Do Runners need to Strength Train?

clateboulder wrote:

How important do you feel it is to supplement running with strength training?

Does anyone know of any good strength training programs for runners? Or websites that provide strength training plans for runners?

So far, I have found only one called:

http://www.strongerrunners.com

Any program that uses the word "core" is one I believe is almost certain to be garbage.

The importance is proportional to your age and competitiveness. The arguments for are mainly injury prevention. When over 50, it is paramount if you want to race age group competitively. And by competitive, I mean pushing yourself to YOUR OWN best possible time.

Little known treasure trove of good strength training advice by Steve Sherer:

http://www.amazon.com/Spiked-Ready-Run-Steve-Sherer/dp/1935125451

best of luck in your running

It depends. The problem with doing any non-running exercise in the hopes of being faster at running is that your strength goes to the wrong areas. For example, if you do a lot of cycling, that will make the ratio of strength in your upper to lower legs out of whack. And you don't need to be doing upper body workouts unless you're a sprinter or mid-distance runner. Distance running will give you all the upper body strength you need for distance running. What a concept, huh?

Awesome. Thanks for the link and direction.

I am learning this the hard way having resumed distance training in my 30s after a decade or so of doing other things for exercise. With an otherwise sedentary lifestyle, there are just too many imbalances/weaknesses in the body not to keep getting tweaks here or there from running alone. I am even willing to sacrifice some improvement in the running so long as I could get through a training program without the little injuries that seem to sideline me for a few days at a time every couple of months or so. Otherwise, with setbacks, progressively building up mileage becomes even more of a challenge than it already is. There is this: http://runnersconnect.net/strength-training-for-runners/It's pricey for what you get. I just bought it last week and will begin to use this e-book today. Could update to let people know how it goes.

Over50 wrote:

The importance is proportional to your age and competitiveness. The arguments for are mainly injury prevention. When over 50, it is paramount if you want to race age group competitively. And by competitive, I mean pushing yourself to YOUR OWN best possible time.

Eurodonkey's thread is good

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=4266297

Thanks. Please update us as to if it is worth the cost.

It depends on how strong you are already. To run at a competitive level, you don't need to be a power lifter, but you do need a threshold level of strength. Some runners have it naturally and can just run, while others will need to work at it to stay healthy and continue to improve.

Good points Sparky.

It prolly does depend on natural strentgh.

What would you use in place of core?

that is a good thread. Thanks!

that is a good thread. Thanks!

clateboulder wrote:

How important do you feel it is to supplement running with strength training?

So far I believe in it. I started a functional strength program about 8wks ago and it has helped me to ditch my orthotics and run injury free. I might not be running as many miles as before but I am happy thus far with my performances. We work mainly on strengthening the hips, glutes, balance, core and overall body strength. Can't complain but then again, I'm sure I'm much older than you too.

Of course you should do strength training. Every athlete should do strength training appropriate to his/her sport.

You can always count on someone at LR to tell you "All you need to do is run".

Right... just like sprinters and shot putters get all they need from only sprinting and throwing.

For distance runners, the starting place is to get control of your entire body and learn to move with strength and coordination across multiple planes of motion. A strong general strength circuit will really help with this giving you greater running economy and help prevent injuries.

The videos and dvds from Jay Johnson -

http://www.coachjayjohnson.com/

- are really helpful. He has several general strength circuits of increasing difficulty that should be enough for most recreational runners.

If you want to go further, the next best form of "strength" training for distance runners is sprinting. It will build strength specific to your running in a way that banging out miles just cannot do. Johnson has some sprint workouts on his site that are helpful. If you have access to a steep hill (10%) with good footing, do 40 meter repeats, all out with generous recoveries. Six sessions of that over six weeks will make you faster and stronger over all distances. Sprinting helps with running economy, and muscle fiber and neurological recruitment. Basic running drills are helpful here too.

And then, if you really want to go for it, you need to lift weights. This should be preceded by a strong base of general strength circuits and it should include a balance of upper and lower body work. Lifting should be heavy - sets of 3-4 at around 80-85% of one rep max - and emphasize free weights in multi-joint exercises: squats, deadlifts, cleans.

Sounds like it is working for you. I personally have never seen any negatives with adding strength training to a running program. I do like the program over there at

http://www.strongerrunners.com

This is starting to feel like a very spammy conversation on the part of the strongerrunner "advocates". Just sayin'.

I've used this with good success.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/strength-training-for-runners-how-to-do-it-right.html?CJAID=10409943&CJPID=4177151

Haha, great troll thread. No one has ever even heard of this site and you expect us to believe somehow all these people have used it with great results (and love linking to it).

FWIW, spamming your site to this audience will provide zero sales. Try RW. But, you do realize forum spam is worthless to Google these days, right?

Since the title of this thread asks if strength training is beneficial, here is a really good summary of research I found a few months ago: http://runnersconnect.net/running-training-articles/the-effectiveness-of-strength-training-for-runners/