improving my reading

Before when i was trying to improve my reading , i stop at every word and i look for it in the dictionary.........To finish one article maybe i take 2 -4 hours which is impossible in exams and also, it was hard for me to get the idea of the whole article in few first minutes.But now i find myself able from the survey to get main ideas, at least to know what will be about....Also, if i meet difficult words which is sure, i can get their meaning through the whole sentence. i think really my reading has improved now i can read articles in magazines and journals without any problems.