If you’re getting fed up with running out of steam at the end of races, it’s time to do something about it. Here are four sure-fire ways to develop a sprint finish.
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Give an honest effort
We’ve all seen it: the bloke at the end of the race in the final few hundred metres who suddenly injects a huge turn of pace and covers the ground at lightning speed charging past other runners and bashing his way over the line in frenzy of spit, heaving and fuss. This isn’t a great sprint finish. This is getting your pacing wrong. This is starting off way too slow, never really getting going and saving it all for the final dash. Instead, to get the best results you’re after, effort needs to be proportionally distributed throughout the race leaving just enough energy in the bank to reach into the reserves and produce a strong, fast, committed sprint finish.
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Be race savvy
There’s little point in being tactically naïve and running poor lines, overtaking in the wrong places, putting your efforts in when it’s best to conserve energy or pacing your race all wrong. Even with all the right training, things can still go wrong. Instead of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and missing your fast finish opportunity, get yourself a race strategy. Roll through race scenarios and how you’ll respond when X or Y happens. Understand the race distance and know the route. Racing a track 1500m, a road 5K, or a trail 10K are tactically different beasts. What pace will you set out at? Where will you put in your big efforts? Where will you try to conserve your strength? When and how will you kick in the race?
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Find your inner warrior
Digging in and being tough is what matters when you’re trying to eek out a fast finish. Any sand-bagger can shuffle the first few clicks and produce a monumental last few hundred metres. When you’ve put yourself on the edge of comfort for your entire race and you can still produce a finish to be proud of – that’s when you know you got it right. Kicking hard when you’re feeling broken is more mental than physical. When you accelerate, draw level and stride past your opponent you want them to break, to drop back and to realise you’ve got the upper hand. That doesn’t come with a soft, light touch for a sprint finish as you gently tickle past. It comes with a surge of effort, a devastating pace pick-up, a surprise kick as you whizz passed!
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Refine your technique
You’ve got to have good running form to finish strongly. Putting in extra effort isn’t about screwing your face up, hunching your shoulders, clenching your fists and screaming “You’ll never take our freedom” as you charge towards the line. Rather, it’s about relaxing from the eyebrows down, allowing your arms to drive back and forth by your sides, holding your head up, lifting your hips high, picking your knees up, a light, fast contact on the ground, and an increased running cadence and greater stride length.
Martin Yelling is a running coach and ex-international athlete. For his next challenge, Long Run Home, he’ll be running the length of the South West Coast Path.
