From the outside, sprinting seems like one of the most challenging exercises you can do. Many people, including experienced runners, think sprinting should be left to Olympians.
However, sprinting can be enjoyable for runners at all levels. Moreover, it can provide you with many health and other benefits.
What are the benefits of sprinting? Keep reading to find out.
What Is Sprinting?
To start, you must understand what exactly sprinting is.
Sprinting is running short distances at top speed for a limited time. In the Olympics, you may see sprints ranging from 100 meters to 400 meters.
For the average leisurely sprinter, sprint intervals should last from 20 to 30 seconds to get the maximum benefits from the exercise. Let’s discuss what exactly the advantages of sprint training are.
Top Health Benefits of Sprinting
When you start sprinting, it may seem uncomfortable and even extremely hard. While there is some discomfort to get used to initially, it leads to some long-lasting benefits, especially for your health.
From improving your overall performance to strengthening your heart health, there is a long list of benefits when it comes to sprint training. Let’s take a look at the top seven benefits of sprinting.
1. Strengthen Heart Health
The first benefit of sprinting is that it improves heart health.
Cardio, in general, is indeed good for your heart due to the increase in heart rate; the interval training required in sprinting may also benefit your cardiovascular system.
Here’s how sprinting specifically affects your heart:
- Strengthens heart muscles
- Lowers blood pressure
- Lowers resting heart rate
- Improves cholesterol
2. Improve Your Metabolism
Sprinting is a great way to boost your metabolism and burn more calories throughout the day – even when you aren’t exercising.
Sprinting burns more calories than jogging or running, but you can only sprint for a limited time. However, the effects of sprinting have a much longer duration than those of jogging.
You’ll be burning energy long after your sprint is over, as sprinting requires a lot of calories to recover. As a result, you’ll gain a metabolism boost and spend more energy even at rest.
3. Achieve More in Less Time
The next benefit of sprinting isn’t necessarily a health benefit but substantially plays into health: it allows you to accomplish more in less time.
As mentioned, sprinting is a form of interval training, which means you’ll get an intense workout in less time than required to achieve the same results from a moderate workout.
When you require less time to work out, this may allow you to fit it into your schedule better or even motivate you to work out more. As a result, your overall health will improve.
4. Improve Your Running Endurance
For many runners, one of their top priorities is to improve endurance. If that is the case, adding sprints to your training is a good idea, according to a 2018 study.
The reason for this is that sprinting builds muscle mass in your legs, as well as increases your heart rate. This combination improves your overall running performance, which translates into your endurance. You’ll find that you run more efficiently and can run farther on your run.
5. Better Manage Your Running Pace
The next benefit of sprinting is that it improves your running pace by allowing you to manage your speed better.
Logically, when you become more used to running at a fast pace, you’ll start running at that faster pace much more easily. This is even the case with sprints, which generally last no more than 30 seconds.
This is because you’ll find that your endurance improves. You’ll soon discover that you can maintain a slower pace for longer and that a regular running pace that you used to find challenging now becomes easy.
6. Slow Signs of Aging
As mentioned, sprinting helps you build more muscle, essential for combating the signs of aging and maintaining your body’s health.
Better yet, sprinting also slows the deterioration of your bones and provides you with a higher bone density thanks to the intensive nature of the activity, which makes it a weight-bearing exercise, providing some similar results to weight training.
The best part is that, as long as you’re relatively healthy, you’re never too old to start sprinting and reaping the numerous health benefits.
7. Improve Body Composition
The last benefit of sprinting is that it helps improve body composition.
You’ll see significant changes in your body when you build muscle through sprinting. The best way to see this change is to convert fat into muscle. Sprinting helps that happen.
When paired with a balanced diet, sprinting leaves you with a lot of muscle and less excess fat, which is a significant win for your health.
Wrap-Up: Find Joy in Sprinting
Sprinting may seem like a daunting upgrade from running, but it is, in fact, a fun experience with several benefits.
Whether you’re looking to improve your health or boost your performance, there are many reasons why it’s worth considering adding sprinting to your training.