09/11/2026
Does playing a sport automatically make an athlete faster?
It seems like it should.
Soccer players run throughout practice and games. Basketball players sprint up and down the court. Field hockey players cover a lot of ground.
But running during a sport and training specifically to improve speed aren't necessarily the same thing.
I've been putting that question to the test.
I've had the opportunity to pre- and post-test athletes from a few team sports to see whether they're actually faster at the end of their season than they were at the beginning.
The first year, the results were what I suspected:
The majority of the athletes were slower by the end of the season.
This year we're trying something different—adding small amounts of intentional speed training within the teams' normal practice schedules.
I wrote more about what we're doing, what I've learned so far, and why I think this matters for team-sport athletes.
Read the full article:
https://www.fitnessplanning.com/training/does-playing-a-sport-make-you-faster/