Small Change, Big Gains: The One Per Cent Performance Hacks Runners Swear By
For a lot of runners, getting faster means one thing: train harder. But sometimes, just the small things can make running more effective, improving your speed and performance. It was British cycling coach, Dave Brailsford, that popularised the power of tiny gains, claiming that if you could make a one per cent improvement in several areas, the cumulative gains would end up being huge. It’s not just cycling that this can be applied to, but running too.
Pharmacist, Noel Wicks, says: “Breathing is a huge, often overlooked part of running performance. Yet, it’s such a critical part of how well you run. If your airflow is restricted or inefficient, your body works much harder to deliver oxygen to the muscles, which can impact stamina and how quickly you recover.”
Breathing itself requires energy, so the easier you make breathing, the better. When breathing becomes harder, your body has to divert energy away from the muscles in your legs and towards the muscles used for breathing. This can lead to fatigue and, if you’re drained, then your running form can be compromised, which can also result in injury. A 2026 study found that even small changes in airflow pathways can have a big impact on how easily air moves through your airways. If airflow is slightly restricted, your body has to work harder just to breathe. This can raise your heart rate sooner and make running feel harder. In turn, recovery can often take longer.
Research has compared nasal breathing versus mouth breathing, finding that nasal breathing helps to make breathing more controlled and could even lead to a slightly lower heart rate. This could help runners stay relaxed for longer and delay fatigue during easier or moderate-intensity runs.
Gearing up for a race? Or just want to improve your run time? Try these other one per cent performance hacks…
#1. Strengthen your muscles: To improve your running, you need to think about strengthening your stabiliser muscles. These are the muscles that help to keep you stable as you run. If they’re weak, your body has to work harder to stay balanced. This can tire out your body and also put more strain on your joints, potentially causing injury.
Your core and glutes, for example, are vital muscles; the muscles in your core help to support and protect your lower back, keeping your posture strong while you run. Meanwhile, your glutes – the biggest muscles in your body – help to drive you forward while keeping your hips stable, and they help take some of the strain away from other muscles.
Just five to 10 minutes of exercises after your run, such as the plank, glute bridges, slow lunges and single leg glute bridges, can help to boost strength in these muscles.
#2. Learn your cadence rate: Did you know, even small changes in your step rate can reduce injury risk and improve performance? GP, Dr Nisa Aslam explains: “Cadence is the total number of steps a runner takes per minute. Typically, a higher cadence reduces ground contact time, which means less impact on your knees and joints, so less pain and fatigue.” Recent research has found that increasing cadence by just five to 10% can reduce the impact on knees and hips while still maintaining speed. So slightly quicker, shorter steps are the way to go. A smartwatch will be able to track your cadence, however you can manually count your steps per minute and try to increase this slightly during your easy runs, when you’re less fatigued and have more time to focus on your form.
#3. Have you got the right gear? The shoes you run in can have a big impact on your running performance. Research with runners found that they lasted 5.7% longer on a treadmill test in highly cushioned shoes as opposed to a normal running shoe. The research also found that the cushioned shoes reduced oxygen cost by 3.2%. Oxygen cost is how much oxygen your body needs to run at a certain speed, so the more oxygen it needs, the harder your body has to work. Even the clothes you wear can make a difference.
Dr Nisa Aslam adds: “For example, ill-fitting clothes can be uncomfortable and distracting. Test clothes out before a race and if clothes chafe, try using chafe cream to avoid discomfort. Female runners wearing tight sports bras that physically restricted their breathing, found that tighter breathing restriction also caused more respiratory muscle fatigue, which led to more tiredness. So, if you’re a woman, making sure your sports bra fits your properly, is important.”
Noel Wick adds: “When it comes to training, ironing out all the little details can help make race day so much better. These small tweaks improve running performance, to ensure that all the hard work you’ve put into the running itself, pays off.
“Breathing is a huge part of this, so don’t jeopardise your potential.”