When you want to increase your sprinting speed, you have to put the priority on sprint training. If you do not put a priority on sprinting faster, you won’t improve your speed.
Goals
If your main priority is to get bigger, stronger, and more muscular, you would focus on gaining muscle mass.
You would focus on lifting weights that are heavy enough to challenge you, aiming for a rep range of 3 to 10. You would train 3 or 4 days per week. You would also be eating a slight caloric surplus of balanced macronutrients. Your lifestyle would be like that of a natural bodybuilder.
You would not put your focus on playing multiple games of basketball every time before you lift. You also wouldn’t skip meals or eat junk food from local fast food joints every night. These options are incompatible with your goal of building a great physique.
When you want to sprint faster, should your primary focus be lifting weights? Absolutely not!
Speed Needs Speed
Far too many speed training programs put the majority of the emphasis on lifting weights.
I want my sprinters to be strong. I am a major advocate of sprinters lifting weights. But I do not want lifting weights to become the priority at the expense of high-quality sprinting.
Before lifting became more common in the track game, there were men who were blazing fast. “Bullet” Bob Hayes ran 10.06 in the 100m during the 1964 Olympics. Jim Hines ran 9.95 in the 100m at the 1968 Olympic Games.
Elite speed definitely has a genetic component to it. But these times from the 1960s prove that to sprint faster, you must put your track speed workouts first.
Lifting weights will lead you to build great muscle and strength. But without proper sprint training, you will not maximize your speed.
Strong And Slow
I was out of the track game from 2005 to 2015.
My focus during that time was figuring out what my life’s purpose was. I am fulfilling that purpose today. I train and teach people worldwide about living the fit life.
During this time, I also competed in natural bodybuilding and powerlifting. So, I built some good muscle and strength along the way.
When I first got back into the competitive track game in 2015, I could hip thrust 669.5lbs for 1 rep. I could also deadlift 465lbs for 1 rep. I was easily the strongest man on the track at that meet. But I got smoked in my race and finished 5th in my heat with an 11.91 in the 100-meter dash.
The 2016 summer track season had an even worse start. I still had one foot in the natural bodybuilding door, and it showed in the first meet. I opened the season with a horrendous 12.64 in the 100-meter dash and a 25.03 in the 200-meter dash.
If you were playing the Madden video game, I would have had a speed rating of SPD 62. It was at this point that I decided to pause my natural bodybuilding career and focus on training to sprint faster.
Change Is Gonna Come
I spent the rest of 2016 trying to improve my sprinting speed.
My primary focus was no longer lifting weights for pure physique development. I made great improvements in the 100m and 200m because my focus was on training to sprint faster. I was able to run 11.74 in the 100m and I ran a 24.18 in the 200m in late July 2016.
In 2017, I went under 12 seconds four times. I recorded times of 11.77, 11.68, 11.65, with my best time being 11.57 in the 100m. In the 200m, I went under 24 seconds three times recording times of 23.78, 23.85, and 23.90. All of this occurred at the age of 33.
The focus on speed training allowed me to earn a spot on the official national rankings list. I ranked 30th out of 96 in the country in the 100m and 28th out of 66 in the country in the 200m for the 2017 outdoor season.
Not too bad for a guy who was out of the track game for 10 years. Many people thought I would be cooked, but I wasn’t!
Conclusion
To increase your sprinting speed, focus your efforts on the track.
I’ll holla at you next time.
The People’s Trainer,
Fitman
