What makes a track fast

Usain Bolt makes sprinting look easy. Even better news? There are tons of steps you can take to run faster, smoke the competition, and maybe even set a new PR.

The key to running at any speed is to practice proper running technique. This means keeping your upper body tall yet relaxed, striking the ground with your mid-foot landing under your hip, and swinging your arms forward and back not side to side at low degree angles.

Short on gym time? Try interval training. This means exercising with periods of high and low intensity to build speed and endurance — and burn major calories in less time too! Strides are a series of comfortable sprints usually 8 to 12, between 50 and meters each to improve acceleration technique. Plus, you have the power to push the pace right at your fingertips. Just make sure you get on the machine before turning up the dial.

The jury is still out on static stretches. Lewis, J. A systematic literature review of the relationship between stretching and athletic injury prevention. DOI: By alternating jogs and sprints, you can gradually build up speed and endurance. Take a lesson from boxers and add jump rope workouts to your routine. Boxers know that fast feet means fast hands. But for runners, fast feet just equal fast feet.

Try a minimalist pair to see if less weight means more energy for faster feet. Stronger core muscles, especially lower abs, allow runners to tap into more force out on the road. The best part? Just 15 minutes of core work a few days per week is enough to help you speed up, according to a landmark study on the relationship between core strength training CST and athletic performance.

Sato K, et al. Does core strength training influence running kinetics, lower-extremity stability, and M performance in runners?

A study on male college athletes found that an eight-week ab training program may improve core endurance, which safeguards the spine during exercise. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from.

To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Nobody wants to run in lane 8, which makes Wayde van Niekerk's world record even more amazing.

On Sunday night, South Africa's Wayde van Niekerk won the gold medal in the meters with an astonishing world record run of He took a whopping 0. Perhaps most impressive of all: he did it from lane 8. No one had ever won a title at the Olympic Games from the track's outermost lane. For the casual track and field fan who watches track every four years when the Olympics come around, it might not seem like a big deal -- heck, it might not even make sense that runners are starting the or in different lanes.

Here's a look at why athletes are starting races in a stagger and why van Niekerk's historic run might have even been aided by being in the eighth lane:. The answer to why races have staggered starts is simple: Math. If you're running in one of the outside lanes, you're running around a bigger oval -- the farther out you go, the longer you'd have to run if you were running a full lap. Races have staggered starts so that everyone is running the same distance.

Theory says that being in one of the middle lanes is the marquee position -- a runner will be able to chase his or her opponents down throughout the race, just like a dog race with a fake rabbit leading the hounds around a track. Just in case it's not obvious, I'd just add that not all track surfaces are made from the same ingredients--there's no "standard".

It can be a mix and match of things like rubber, polyurethane, cork, synthetic materials, etc. The underpinning material beneath the surface also has an impact on performance plywood, fiberglass, etc. DrfbagIII is right - there are lots of allowable surfaces. This is almost a complete answer.

However, you are missing this: What is it about the fast runway that makes it fast? I'll add to mine and acknowledge. Sign up or log in Sign up using Google. Sign up using Facebook. Sign up using Email and Password. Post as a guest Name. Email Required, but never shown.

Featured on Meta. Now live: A fully responsive profile. By: ESPN poll The times in Lausanne, into a headwind of 1. Could the world record be eclipsed again?

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