You’re running as fast as you can, but you see someone pass you. You start to slow down a little. You’re so tired and just want to quit. It can be really hard to try to be a faster runner in the sport of cross country, but there are a lot of ways to help you be a better runner. You have to use what works for you to help you be the best runner you can be. 

     A good runner needs to have a pretty good diet. You shouldn’t be limiting yourself from things you want to eat, but also try to have a lot of nutrition so that you can race as fast as possible, and so that your energy won’t burn out. Before practices and meets, eat power bars and drink a lot of water so that you have as much energy as possible. 

     Having good running shoes for a race and practice is also very important. You can have normal running shoes (sneakers made for running) or you can have spikes. Spikes are shoes you would only use at races, not practices, that have little spikes on the bottom. Good brands for normal running shoes are Hoka, Brooks, and New Balance. A good place to get spikes is from FleetFeet. They make sure your spikes fit you perfectly and that they work for you. The reason you might want spikes is because they grip better to the ground on trails when they dig into the grass, but you don’t have to use spikes in your races. You can just use normal running shoes. 

     One of the ways to help you have a good race is to warm up the right way. Ideally, you should be at the track an hour before the race starts. To warm up, keep running until about 20 minutes before the race. You can run anywhere, as long as you keep moving. Then, 20 minutes before the race, start to roll out your muscles with a roller. Do some dynamic stretches and sprint a short distance from the starting line and back. Some good dynamic stretches to do are lunges, leg swings, high knees, and any other stretch to warm up your muscles. Put on your running shoes or spikes and make sure they're tight and comfortable. A good warm up is the best way to have a good race. 

     Another strategy you can use is to pace yourself in the beginning of your race. A good way to know what speed your “race pace” might be is to run at a pace where you're not going super slow, but at a pace that doesn’t tire you out too much. If you waste all your energy trying to pass people in the beginning, you won’t have any energy left for the rest of the race. It doesn’t matter if in the beginning of the race you’re in the back, because later on, you’re probably going to pass the people who were ahead of you in the beginning. However, just like you’re going to pass some people who were ahead of you in the beginning, because they wasted their energy, there are going to be people who pass you too, and that’s fine. Work on staying at a pace that’s good for you, not other people. 

     A third thing you can do, but may not always work, is sponging. Sponging is when there is someone in front of you, and you know you can pass them, but you don’t. Instead, you come up right behind them so that you’re not wasting too much energy of your own, and the person in front of you will be tiring themselves out, trying to stay ahead of you. Then when you see them getting slower, you can pass them easily. This will only work if there is someone ahead of you who is your speed or a little slower, because if they’re faster than you, you will be wasting all of your energy trying to keep up with them instead of the other way around. 

     A good strategy to help you when in your race is to conserve your energy. For example, if there is a big hill you have to run up, don’t try to run your fastest up the hill, otherwise you’ll waste all of your energy. Lightly jog up harder parts of the course. Save your energy for flat parts of the track and downhills. Also, save energy for your finish. If you waste all of your energy at certain parts of the race, you’re going to slow down in other parts and have a slower overall time. 

     The last strategy to make you faster is to have a strong finish. A finish is the very last part of the race, where you should be able to see the finish line. When you see that you’re pretty close to finishing, you want to sprint the rest of the way there, and it should take you about 10 to 15 seconds to sprint the rest of the way. It’s a good way to improve your time because when you can see the finish line, you're motivated to just sprint the rest of the way, because you want to be done. Having a strong finish can shave almost 20 seconds of your overall time if you're doing it right.

     There are many ways to help you be a better runner. Pick a few that work for you, and work hard to master them. That’s how you will ace every race and be the fastest runner you can be. Never give up on trying to pursue something that is important to you.

-Olivia N.