Article: It's time to get on the track and kick up your 800, 400, or even your 200 m time. (A mile is about 1600 meters long). Being able to run these shorter distances at a faster pace can help you run that mile faster. For example, if you've gotten your 800 time down to 3 minutes, then you won't be able to run your mile in 6 minutes due to the fact that you'll slow down because you'll be running for twice as long. It will help you get your mile time down significantly if you're used to running those 800s in 4 minutes. Here's how to do it: Do interval training for the 800. Run the 800 as fast as you can, and when you're done, walk 400 meters. Repeat until you've run the 800 4 times. Remember to pace yourself; your goal should be to hit all of those 800s at around the same time. Some people say that the 800 is the toughest race on the track because it requires both intense speed and endurance. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/d\/d3\/590103-1b1.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-1b1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/d\/d3\/590103-1b1.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-1b1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} Do interval training for the 400. Run a 400, walk for 200, run a 400, walk a 200, and so on, until you've run 6-8 400s. Do interval training for the 200. Run a 200, walk a 100, run a 200, walk a 100, and repeat until you've run at least 8 200s. Starting to see a pattern here? Having fast and strong arms is just as important as having strong legs. Here are some great exercises that can help you improve your arm speed: Do the standing arms drive. In the standing arms dive, all you have to do is open up your hands, keep your elbows at 90 degrees, and drive your elbows down and then move your arms back up, moving from chin to pocket, chin to pocket, as quickly as you can. Do 3 reps of 10-20 of these to improve that arm speed. You can even look at yourself in the mirror when you do this to make sure you are driving your arms forward and back. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/9\/9f\/590103-2b1.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-2b1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/9\/9f\/590103-2b1.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-2b1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} Do the sitting arms drive. Do the same thing with your arms as you would do during the standing arms dive, except be seated with your legs straight out in front of you instead of standing. Interval training means sprinting and resting, sprinting and resting, for a distance shorter than a mile. Ideally, you can do this on a track. You should already be in pretty solid shape before you start interval training. As you get more comfortable, you can start off at a higher percentage of maximum effort. You can also run at the increased pace for longer; for example, you can run at a race pace for 2-3 minutes, cool down for 90 seconds, run at the race pace for 2-3 minutes, and repeat until you've done about 25-30 minutes of interval training. It's about the amount of time you run for, not the distance, so here is a sample interval training routine: 5 minutes of light warm up. Stretch afterwards. 30 seconds of increased pace (70-75% of maximum effort) followed by 2 minutes of running at a decreased pace. 30 seconds of increased pace (75-80% of maximum effort) followed by 2 minutes of running at a decreased pace. 30 seconds of increased pace (80-85% of maximum effort) followed by 2 minutes of running at a decreased pace. 30 seconds of increased pace (85-90% of maximum effort) followed by 2 minutes of running at a decreased pace. 30 seconds of increased pace (90-95% of maximum effort) followed by 2 minutes of running at a decreased pace. 30 seconds of increased pace (100% of maximum effort) followed by 2 minutes of running at a decreased pace. 5 minutes to jog and cool down. The stronger your legs are, the more power and endurance your legs will have, and the faster you'll be able to run that mile. Here are some ways to build strength in your legs: Do uphill sprints. Instead of sprinting on the track, do your sprints uphill, running for 30 seconds to a minute at a time, and then walking downhill to recover for at least 1 minute before repeating the exercise. Do at least 10 uphill sprints at a time. This will build your strength, power, and your cardiovascular strength. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/e\/e2\/590103-4b1.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-4b1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/e\/e2\/590103-4b1.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-4b1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} Do leaps. For this exercise, leap as high as you can over objects such as soccer balls or cones for at least 50 feet (they can be imaginary objects, too). This can improve your power and your speed. After you've finished leaping for 50 feet, walk back to the starting line and repeat the exercise. Continue for at least 50 reps. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/5\/57\/590103-4b2.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-4b2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/5\/57\/590103-4b2.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-4b2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} Do knee kicks. Run in place for 30 seconds at a time, kicking your knees up as fast and high as you can, so they reach at least above your waist. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/1\/15\/590103-4b3.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-4b3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/1\/15\/590103-4b3.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-4b3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} Climb stairs. Run up stairs for 30 seconds to a minute, walk back down, and repeat at least 5 times. This is great for your cardio, too. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/e\/eb\/590103-4b4.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-4b4.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/e\/eb\/590103-4b4.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-4b4.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} The mile is both a speed and an endurance race, so it's important to have that endurance as well. The best thing you can do to improve your endurance is to, well, run for longer distances to train your body to stay strong throughout the mile. This doesn't mean that you should train for a marathon, but that you should be comfortable running a 5K at a good speed, or even a 10K. Mix up your workouts between speed training days and endurance training days. For example, one day, you can run 4 800s as fast as you can, and the next day, you can run 4 miles (6.4km) at a good pace to work on your endurance instead of your speed. Remember that you can't really just improve one or the other. Even running 800s can help improve your endurance, just as running 5 miles (8.0km) can improve your speed. When you go on longer runs, have a goal for each mile you want to hit -- be it 10 minutes, 12 minutes, or 15 minutes. Work on sticking to your goal instead of coming fast out of the gate and then struggling to finish by the end. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/0\/03\/590103-5b3.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-5b3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/0\/03\/590103-5b3.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-5b3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} Add some hills to your endurance training. If you throw some hills and difficult terrain into the mix, your endurance will build even more and it'll be easier for you to run the mile quickly when the time comes. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/5\/59\/590103-5b4.jpg\/v4-460px-590103-5b4.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/5\/59\/590103-5b4.jpg\/aid590103-v4-728px-590103-5b4.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"<div class="mw-parser-output"><p>License: <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/3.0\/">Creative Commons<\/a><br>
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<\/p><\/div>"} If you get bored with running, you can improve your endurance by swimming, playing soccer or basketball, or doing anything that requires pretty continuous motion for 30 minutes or more. Hand weights can help you improve the strength of your arms and core and spending just 20 minutes a day with them can help you grow stronger, and therefore, faster. You can easily work out at home using hand weights. Take some light weights and work on a variety of exercises that can help you tone your biceps, triceps, forearms, and shoulders. You can do bicep curls, tricep kickbacks, or hammer grabs. Though hand weights can be handy, you can also work out at home without using a single weight and quickly improve your strength. Here are some other exercises you can try: Squats. Standing straight up, squatting down, and then popping back up at least ten times in a row for three repetitions can help you strengthen those thighs. Push-ups. Push-ups can help you build strength in your biceps and triceps. Do ab work. Do sit-ups, crunches, or the bicycle to help yourself work your core and get stronger.

What is a summary?
Sprint shorter distances than the mile. Do exercises to improve your arm speed. Do interval training. Do exercises to improve your leg strength. Improve your endurance. Use hand weights. Do other exercises to improve your strength.