When it comes to sprinting, athletes and coaches often debate: what’s more important for top speed—stride length or stride frequency? The short answer? Both. But the way they work together is what separates elite sprinters from the rest.
Understanding Stride Length and Stride Frequency
Stride Length
Stride length refers to the distance covered with each step. Naturally, a longer stride means fewer steps are needed to cover the same distance. However, simply stretching out your steps isn’t the key to getting faster—doing so can cause overstriding, which actually slows you down and increases injury risk. Instead, an effective stride length comes from powerful force production off the ground and optimal hip extension.
Stride Frequency
Stride frequency is how quickly an athlete cycles through their steps. While a higher turnover rate can be beneficial, it has to be balanced with maintaining an efficient stride length. If an athlete increases stride frequency at the expense of proper mechanics, they may shorten their steps too much and lose velocity.
The Balance Between the Two
Elite sprinters don’t focus on just one or the other—they master both. Research shows that the fastest sprinters generate high levels of force in a short ground-contact time, which allows them to cover more ground efficiently while still cycling their legs quickly. This is where power, technique, and strength training come into play.
Training to Improve Both
To maximize top-end speed, athletes must train to improve both stride length and frequency through a combination of:
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Sprint Drills: A-skips, B-skips, and bounding to reinforce proper mechanics.
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Strength Training: Explosive lifts like power cleans, and compound lifts like deadlifts and squats to increase force production.
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Plyometrics: A combination of explosive jumps such as vertical jumps, box jumps, broad jumps along with bounding movements to improve ground contact efficiency.
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Acceleration Work: Hill sprints and resisted sprints to develop strength and drive.
The Bottom Line
Instead of choosing between stride length and stride frequency, the key is finding the right balance. By improving force production, optimizing mechanics, and training for efficient movement, athletes can unlock their full sprinting potential.
See www.builtdifferentu.com for more speed training concepts and programming!