In the late 1980’s I struggled to regain my speed and form as sprint hurdler. I did not understand what had gone wrong. I was fast once at 13 years of age, but by 17 I was losing to competitors I had handily beat before. My gut told me if I was fast once maybe I could be fast again? I was right however it took some time with a lot of trial and error along the way to get it right. In the late 80’s, viewing video’s and articles were not available as they are now. The internet has enabled vast amounts of information to be placed online to help guide athletes and coaches. This brings us to the challenge for anyone wanting to research quality information online. How do you find your way through this massive amount of information and try to determine what works and what doesn’t?
I’ve spent the better part of my life having an elite coach train me. I have trained myself and I have trained others to be fit and run fast. The information at my disposal and curated on my website is immense. However, I was curious to see what others who may not have found my website were looking at when researching “how to run fast” or “how to sprint”. I started with a simple Google search and aAppearing in the number one search position was this link; http://www.wikihow.com/Run-Faster
Typically most people click on the first results of their search and use that information as their starting point.
Superior search engine technology ( called SEO = search engine optimization ) , along with relevant and up to date information are factors contributing to a number one ranked article once you launch research.
The flawed aspect of online research is that despite how great Wiki How’s article appears, the content has little to do with how to run fast or how to sprint or how to get faster when sprinting.
WikiHow’s bold statement regarding “ how to run fast” sets the basis for their article and my partial analysis of it.
“Running is something almost anyone can do, but running faster—that's the challenge! It takes training, focus, discipline, and determination. So if you think you're ready for the next step, read on!” ( wikiHow )
The most accurate part of the above quote appears in Wiki How’s first statement of a several page article. “ that’s the challenge”.
Speed training done properly, improving your speed and sprinting over 10 meters and up to 100 meters is challenging.
I thought the comment about …” it takes training “ might be obvious to anyone thinking of how to improve a skill ( it’s the practice of a skill that comprises training routine)
“ Focus “ is critical but what are you going to focus on without a clear idea of drills and methods methods of how to train?
“ Discipline” is something you can hone over time and doing well certainly encourages one’s ability to train, focus and to be disciplined.
Determination , I believe it was determination ( and total frustration) that led me to the information you are able to benefit from if you study the information provided on this site and in my store.
And the last part of this intro statement gives little direction; “ … if you think you are ready for the next step” Just because you think you are ready to run fast and sprint faster does not make you faster. To create success you do need to learn more about the topic from trusted online locations. The key problem with the entire “Wiki How to “article is there is very little specific content that will lead you to your end goal to run faster or sprint faster.
SUMMERY : When researching a topic you wish learn more about , find a trusted source of information written and reviewed by the people associated with the history of highest performances that exist. You also need to constantly corroborate your information across multiple sources. Over the next few posts I will look further information found on the web on the same topic of “How to run fast” and “ how to sprint”.