Why Runners Should Care About Getting Stronger
You may have heard that strength training will make you bulky, slow, or tight and inflexible. None of those things are true. In fact, strength training will make you a better runner, even if you couldn’t care less how much weight you can lift or the overall health benefits of being strong.
Strength training has been shown to improve “running economy” and improve race times in several studies. These effects are observed even in highly trained runners, the folks that usually find it especially difficult to improve their times since they’re so experienced and adapted to running. If you’re not at that level and just run for fun, strength training will benefit you too.
So what is “running economy” and why does it matter? Running economy is “the energy demand for a given velocity of submaximal running, and is determined by measuring the steady-state consumption of oxygen (VO2) and the respiratory exchange ratio.” That’s a fancy way of saying that the better your running economy, the less energy you expend to run at a given pace. It’s obvious how improving running economy is beneficial for performance.
“Strength training” is a pretty vague term that means radically different things to different people. When I say “strength training,” I’m referring to moderately heavy weight training, preferably with barbells and dumbbells. These kinds of exercises and programs have shown the best results.
In one study, infrequent (1x per week per muscle group) and short-term training didn’t improve running economy for the study participants. This goes to show that your program matters; “just lifting” and winging it isn’t a good idea. It doesn’t mean all strength training is worthless. You have to use a good evidence-based program.
Easy doesn’t work. Moderately heavy, frequent strength training improves running economy in even well-trained runners (here’s one study, and a systematic review). Strength work should challenge you – it should be strenuous toward the end of your sets, though you shouldn’t lift to complete failure to avoid putting too much stress on yourself. You’ll experience mild to moderate soreness after your first several sessions. You should aim to progressively increase weight; after all, it’s “strength” training, and the goal is to get stronger, right?
However, don’t start chasing numbers in the gym for their own sake. You’re a runner, and your strength program shouldn’t interfere with your running. The closer you are to a race, the more careful you should be with how much strength work you should include. If you’ve never done a structured strength program, wait until your “off season” when you don’t have a race coming up.
If you’re new to strength training, I don’t recommend you start with low repetitions and maximal weights. You may not yet have the neuromuscular coordination to execute the lifts efficiently. Instead, I recommend the protocol in my free 6 week running strength program at the bottom of this page as a good introduction. Once you’ve got a few months of experience, you can gradually work your reps down and your weights up.
For more reading, check out this article.
If you need more individualized help, shoot me a message! I’ll point you in the right direction and help you put a program together to start breaking your personal bests.
If you’re looking for a fitness trainer in the Mt Juliet/Hermitage/Nashville TN area, online fitness training, or just need some advice to get your fitness program started, contact me
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