The 4-Week Program to Improve Running Technique (and Run More Efficiently)

Running faster doesn’t (just) mean running more: this 4-week plan guides you, through specific exercises and “drills,” to improve your technique (cadence, footstrike, posture) to waste less energy.

• This isn’t a program for a race, but a plan to supplement your training to improve how you run.
• It’s based on 4 weeks, each with a focus: Week 1 (Cadence), Week 2 (Footstrike), Week 3 (Posture/Arms), Week 4 (Integration).
• It includes specific “drills” to do 2-3 times a week, after your warm-up and before your easy runs.
• The goal is to increase efficiency: run faster with less effort and reduce injury risk.
• This program is just the beginning: technique is trained with awareness and consistency, not by rushing.

Want to Run Faster While Wasting Less Energy? You Need to Work on Technique.

When a runner decides to improve, they usually do two things: increase mileage or increase intensity. They run more or they run harder. But there is a third way, the most important and most overlooked: running better.

Running isn’t just lungs and legs; it’s a skill, just like swimming or tennis. You wouldn’t play tennis with the wrong grip, yet many of us run for years with inefficient technique, which holds us back and increases injury risk.

Every biomechanical error—the foot landing too far out in front (overstriding), arms crossing the chest, tense shoulders—is like running with a small parachute tied to your back. It wastes precious energy.

This 4-week program is just the beginning. It doesn’t ask you to work harder. It asks you to use your head, to become aware of your movement to make it more economical and fluid.

Your 4-Week Plan (to Supplement Your Training)

This isn’t a program that replaces your training plan, but a “module” to integrate.

• When: Choose 2 or 3 days a week, ideally on your easy run or long slow run days.
• How: Perform that week’s drills after your warm-up (when muscles are warm) and before starting your run. 10-15 minutes is all it takes.
• Why: You need to be fresh to learn new motor patterns. Doing technique drills when you’re already tired only teaches you to do them poorly.

The goal is the quality of the movement, not the quantity.

Week 1: The Focus on Cadence (Frequency)

Perché: Cadence (steps per minute) is the pillar of efficiency. Many amateur runners have a low cadence (140-150 steps/minute), which almost always leads to overstriding. A higher cadence (aiming for 165-180) “forces” the foot to land under the hips, reducing impact and braking.
Come: Focus on quick, light feet.

Week 1 Drills:

1. High Skips: 3 x 30 seconds. A classic. Run in place moving forward slowly, bringing your knees up high. Focus on the quickness of the ground contact, not the height.
2. Butt Kicks: 3 x 30 seconds. Quick heels toward your glutes. This trains the speed of your leg recovery.
3. Metronome (optional): During your easy run, set a metronome (there are many free apps, or use your sportwatch) to +5% of your current cadence. If you run at 160, set it to 168. Try to follow the rhythm for 5 minutes, then rest 5 minutes.

Week 2: The Focus on Footstrike (Reactivity)

Perché: Building on the higher cadence, we now focus on how the foot hits the ground. The goal isn’t to “land on your toes,” but to land with your foot under your center of mass (your hips) and be reactive, minimizing ground contact time. You need to “bounce,” not “brake.”
Come: Pretend the pavement is scorching hot.

Week 2 Drills:

1. Pogo Jumps (Reactive Hops): 3 x 30 seconds. Hop in place (or moving very slightly forward) keeping your legs almost straight. The movement should come almost entirely from your ankles and calves. This trains Achilles tendon elasticity.
2. Bounding: 2 x 50 meters. Take large running “leaps,” trying to maximize your air time. Emphasize the full push-off from the leg and foot on the ground.
3. “Hot Coals”: 3 x 50 meters. Run in progression thinking only of one thing: your foot must stay on the ground for as little time as possible, as if the ground were scorching hot.

Week 3: The Focus on Posture and Arms (Balance)

Perché: Your legs are the engine, but your torso and arms are the chassis and the steering wheel (we say this often). If the “chassis” (your core) collapses or the “steering wheel” (your arms) veers, the engine can’t express power. Your arms, in particular, set the rhythm and balance the rotation of your hips.
Come: Run “tall,” chest out (but relaxed), and use your arms like a metronome.

Week 3 Drills:

1. “Toy Soldier” Run: 3 x 50 meters. Run keeping your legs completely straight, moving only from the ankle joint. This forces you to keep your core tight and your back straight.
2. Arm Drill (Stationary): 3 x 45 seconds. Standing or sitting. Elbows bent at 90 degrees, fists relaxed (not clenched!). Swing your arms from the shoulder, smoothly, forward and back (“from pocket to cheek”). DO NOT cross them in front of your chest.
3. Plank: 3 x 60 seconds. It’s not a running drill, but it’s essential. A strong core is the platform on which good posture is built.

Week 4: Putting It All Together (Integration)

Perché: Now we must combine the pieces we’ve trained separately, turning them into one fluid movement.
Come: During your easy runs, you will use your mind.

The Week 4 “Workout”:

Divide your easy run into 5-10 minute blocks. In each block, focus only on one aspect.

• Block 1 (10 min): Think only about Cadence. Quick, light, rhythmic feet.
• Block 2 (10 min): Think only about Posture. Shoulders relaxed, chest out, gaze forward.
• Block 3 (10 min): Think only about Arms. Elbows at 90°, straight movement, pocket-to-cheek.
• Block 4 (10 min): Think only about Footstrike. Land under your hips, “bounce” off quickly.

This awareness work is mentally tiring, but it’s the only way to overwrite old habits and create new, more efficient ones.

How to Measure Your Progress (Not Just With the Stopwatch)

How do you know if you’re improving? The stopwatch might not tell you much at first. Real progress is measured elsewhere.

1. 1. In Feelings: Do you feel less effort at the same speed? Do you feel “lighter” and more “fluid”?
   2. In Data (if you have a sportwatch): Has your average cadence on easy runs increased? Has your ground contact time decreased? Has your vertical oscillation (how much you “bounce” up and down) reduced?
   3. In Injuries: Do you have fewer aches and pains (knees, back, shins)? This is the clearest sign that you are running more efficiently and less traumatically.

Running technique isn’t something you “learn” once and then forget. It’s a constant practice of listening and refining. It’s a journey that lasts your entire life as a runner.