronome app or a GPS watch with cadence display.

Forward lean: A slight lean from the ankles — not the waist — lets gravity assist forward momentum. Running bolt-upright or leaning backward from the hips produces a braking effect with each stride.

Arm drive: Arms drive the legs — faster arms produce faster leg turnover. Drive elbows backward (not sideways), keep hands relaxed, and don’t let arms cross the body’s midline. Keep elbows at approximately 90 degrees.

Foot strike position: Land with the foot under your centre of mass, not reaching out in front. Overstriding — foot landing far in front of the hips — creates a braking force with every step. The fix is higher cadence, which naturally shortens the stride back under the body.

Shoulder and jaw relaxation: Tension in the shoulders and jaw propagates through the body and wastes energy that could go into forward movement. Periodic shoulder drops during runs and loosening the jaw (slightly open mouth) release tension.

Form improvements are training adaptations that take weeks to consolidate — practise one cue at a time over 2–3 weeks before adding another.

Step 3: Strides — The First Speed Work

Before structured intervals or tempo runs, add strides to the end of easy runs. Strides are short (80–120m), controlled accelerations at approximately 5K race effort — not a sprint. They develop running economy, neuromuscular coordination for faster paces, and prepare the body for harder sessions later.

How to run a stride:

1. Accelerate smoothly over 20–30m — don’t launch immediately at full effort
2. Hold the faster pace for 60–80m at approximately 5K effort (RPE 8)
3. Decelerate smoothly — no abrupt stop
4. Walk or stand for 60–90 seconds before full recovery between each

Protocol: 4–6 strides after 2–3 easy runs per week. This is the lowest-injury, highest-value speed work available. Many elite runners do strides almost daily.

Step 4: Hill Running

Hill sprints build leg power, improve running economy, and develop the specific neuromuscular patterns for faster running — with lower injury risk than flat-surface speed work because the uphill gradient reduces ground impact forces.

Beginner hill protocol:

• Find a hill with an approximately 5–8% gradient, 40–60m long
• After a 15-minute easy warm-up: 5 × 10-second hard uphill sprints
• Walk back down between each (this is the rest)
• Cool-down: 10 minutes easy

Progression: Add one sprint per week until you’re doing 8–10 repeats. Then extend the sprint duration to 15–20 seconds and reduce reps back to 5–6, rebuilding from there.

Hill work is excellent for 5K and 10K preparation but equally valuable for marathon runners building leg strength. For a dedicated hill running guide, see our hill running post.

Step 5: Fartlek — Unstructured Speed Play

Fartlek (Swedish for “speed play”) mixes fast segments into a continuous easy run without formal intervals or measured distances. Surge to a lamp post, a gate, or for a set time (30–60 seconds), then return to easy running until recovered.

Why fartlek before structured intervals: It teaches the body to handle intensity changes without the psychological pressure of set targets. It’s lower risk than measured intervals and more sustainable early in speed training.

Beginner fartlek session:

• 10 min easy warm-up
• 20–25 min run with 6–8 surges of 30–45 seconds at 5K effort, returning to easy pace between
• 5 min easy cool-down

Step 6: Tempo Runs

A tempo run is sustained running at approximately your one-hour race pace — the fastest pace you could sustain in a 60-minute all-out time trial. This corresponds to roughly 80–85% of maximum heart rate and an RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) of approximately 7–8 out of 10.

Common misconception corrected: Tempo pace is approximately 30–40 seconds per km slower than 5K race pace, not faster. 5K race pace is harder and faster than tempo pace. If you race 5K in 25 minutes (5:00/km pace), your tempo pace is approximately 5:30–5:40/km.

Why it works: Tempo running raises your lactate threshold — the fastest pace your body can sustain primarily aerobically. Higher lactate threshold means you can race faster without accumulating fatigue as quickly.

Beginner tempo session:

• Warm-up: 15 minutes of easy running
• Main set: 20 minutes at threshold pace (RPE 7–8; short phrases possible but not comfortable conversation)
• Cool-down: 10 minutes easy

Progress: Add 5 minutes to the main set every 2–3 weeks until reaching 35–40 continuous minutes at tempo pace.

Step 7: Intervals

Interval sessions are the most direct stimulus for VO2 max improvement — the aerobic ceiling that determines what pace you can ultimately sustain. For a complete guide to interval types, protocols, and session examples, see our interval training guide.

Three beginner interval sessions:

30-second intervals (introduction):

• Warm-up: 15 min easy + 4 strides
• Main set: 8 × 30 seconds at 3K effort (RPE 9) / 90-second easy jog recovery
• Cool-down: 10 min easy

400m repeats (standard VO2 max):

• Warm-up: 15 min easy + 4 strides
• Main set: 6 × 400m at 5K effort / 90-second easy jog recovery
• Cool-down: 10 min easy

Pyramid session (variety):

• Warm-up: 15 min easy
• Main set: 200m / 400m / 600m / 800m / 600m / 400m / 200m, with equal-distance easy jog recovery between each
• Cool-down: 10 min easy

Consistency rule: The final interval should be run at the same pace as the first. If you’re significantly slowing, reduce the number of reps rather than pushing through poor-quality final efforts.

Step 8: Strength Training for Speed

Strength work improves running economy (the oxygen cost per stride) by building the leg and glute power that produces more propulsion per footfall. For speed specifically:

Power exercises:

• Single-leg Romanian deadlifts (glutes, hamstrings)
• Box jumps or step-ups with drive (explosive leg power)
• Hip thrusts (glute strength for push-off)
• Single-leg calf raises, both straight and bent knee (Achilles tendon and calf complex)

Core exercises:

• Dead bugs and bird-dogs (deep core stability through high-cadence running)
• Pallof press (anti-rotation core strength)

Plyometrics (after 8+ weeks of strength base):

• Bounding drills
• Single-leg hops
• A-skips and B-skips (running drill classics)

Two sessions of 25–30 minutes per week alongside running are sufficient. Do not do strength work on the same day as a hard interval or tempo session — pair strength with easy running days.

Speed Training Timeline: When to Expect Results

Timeframe	What typically changes
2–4 weeks	Strides feel smoother; form begins consolidating; breathing at speed becomes more controlled
4–6 weeks	First interval sessions feel less overwhelming; easy pace may begin improving slightly
6–10 weeks	Measurable improvement in easy pace (30–60 sec/km); interval sessions feel more manageable
10–16 weeks	Significant performance improvement at goal race distance; tempo pace improving meaningfully
6 months+	Compounding aerobic and mechanical improvements; continued progress with progressive training

How Often to Do Speed Work

• Beginners (first 4–6 weeks of speed work): One quality session per week (strides or fartlek)
• Developing runners: One quality session per week (intervals or tempo)
• Competitive recreational runners: Two quality sessions per week maximum

Allow at least 48–72 hours of easy running between quality sessions. Never do two hard sessions on consecutive days.

For recovery strategy between speed sessions — including post-session nutrition and sleep — see our recovery tips guide.