Part 3: Strides - Your Secret Weapon

Strides - Your Secret Weapon for Form, Speed, and Recovery

If the science puts you to sleep then I apologize for Part 1, but hopefully you got something out of our discussion on the various speed endurance training methods. We now turn our focus to a particularly potent and often underestimated tool: strides. These short, controlled bursts of speed are a secret weapon for improving your form, enhancing your speed, and even aiding recovery. If you only take one thing away from this series on speed endurance I want it to be this!

Strides: Your Secret Weapon for Form, Speed, and Recovery

Strides, also known as striders or pickups, are a fundamental yet often underutilized tool in endurance running. They are characterized as short bursts of fast running, typically spanning 50-150 meters or lasting 15-30 seconds. The execution involves accelerating from an easy pace to approximately 80-90% of maximum speed (somewhere between 5k to mile race pace), holding that pace briefly, and then gradually decelerating.

What sets strides apart from traditional intervals or speed work is their primary physiological adaptation: it is neuromuscular, not cardiovascular. Strides enhance the communication pathways between the brain and muscles, leading to improved running mechanics. They serve as a low-stress, highly effective method for introducing speed work into a training regimen without inducing significant fatigue. 

Notably, coaches like David Roche are strong proponents of strides, often advocating that for many runners, a consistent regimen of easy running combined with strides can be sufficient to unlock significant speed and efficiency gains.

Benefits of Strides

The consistent incorporation of strides yields a multitude of benefits for endurance runners:

• Improved Running Economy: Strides help refine running form by encouraging focus on posture, stride length, arm swing, and foot placement, leading to more efficient movement. They train the body to recruit an effective combination of muscle fibers and eliminate unnecessary movements, thereby reducing energy expenditure at a given pace.

• Enhanced Neuromuscular Coordination: By activating fast-twitch muscle fibers, strides improve the intricate communication between the brain and muscles. This coordination is crucial for developing speed, maintaining control at faster paces, and improving quick turnover.

• Injury Prevention: Strides prepare the body for faster running without the high strain of full-speed efforts. This gradual conditioning strengthens your body and improves flexibility, reducing the risk of common running injuries. Hill strides, in particular, can reduce impact on joints compared to flat terrain.

• Mental Adaptation: Performing strides helps the mind adapt to the feel of race pace, builds confidence at higher speeds, and psychologically prepares the runner for race efforts.

• Aid in Muscle Recovery: Anecdotal evidence from many runners and coaches suggests that strides can help "flush" muscles of residual byproducts from hard training, potentially speeding up recovery. They can also help loosen up the body and make legs feel better after a run.

Beyond Basic Strides: Progressive Speed Endurance Development (Inspired by David Roche)

While strides are foundational, truly maximizing your speed endurance and defying age-related regression often involves progressively incorporating more advanced forms of short, fast work. As David Roche emphasizes, the goal isn't just to do faster strides, but to reinforce power at VO2 max and higher effort levels through varied, targeted sessions. This approach ensures long-term development and prevents stagnation.

Here are general principles and workout ideas for building speed endurance beyond simple strides:

• Consistent Short, Fast Efforts: Continue to integrate strides (on hills or flats) 1-3 times per week within the context of easy runs. For trail runners, adding these after a mountain run or even at the top of a mountain can be particularly effective.

• Reinforcing Higher Effort Levels: Continually build speed endurance with workouts involving short intervals and hills, even during more endurance-focused blocks. While these might be done at most once per week, you can still develop this trait by spreading these workouts every 3-6 weeks in endurance blocks, as long as you're maintaining speed with fast strides. On these sessions, the focus is on power and speed development, not necessarily a specific controlled effort, so creating some lactate is acceptable. This generally corresponds to 3K/5K effort for most athletes, whereas the fast strides from studies might be closer to 400m/800m effort in some cases.

Workout Ideas for Progressive Speed Endurance:

These sessions are designed to harness higher effort levels and build resilient speed:

• Post-Workout Accelerations: After your normal easy or moderate run, add 4-6 x 30 seconds fast with 90 seconds easy recovery, on hills or flats. This helps reinforce speed when fatigued. A variation could be 4 x 45-60 seconds fast or 4 x 45-60 second hills after workouts.

• Broken 5K/Aerobic Power Sessions:

  • 3-5 x (4 x 1 minute fast / 1 minute easy) with 2 minutes easy between sets. Start these at a 5K effort and gradually push a bit as you go through the workout.

  • A "desert island workout" variation: 15-20 x 1 minute fast / 1 minute easy. This session can be repeated with different recovery variations for major growth.

  • 10-12 x 50 seconds fast / 70 seconds easy (think 3K to mile effort), followed by steady running.

• Hill Power Development:

  • 6 x 90 second hills (think 5K effort).

  • 6 x 45 second hills (think 5K to 3K effort).

  • 10-12 x 1 minute hills (3K effort). This was a staple of Paula Radcliffe's world record training, often once every 10-day cycle.

• Track-Based Speed Endurance (Examples):

  • 3-4 x (3 x 300m fast) with 100m jog between intervals and 300m easy between sets.

  • 4 x (400m / 300m / 200m fast) with 200m jog between intervals and 400m easy between sets.

  • 8 x 400m fast with 200m easy recovery, followed by 6 x 200m fast with 200m easy recovery.

David Roche theorizes that athletes who consistently maintain their top-end speed and power through these types of sessions tend to defy expected regression curves as they age. Incorporating such work can help you harness speed endurance principles effectively and maintain your speed over time.

How to Perform Strides Effectively

To maximize the benefits of strides and minimize injury risk, proper execution is key:

• Warm-up Thoroughly: Always begin with at least 5-10 minutes of easy running. Incorporating dynamic stretches and running drills is also highly beneficial to prepare the muscles.

• Choose the Right Location: Select a flat, safe stretch of ground, typically 50-150 meters long, such as a track, park, or quiet road. Hill strides are an excellent alternative for building strength with less impact.

• Execute in Three Phases:

  • The First Third: Gradually accelerate up to an intensity equivalent to your 5k to mile race pace, or approximately 90% of your maximum speed. This pace is individual and depends on your current fitness level, focusing on a fast but controlled effort rather than an all-out effort.

  • The Second Third: Hold this pace, focusing intently on maintaining good form - relaxed, controlled, and avoiding flailing movements. The aim is to run fast yet relaxed.

  • The Final Third: Slowly decelerate and coast to a stop, using "quiet footsteps" to avoid abrupt braking which can be hard on the joints.

• Prioritize Recovery: Allow 2-3 times the amount of time it took to run the stride for recovery (e.g., a 20-second stride followed by 40-60 seconds of recovery jog or standing rest). The goal is to feel rested before each subsequent stride, ensuring consistent quality across all repetitions.

• Focus on Form, Not Just Speed: Maintain near-perfect form throughout the stride. Concentrate on an upright posture, effective stride length (where your foot lands under the body), relaxed arm swing, and efficient foot placement. Avoid overstriding, which can break momentum and increase stress. An optimal cadence is generally around 180 steps per minute.

Incorporating Strides into Your Training Plan

Strides are incredibly versatile and can be integrated into various parts of a runner's weekly schedule:

• Frequency: Runners can incorporate strides into their training routine 1-3 times per week. Consistent practice is paramount for long-term benefits.

• Timing:

  • Warm-up: Performing strides before speed workouts or races is an excellent way to prime fast-twitch muscles and get the legs firing, ensuring the body is ready for high-intensity efforts.

  • Post-Easy Run: Adding strides at the end of an easy or long run is a common and effective strategy. This allows for the integration of speed work without overly taxing the neuromuscular system, keeping the legs sharp and improving running economy.

  • Standalone Workout (for beginners): For those new to speed work, strides can serve as a quality session on their own, providing a gentle introduction to faster paces.

  • Day Before a Race or Workout: A few strides the day before a key session or race can help sharpen the legs and reduce the "jolt" to the system when the harder effort begins.

Strides Workout Variations and Integration

This table provides you with practical, actionable advice tailored to different runner needs, making it easy for you to implement strides immediately. It helps clarify how to integrate speed work into your busy training schedule and emphasizes the versatility of strides for various training goals.

Long-Term Adaptations and Benefits of Consistent Strides

Despite their short duration and low perceived stress, strides offer a potent "micro-dose" of speed work. Consistently performing them yields significant long-term benefits in running form, improved running economy, and increased speed over time. This approach allows the neuromuscular system to adapt incrementally without the high recovery demands of full-blown interval sessions, making it highly sustainable and effective for endurance runners balancing high mileage. It is about consistent, subtle nudges leading to profound cumulative change.

A common challenge for endurance runners is maintaining efficient form as fatigue sets in, especially during the later stages of a race. Strides offer a unique solution by training the body to preserve optimal mechanics even when tired. When performed at the end of a run, they simulate a degree of fatigue, helping the body adapt to keeping good form in those critical later stages of a race. This goes beyond basic form drills to a more functional, race-specific adaptation, where maintaining form under duress is paramount for both performance and injury prevention.

Furthermore, the neuromuscular stimuli provided by strides contribute to a more "rounded" runner, and can even make other running workouts feel easier.

Next week we round off the series by looking at how you can sustain your progress. We will focus on the critical elements of recovery and consistency, offering practical recommendations to maximize your gains and avoid plateaus for long-term success.

References

• [1] https://www.physio-pedia.com/Exercise_Physiology

• [2] https://www.stephrunning.co.uk/blog/benefits-of-strides

• [3] https://coros.com/stories/coros-coaches/c/the-benefits-of-strides

• [4] https://marathonhandbook.com/running-strides/

• [5] https://run161.com/running-training/running-strides-improves-form-speed-and-recovery/