Justification for speedwork

• It usually increases your average speed for the event.
• It increase the average speed of your training walks. This means you can complete your training in less time, something that can be important for people fitting long walks into a busy schedule. Alternatively, you can train longer distances in the same time, but this is a double-edged sword because you might over-train.
• Speedwork develops different muscle than does distance work and these muscle can be used to advantage at the end of a race when you are tiring.

General ways to improving your speed

• Incorporate more features of racewalking into your walking style. You are probably walking with bent arms. You could try shortening the length of your stride and using a faster stride rate.
• Get coaching from a racewalking coach.
• Reduce your weight.
• Do some training sessions on a treadmill at a fast speed
• Do repetitions down a slight incline
• Increase you flexibility
• Do strengthwork
• Do speed drills