Strength Training for Middle Distance Runner

I also do 2 days of hill sprints (2x10 seconds all out speed on a decent hill but nothing special with walk back recovery). I was planning on increasing these a little as the summer progressed but I'd love feedback on that too.

The sprints core and lift are always after my runs and by July I should be consistently at 50 miles a week on six days

My high school coach was an expert on weight training, specifically for runners.

What I suggest:

Go thru 3 30day phases (two months a per phase, 6 months in total when working out every other day)

1.size/power. You are going to feel slow and heavier during this phase and you will see significant increase In muscle weight.

2.resistance. You will lose some weight during this phase and be more toned. During these two months your body will feel stronger at the end of each race.

3. Explosiveness. This will get you stronger and help your turnover speed.

For phase 1 lift 80% of your maximum 6-8 times. Re test your maximum every 4 sessions. Lift in a slow and controlled manner.

For phase 2 lift 60% of your maximum 12-20 times, re test every four sessions. Lift faster but controlled.

For phase 3 lift 60% of your maximum 8-11 times, re test every for sessions. Lift with faster than before

Workout every other day.

Do leg press, bicep curl machine, tricep extension machine, vertical bench press machine, shoulder press machine, lat pull down, squat machine, and calf raises. Do all these every session 3 sets. And I guarantee results.

Thank you so much! So if I understand correctly, the first phase I will be lifting more weight, but by the second and third phases I will be lifting a little less weight but I'll do more reps and do them faster?

Surely you jest.

Do real core work (a la Rupp's WOW on Flotrack).

Squat with a barbell.

Do a hamstring exercise: reverse hypers, step ups, RDL.

Find someone to teach you how to do a power movement: countermovement shrug, hang clean, power clean, something like that.

Pushups.

Pullups.

Don't bother doing bench, curls, triceps work, or any of that other stuff. You don't need it.

Wait really? Curls are useless? Alright I guess I won't do them or the dumbbell presses anymore? Are butterflies and pretty much everything else Im doing useless too?

9/10

Pretty humorous, for sure, but the voice is so antic that it clearly says, "Troll."

I'm honestly not. I never lifted in high school and just did basic stuff last year in college. My friend who works out a lot and walked on as a sprinter gave me his plan. I assumed strong arms would help me pump faster and easier, but I really don't know.

Should I not work on upper body strength at all then?

Could anyone else share their input? I'm really not a troll. I guess I'll include some step-ups and squats with dumbbells

I have a basic home gym and then 10lb-30 lb dumbbells in increments of 5s and dont have kettle bells or a bar. If they are necessary I guess I could invest in some

Correct, and In response to the guy who said it doesn't work. Yes he's right about the core. Do the lifting which will help you significantly and the days you don't lift do circuits of 45 seconds and 45 seconds rest with planks, 6 inches, push-ups, pull ups, crunches, etc. and the. When you can handle it better move up to 60 seconds and 45 seconds rest. Do two sets of core, bodyweight etc. with 8 workouts per set, 16 in total. Then try to move up to three sets.

It will hurt, a lot. But it's worth it

And yes the guy is right, when you become more experience start doing more advanced free weight exercises but for now work on simple workouts that don't require too much technique

Thank you so much! So for now continue with the core (and ill add a little to that routine) and the dumbbell and other arm and leg strengthening excersizes? Or is the arm stuff pointless and core should be my primary focus?

Thanks again

I would say running should always be your primary focus, especially as an 800/1500 guy, but I am big into supplemental lifting as well.

Really building modest arm strength then maintaining it will cut back on arm fatigue during races. You don't want to be carrying around a bunch of upper body bulk that is going to slow you down

For legs, I have seen from multiple sources (including Dr. Joe Vigil) that squats, deadlifts, power cleans are very helpful.

Phases are good, but I would suggest slowly building the weight to a peak before tapering during the competitive period (sort of like mileage) because during the competitive period the main goal is to maintain gains weight lifting-wise and sharpen up your speed.

Also, "core" get often misinterpreted as "abs" but this is not true. Your core includes your hips, glutes and that whole region. Really, you get more power and stability benefits from hip/glute work.

To see what the Oregon Project's strength coach recommends, go here:

http://www.therapeuticassociates.com/locations/oregon/portlandvancouver/north-portland/portland-pace/information/for-coaches/

The pdfs and videos are very helpful.

However, it can not be emphasized enough THE BEST THING FOR RUNNING IS RUNNING. So don't let lifting get in the way of running

Perfect! Running is definitely my primary focus and where most of my time is spent. My arms are definitely pretty weak and aren't toned or anything, so I'm guessing the lifting will help a little, but I highly doubt ill get to the point where I have huge arms with what Im doing.

Great links! thanks!

This is a strong post.

But i still think the op was trolling.

I honestly wasnt