Today, I wanted to address one of the ways you can get faster that I really don’t address that often. Your weight could have an effect on how fast you can run and if you are overweight, then some weight loss could definitely help. Or more correctly, if you are able to lose fat, then you will have a definite advantage to run faster. Let’s dive into this and see if this makes sense to you.

I don’t think you need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that if you are carrying excess weight, you will have a hard time developing speed. Who is going to run faster, an elephant or a cheetah? If you got more mass to move and not enough muscle to generate that speed, then you aren’t going to be moving fast. Your range of motion might be limited due to the extra size. Muscle imbalances might be developed because of improper movement patterns due to the extra size. I think you get the picture.

The point being if you can burn off some of the extra pounds, then you aren’t as heavy and can move faster. Your range of motion might increase because the extra size won’t hinder the movement patterns you need to run properly.

But, you ask, why are there NFL players that are 245 pounds and can run 4.4 seconds 40-yard dashes?

That then brings into play the bodyfat percentage and goes back to what I said in the first paragraph. Focus on losing fat, not just the weight. If you have two people who are 200 pounds, but one person has 10% bodyfat and the other person 20% bodyfat, there are some physical differences between the two. The 10% person has only 20 pounds of fat, while the 20% has 40 pounds of fat on their bodies. If the 10% person has been strength training, then he potentially could have 20 pounds more muscle then the 20% person. The 20% consequently has 20 pounds more fat.

If the muscle is put in the right place, then he obviously can generate more speed because the muscles are all working explosively. The extra fat on the other person, really does nothing except become dead weight you have to pull when you run. So, keeping your bodyfat low will definitely help you move more explosively and increase your speed.

If you have extra bodyfat, then what do you need to do to get rid of it?

As I used to tell my wellness clients back in the day, exercise alone is not enough to burn fat. You MUST change your eating habits. In fact, the older I get and smarter I get, I think eating could be 70% – 80% of weight loss. It’s kind of a big deal.

Let’s assume you are training with me, currently working out, or playing in your sport. So, you should be getting the right amount of activity you need to burn calories. You need food for the energy of those activities, but the type of food you get will determine if you will be burning fat or not.

To effectively fuel your body, keep these pointers in mind:

  • You need to eat enough food to fuel your body for your daily needs plus extra calories to support your training. There are a lot of different formulas and unless you have a metabolic machine like I have to determine your daily caloric intake, then I would just multiply your weight by 10, then add another 40% of that number to that to compensate for extra calories.
  •  Drink water. Lots of water. Water helps to metabolize your bodyfat better. I’ve heard that you want to drink your bodyweight in ounces of water daily.
  • Eat clean foods. Meaning you want to eat good carbs (fruits, potatoes, brown rice, sweet potatoes, whole grains), good proteins (lean meats, chicken breasts, fish), and lots of veggies.
  • I personally take a multi-vitamin daily and with most of my clients whose diet isn’t great, they probably could too.
  • Avoid excess sugars and processed foods (basically, anything in a box is probably processed). Sugars in any form can add to your fat total by not allowing your body to metabolize fat. If you eat fruit, make sure you eat it with a protein.
  • Eat frequently, throughout the day, once every three hours, to keep your metabolism fast.
  • Bottom line is this. If you think the food is bad for you, it probably is and start eating healthier. Eat more good meals then bad throughout the week and you should be good to go.

In this day and age, people are hiring sport specialists (me for example) to get them or their kids to be the best athlete they can be. Nutrition is just another avenue to get your athlete to reach optimum potential. If you have excess weight and it isn’t good weight, then start examining it and see if you can lean up a little. It will make you more explosive and faster. Ultimately, the big picture is that you will be a healthier individual and will help you live a long and happy life free if health issues.

Weight loss can be tough and as much as I would like to help you accomplish it, I just don’t have the time.  But, I can direct you to someone who has a program that you can utilize today.  Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training has been helping people with their weight loss for years and I think it can help you too.  Click here to read about Turbulence Training and see if it will help you with your weight loss.  I highly recommend it.