The 3-2-1 drill, the forcing exercise

The principle

You read the same passage three times, cutting the time at each pass. The amount of text to cover stays the same: it is the speed that has to rise.

The point: on text you already know, comprehension is no longer the limit. You are training pure mechanics, without the brake of understanding. The gain then transfers to new text.

The protocol

1. Mark a passage you can comfortably read in three minutes, and note where you get to.
2. Pass 1, three minutes. Reading with a guide, normal speed. Mark the finishing point.
3. Pass 2, two minutes. Same start, you must reach the same finishing point. Comprehension will drop: that is expected and normal.
4. Pass 3, one minute. Same start, same finish. You will be skimming outright. That is intended.
5. Pass 4, new text, three minutes, normal reading. Measure.

Pass 4 is the key moment: your normal speed there is typically twenty to forty per cent higher than in pass 1.