The Best Drills for Improving Your Sprinting Speed

17 June 2025

If you’ve ever felt like your sprinting speed has hit a plateau—or worse, you're going backwards—it might be time to shake things up with some powerful drills that actually work. Whether you’re a weekend warrior, a competitive athlete, or just trying to outpace that smug friend in your weekend pickup game, improving your sprinting speed is totally doable with the right approach.

Let’s get one thing straight: sprinting isn't just about running fast. It’s about explosiveness, technique, strength, mobility, and timing. And the good news? You can train all of that. So, lace up those sneakers, because we’re diving into the absolute best drills to turn your legs into rockets.

Why Sprint Training Needs More Than Just Running Fast

Before we get into the drills, let's knock out a common myth. Sprinting isn’t just about running more sprints. Sure, getting reps in matters, but if that’s your only strategy, you’re missing out on serious performance gains.

Think of sprinting like baking a cake—you need more than just flour. To get faster, you need to mix in strength training, good mechanics, explosive drills, and rest (yep, rest matters).

Now that we've set the stage, let’s get into the sprint-boosting drills that’ll help you shave seconds off your dash time.

1. Sprint Drills for Mechanics: Fix the Foundation

Sprinting is a skill, and like any skill, it needs good technique. These drills are all about developing better form so you aren’t wasting energy with every stride.

A-Skips

Ever seen those weird-looking people hopping in place with high knees? That’s an A-skip—and it works wonders for form. This drill trains knee drive and rhythm.

How to do it:
- Start marching with your knee coming up to hip height.
- Add a slight hop as the opposite foot pushes off.
- Swing your arms as if you’re actually sprinting.

Do them for about 20–30 meters. It’s all about rhythm and control, not speed.

B-Skips

The cousin of A-skips, B-skips add an extension to the leg, working on the push-off phase of your stride.

How to do it:
- Start like an A-skip, but flick your foot out before pulling it back under your body.
- Keep your core tight and don’t overdo the leg flick.

Perfect for building muscle memory and leg turnover efficiency.

Wall Drives

A wall and your determination—that’s all you need.

How to do it:
- Stand at a slight angle against a wall.
- Drive one knee up while keeping the other leg straight and foot off the ground.
- Switch legs quickly, mimicking sprint mechanics.

This drill locks in that powerful "triple extension" you'll use when you sprint—hip, knee, and ankle all working together.

2. Acceleration Drills: Get Off the Line Fast

Sprinting isn’t just about how fast you are at top speed—it’s how quickly you get there. Acceleration is the unsung hero of sprint performance.

3-Point Starts

Ever watch a football player take off from the line? That’s no accident.

How to do it:
- Get into a staggered stance: one hand down, rear leg loaded.
- Push off aggressively and explode forward.
- Sprint for 10–15 meters, then ease down.

Great for teaching your body how to launch like a rocket from a still position.

Falling Starts

Feeling vulnerable? Good. That’s the point.

How to do it:
- Stand tall, lean forward until you feel like you’re about to fall.
- At that exact moment, burst into a sprint.

This helps you naturally fall into a sprinter’s lean and forces your body into an aggressive acceleration.

Sled Pushes

Want to feel what sprinting with resistance feels like? Grab a sled.

How to do it:
- Load a sled with moderate weight.
- Drive forward using short, powerful steps.
- Keep a low body angle and focus on explosive strides.

Sled pushes build the raw strength needed for acceleration and build those powerful glutes and hamstrings that do all the heavy lifting.

3. Top-End Speed Drills: Unleash the Afterburners

Once you get moving, it’s time to maintain and maximize that speed. These drills help improve stride frequency and length—key factors in sprint speed.

Flying Sprints

If regular sprints are stair climbing, flying sprints are elevators.

How to do it:
- Have a 20-meter build-up phase.
- Hit max speed during the next 20 meters (flying zone).
- Finish with a 20-meter deceleration.

This drill teaches you how to be smooth and fast at the same time—no choppiness, just pure velocity.

Bounding

Think of bounding as exaggerated running—it trains power in every step.

How to do it:
- Launch off each leg with long, powerful strides.
- Stay springy—like you’re bouncing from cloud to cloud.

Develops elasticity and teaches your muscles to absorb and redirect force, which is critical for elite sprinting speed.

Resisted Band Sprints

Add resistance using a band tied to a partner or anchor point.

How to do it:
- Strap in, get low, and drive forward.
- Sprint with the resistance for short distances (10–20 meters).

This type of sprinting forces you to drive harder and builds explosive power in your hip extensors.

4. Plyometric Drills: Spring-Loaded Legs

You want to get faster? Start training like a kangaroo.

Depth Jumps

Not your average jump—this one’s about reaction time.

How to do it:
- Step off a box (don’t jump).
- As soon as you land, explode upward as quickly as possible.

This drill sharpens your reactive abilities, which helps in creating explosiveness during takeoff.

Single-Leg Hops

If bounding builds power, single-leg hops dial in control and unilateral strength.

How to do it:
- Hop on one leg for 10 meters, then switch.
- Focus on balance, rhythm, and soft landings.

Helps eliminate imbalances and trains stability, which is key under sprinting stress.

5. Strength Training for Sprint Speed: Build the Engine

Speed comes from power, and power comes from strength. If your squat game is weak, your sprint probably will be too.

Trap Bar Deadlifts

These are gold for sprinters. They target the posterior chain—glutes, hamstrings, lower back—the holy trinity of sprinting muscles.

Bulgarian Split Squats

Perfect for building unilateral leg strength and addressing imbalances.

Hip Thrusts

A strong hip drive means a more powerful stride. These bad boys get your glutes firing.

Do strength sessions 2–3 times per week, and complement it with your sprinting drills. Don’t overdo it—quality over quantity.

6. Mobility and Flexibility: The Hidden Sprinting Weapon

Tight hips or stiff ankles can kill speed faster than a pulled hamstring. Sprinting requires range of motion and fluidity.

Dynamic Warm-Ups

Things like leg swings, high knees, butt kicks, and lunges prep your body to move fast.

Foam Rolling and Stretching

Post-workout recovery work keeps your muscles loose and ready to fire on all cylinders.

7. Rest and Recovery: Yes, It’s This Important

You’re not getting faster if you’re always tired. Sprinting is high-intensity work, and your body needs time to recover and adapt.

Take rest days seriously. Include sleep, hydration, and nutrition in your plan. Sprinting more doesn’t mean sprinting better if you’re always running on fumes.

Final Thoughts: Make Speed Training a Habit

Improving your sprinting speed doesn’t happen overnight. But with consistent practice, smart training, and the right drills, you’ll start to see noticeable gains. Focus on technique, train explosively, and give your body the recovery it deserves.

Want real results? Commit to 2–3 sprint-specific sessions a week. Mix in mechanics, strength, and mobility work, and stay consistent. Sprinting speed is one of the most rewarding fitness goals to chase—it makes you feel like a superhero when it starts paying off.

So whether you’re chasing a personal best or just trying to dust your opponent on the field, these drills will help you get there.

Now get after it—and leave slow in the dust.