One of the biggest mistakes you can make as a runner is trying to run too much without building a solid fitness and aerobic foundation. In order to achieve and improve your running stamina, you need to have patience and slowly, but surely, increase your weekly mileage over a number of weeks. Following an intelligent training plan to accomplish this new level of stamina will keep you injury-free and allow you to better enjoy running for longer distances and time.
Step 1
Open the pages of your training diary and review the long term training program you have chosen to build stamina and endurance in your running. According to the article "Common Characteristics of Successful Endurance Performance" by Tim Gibbons, the three main factors for long term training of increased stamina and endurance are maximum oxygen uptake or VO2 Max, power output or speed at maximum effort, and running or form economy. By focusing on gradual improvements in these three areas over a period of months and even years, your stamina as a runner is sure to increase. Specific workouts in all three categories that gradually increase in volume and effort are of major importance for increased running stamina.
Step 2
Lace up your running shoes, and get ready for the next race. While laying out a long term plan of racing as milestones to shoot for as a measurement of your stamina and endurance improvements, you can use your very next upcoming race as a short term progression. Set the exact goal you wish to accomplish at your next race as a stepping stone to your overall goal, and work on the areas of your running needed to achieve it. While your long term goal may be to run a 30-minute 10-kilometer race within the next 3 years, use your next 10 km race as that stepping stone by shooting for a 32-minute result. Using your next race as a motivation to keep training to achieve your ultimate long-term goal can be very effective.
Step 3
Fill your plate with pasta, brown rice, potatoes or pizza on a regular basis. By eating enough complex carbohydrate foods, your body's fuel tank will be filled and ready to run long without failure. Jason R. Karp, in an article titled "Carbohydrates and The Distance Runner: A Scientific Perspective," says that consuming large amounts of carbohydrate foods will supply you with more than enough energy, stored in your muscles as glycogen, to run longer. Eating more carbs within a short time after a hard, long run will also restore your energy supply much more quickly. Understanding the importance of eating and re-fueling for your body's energy supplies is one of, if not the most important, elements of improving your running stamina.
Step 4
Load another 5 lbs. on the barbell in your gym, and start doing resistance or strength training to increase your stamina as a runner. The article "Strength Training for Endurance Runners With Applications to Other Events" by Scott Christensen states that for many years distance runners resisted strength training as possibly being a hindrance by adding too much muscle weight. Consistent strength training for running stamina provides muscular adaptations specific to increased performance. Increased muscle density and flow of blood to your muscles allow for longer running times and greater speed. Intelligent weight training for a runner does not have to bulk you up, but instead provides very specific muscular strength increases to your muscles needed for the long run.
Step 5
Ask another running buddy to suggest a good coach, or utilize the knowledge and help of your team's coach to help determine the best way to improve your stamina and overall running performance. Not only can a knowledgeable coach chart the proper path to your distance running success, but he can also be a great motivator to help you keep focused on your goals and self-confidence.
Tips and Warnings
- Stay true to gradually increasing all aspects of your training over a long period of time to improve your running stamina. This long-term perspective of training proves the old adage that "patience is a virtue," and will help you to achieve your goals.
- Wanting to increase too much, too soon, and being impatient is the surest road to failure and injury when seeking to improve your running stamina.
Things You'll Need
- Short-term training plan
- Long-term training plan
- Nutritional plan
- Strength training plan
- Running coach
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