gdb single stepping takes ages

Hi

I am currently using openocd as a gdbserver backend for debugging  an embedded 
target with gdb 7.7. When i want to step over a single line with -exec-next:

for(int a=0; a<1000000;a++){ };

the time taken for the step is linear to the maximum count number and takes in 
my setup about 1 second for one increment of a. Setting a temp breakpoint in 
the next line and continuing works much faster.

So is there a way improve the stepping speed in such situations?

Best regards
Tim