strength training for runners

Block It

Nicole Lowe McBride1 Comment

We all get stuck in a rut, but it can be really easy to do with your workout routine. I know I’m guilty of this on multiple occasions, with both my running and with my strength workouts.  There are a few problems with the rut: first, you don’t make any progress; second, you lose motivation; third, it’s boring!

The first is the most important for runners who want to improve. Not all runners want to improve. They are content running their six miles four days a week at a comfortable pace. That’s not me. I want to get better and I like to see progress. Even if improvement isn’t your think, staying motivated to get out there and not being bored the entire time should be enough for you to want to change things up every few weeks.

Many runners work through their training in blocks. Blocks can be four, six or eight weeks long and during each block you focus on a different aspect of your running. That doesn’t mean you drop other aspects of training, they just aren’t the focus point. Other runners switch things around by every other week. And still others, do a rotation over a ten-day period.

Strength Blocks: Starting a block rotation with strength is great because the number one goal of strength training for runners is to reduce risk of injuries. There are three types of strength training typically used by runners. First is body weight. This uses light weights or no weights with high repetitions. The idea is it builds strength and stability without the mass. Second is plyometrics. Plyometrics are explosive movements, such as jumping and springing. These are great but need to be implemented in small dosages especially at the beginning. Third is heavy lifting. Heavy lifting is low repetitions and max weight which strengths your connective tissue. Lifts should be done very slow and controlled. You’re runs during a strength rotation should be lower in intensity because you’re kicking up the intensity with strength training.

Speed Blocks: during your speed block you’re going to have an intense speed workout once a week and then throw in some fartleks during your long run. For your weekly intense session, choose different types of work outs. Don’t just do 800s. There’s nothing wrong with doing a week of 800s, just don’t make it an every week thing. Use pyramids, tempo runs, ladders, or 400s.

Hill Blocks: during your hill block you will have one run a week dedicated to running hills and then you’ll throw in extra hills for your long run. You can run hill repeats or find a long steady climb to conquer. If you’re doing short repeats, walking the downhill is fine, but you’ll have to find some longer downhills to practice downhill running. Downhills will tear up your legs if you don’t build them into your training.

Build Blocks: As endurance runners, especially at ultra-distances, your long run is going to stay in the weekly rotation. However, if you’re not doing a build phase, you’ll only do one long run a week rather than the back to backs. You can also choose to run one long run and then the next day a ten-mile run. But if you’re not in a build block, you’re not increasing the miles on that second day.

The important part is that you are changing things and challenging your body in new ways. Using the same workouts doesn’t get you more of the same results. It gets you a flatline.

 

Complete Running Strength

Nicole Lowe McBride1 Comment
Adding strength training for your body overall is obviously going to help you as a runner. Strength training should be done for 30-60 minutes three days a week. You can do them after your run or on days you don’t run. I recommend the latter. If you can’t go through all of them during the time you have available (this whole program is about 1.5 hours), do some one day and then the others the next. You can even break it up into three shorter sessions and just rotate through them.
You don’t necessarily need a gym membership to do these exercises because they use a few free weights, which you can get at any sports store and many general stores. Most of them are inexpensive as well. For runners using free weights, body weight, and plyometrics are going to help you the most. Machines may seem ideal because they are easy and they will help you build strength. The issue is they are stationary and running is not stationary. You are working to strengthen patterns of movement.
Here is a list of the equipment you need to complete this comprehensive strength workout: Kettle bell, swiss ball, medicine ball, resistance band (loop) and dumbbells.
Many of the exercises we’ve looked at work more than one section of the body making this easier than it looks if you’ve read all of the prior blogs. I’ve compiled the list here for easy access . Please feel free to use this and share it with others. If you can’t remember how to do them, I’ve linked the post with the instructions. I’ve put them in supersets to make it less overwhelming. I string them together so you can move between them easily. To perform a superset complete all three rounds of the exercises in the set and then move to the next superset. Complete 10-20 repetitions of each exercise in each set. If it gives you a time then, do it for that duration three times. Try to move from exercise to exercise as quickly as possible.
Superset One
Push-ups
Tri-cep press
Bicep curls
Flies
Bridges
Fire hydrants
Donkey kicks
Eccentric calf raises (double and single leg)
Lunges
Squats sumo and narrow legged
Superset Two: 
Push-ups
Renegade rows
Shoulder press
Planks side and front
Leg lowers (with or without medicine ball)
Kettle bell swings
Bird dogs
Back extensions
ABC’s
Monopoly game
Chair on toes
Toe tug
Superset Three
Twisting crunch,
Modified bicycle,
Window wipers
Box jumps
Jane Fondas,
Piston squats
Split squat,
Side squat,
Farmer’s walk on toes
I highly recommend doing the complete program. It’s going to get you a more rounded and balanced body. However, I’m a realist. If you can only do one part, focus on your core. Here are the links to the core posts, abs, hips ,  and thighs.
We all want to become faster, stronger, and more efficient runners. And even if there are a few who don’t want those things, you still want to be able to run for the rest of your life. The best way to make sure you are able to continue running is to reduce the risk of injury and one of the most effective ways to reduce your risk of injury is through strength training.
We’ve been making our way down the body considering how each muscle group helps us become faster, stronger and more efficient runners through strength training and as we’ve looked at each section something that has become a theme is injury prevention. Injury prevention is something all runners can get behind regardless of your distance or where you fall in the pack.
We’re all going to get slower as we age and it becomes more difficult to build muscle mass, not that we want a lot of mass as runners, but an area where we can continue to get better and balance out what we lose in strength is efficiency.

Back Strength and Running

Nicole Lowe McBride1 Comment
This is the third blog post in a series about how each major muscle group in your body plays a role in your running. Runners definitely don’t want a bulky upper body to weigh them down, but our upper body plays a significant role in our running form and our efficiency. If you don’t pay attention to muscle groups other than the legs, you set the stage for injuries both up and down the kinetic chain. Our muscles don’t work in isolation.
Strength in our back is not only important in running but in daily life. Many people who sit for long durations of time at their job inevitably develop back pain. As a runner it is important to have strength in your mid and lower back to stabilize the spin and pelvis. A strong back is able to evenly distribute the force of you hitting the ground with each foot plant because of this even distribution of force you are less likely to suffer an injury. Back strength also contributes to maintaining good running form without over rotation, and, as we know, good running form, not only reduces injury risk, but it increases running efficiency (are we catching the theme here from the last two posts?).
As you increase your miles a strong back becomes more important because the increase means you will be running farther while your body is tired. This is also true for ultrarunners who train with back to back long runs. Soft tissues break down as we run and there are two things you need to do to reduce this and to help your body recover. First is rest. Make sure you are getting enough sleep, only increase your miles by 10% a week, and every fourth week reduce your miles by 20-25%. The second is strength. Soft tissue breakdown in your back can lead to injuries, especially in your hips and lower legs.
Over rotation of your torso due to a weak upper body causes your hips and legs to turn as well. They need to maintain a forward motion. A weak lower back also puts extra strain on your hamstrings, which can alter your stride and cause injuries in your hips, knees, and ankles.
Using high repetitions and low weight will help prevent building bulky shoulders. If theses are too easy for you, increase repetitions and keep the weight as low as you can. If these are too hard, lower the weight and then the repetitions as needed. By the end of the third set you should feel a burn in your shoulders and it should be difficult to perform the last repetitions.
Here are some exercises to help increase your mid and low back strength. Back extensions three repetitions hold for 15-45 seconds. Planks three repetitions 15-60 seconds. Bird dogs three sets 10-12 repetitions hold for 3-5 seconds at the top
How to perform back extensions: lay on your belly and lift your legs and upper body, hold it.
How to perform planks: get into the beginning push up position and hold. Your stomach should be held tight and your back straight. You can also lower yourself on your forearms.
How to perform bird dogs: get on your hands and knees lift your right arm and left leg straight out. Do the same thing with the left arm and right leg.
Adding strength workouts to your training program can be difficult because you just want to run and it can be hard to find the time. Keep in mind the first goal is to make sure you keep running and strength will help prevent injuries.

Back Strength and Running

Nicole Lowe McBride1 Comment

This is the third blog post in a series about how each major muscle group in your body plays a role in your running. Runners definitely don’t want a bulky upper body to weigh them down, but our upper body plays a significant role in our running form and our efficiency. If you don’t pay attention to muscle groups other than the legs, you set the stage for injuries both up and down the kinetic chain. Our muscles don’t work in isolation.
Strength in our back is not only important in running but in daily life. Many people who sit for long durations of time at their job inevitably develop back pain. As a runner it is important to have strength in your mid and lower back to stabilize the spin and pelvis. A strong back is able to evenly distribute the force of you hitting the ground with each foot plant because of this even distribution of force you are less likely to suffer an injury. Back strength also contributes to maintaining good running form without over rotation, and, as we know, good running form, not only reduces injury risk, but it increases running efficiency (are we catching the theme here from the last two posts?).
As you increase your miles a strong back becomes more important because the increase means you will be running farther while your body is tired. This is also true for ultrarunners who train with back to back long runs. Soft tissues break down as we run and there are two things you need to do to reduce this and to help your body recover. First is rest. Make sure you are getting enough sleep, only increase your miles by 10% a week, and every fourth week reduce your miles by 20-25%. The second is strength. Soft tissue breakdown in your back can lead to injuries, especially in your hips and lower legs.
Over rotation of your torso due to a weak upper body causes your hips and legs to turn as well. They need to maintain a forward motion. A weak lower back also puts extra strain on your hamstrings, which can alter your stride and cause injuries in your hips, knees, and ankles.
Using high repetitions and low weight will help prevent building bulky shoulders. If theses are too easy for you, increase repetitions and keep the weight as low as you can. If these are too hard, lower the weight and then the repetitions as needed. By the end of the third set you should feel a burn in your shoulders and it should be difficult to perform the last repetitions.
Here are some exercises to help increase your mid and low back strength. Back extensions three repetitions hold for 15-45 seconds. Planks three repetitions 15-60 seconds. Bird dogs three sets 10-12 repetitions hold for 3-5 seconds at the top
How to perform back extensions: lay on your belly and lift your legs and upper body, hold it.
How to perform planks: get into the beginning push up position and hold. Your stomach should be held tight and your back straight. You can also lower yourself on your forearms.
How to perform bird dogs: get on your hands and knees lift your right arm and left leg straight out. Do the same thing with the left arm and right leg.
Adding strength workouts to your training program can be difficult because you just want to run and it can be hard to find the time. Thirty minutes three to four days a week will make a major difference. Keep in mind the first goal is to make sure you keep running and strength will help prevent injuries.

Shoulder Strenght and Running

Nicole Lowe McBrideLeave a comment
This is the second blog post in a series about how each major muscle group in your body plays a role in your running. Runners definitely don’t want a bulky upper body to weigh them down, but our upper body plays a significant role in our running form and our efficiency. If you don’t pay attention to muscle groups other than the legs, you set the stage for injuries both up and down the kinetic chain. Our muscles don’t work in isolation.
Weak shoulders tend to become rounded and collapse inward as you get tired toward the end of a race. Collapsing in this way impedes your diaphragm’s ability to expand and bring in sufficient air to continue to fuel your muscles. You need to have enough flexibility and strength in your shoulders to maintain proper form and allow your diaphragm to function. Your shoulders assist in maintaining a smooth and efficient arm swing (covered in the last post). Shoulders also help you maintain proper form, which impacts your efficiency. Efficiency means your body is burning the least amount of energy in can to maintain the movement and speed you need to perform well.
Running is more complex than people think. It’s not just a forward motion. There is rotation involved as well and over rotation wastes energy and throws off your running form increasing the risk of injury in another part of the body. Strong shoulders prevent over rotation. Your shoulders should be held back opening up your chest and not compressing your diaphragm You should be upright and not hunched over. I often tell runners to imagine there is a string from the center of your sternum reaching up to the moon or sun. This will get you in the proper from.
Using high repetitions and low weight will help prevent building bulky shoulders. If theses are too easy for you, increase repetitions and keep the weight as low as you can. If these are too hard, lower the weight and then the repetitions as needed. By the end of the third set you should feel a burn in your shoulders and it should be difficult to perform the last repetitions.
Exercises that will help you strengthen your shoulders include: push-ups perform three sets of 10-12; Renegade rows three sets of 10-12 repetitions; shoulder press three sets, 10-12 reps
How to perform renegade rows: place light weight dumbbells on the floor shoulder width apart. Get into the starting push-up position with one hand gripping a dumbbell. Pull your arm up through your elbow, pointing your elbow up toward the ceiling.
How to perform shoulder press: Take two light weight dumbbells and hold them at shoulder height press them over your head until your arm is fully extended. Lower them slowly.

Are You Strong?

Nicole Lowe McBride3 Comments

All you have to do to train for a race is run, right? Wrong.

Wait a minute, my legs are really strong. I mean check out these calves, quads and glutes. I used to think the same thing. The number one reason to incorporate strength training into your running training is injury prevention. The other reasons are increasing your speed during your long runs.

Running beats up your body, if you haven’t noticed. If you don’t have a lot of time to add in strength training, and who does, work on your hips. Strong hips are essential to preventing injuries. There is tons of research that supports this. You can prevent some of the most common running injuries such as runners knee, shin splints, and ITband issues.

Your hips stabilize your upper and lower body. The muscles surrounding the hips are recruited when other muscles become tired which can cause overuse injuries and compensation injuries. Weak hips throw off your gait, causing your knee and ankles to be unstable, in addition to your hips. You can develop mid-line crossover of your arms and feet. Cross over is an over rotation of your upper body during running. This twisting action wastes energy and can cause you to fall if you’re running on an technical surface.

You don’t need to do strength training every day, three days a week is best, more is not better. Your body needs a chance to build after you work the muscles. It doesn’t take a long time to add in some hip strengthening either, you can throw in 20 minutes after a run or on your cross training days. Let’s eliminate one more excuse too, you don’t need any equipment or a gym.

Here are some exercises that will get you started:

Fire hydrants: Get down on all fours. Lift your right leg out keeping the knee bent at a 90 degree angle. Lift slow for four counts and then lower for two counts. Repeat this for 10-20 times and three sets. Repeat on your left side.

Side Leg Raises: Lie on your side with your legs stacked on top of one another. Lift your top leg to about 45 degrees and then lower it back down. Repeat 15 to 20 times per leg.

Bird Dog: Get on all fours on the ground. Focusing on balance, lift your right arm and extend it straight out in front of your body. Simultaneously, lift your left leg and extend it out behind your body. Bring your extended arm and bent knee back to center under your body, and then extend them both out again. Repeat 15 to 20 times on each side.

Hip Hikes: Standing on one foot, drop the right side of your pelvis a few inches downwards while keeping the left side in a neutral position. Activate your left hip muscles and lift your right side back to the starting position. Repeat 15 to 20 times on each side.

Single-Leg Bridge: Lie on your back with both legs bent and your feet flat on the ground. Lift your left leg off the ground and extend it while you raise your lower back and butt. Hold the position for two seconds and lower back downwards in a controlled manner. Repeat 10 to 15 times on each leg.

Donkey Kicks: Get on all fours again, but this time you will only be lifting and extending your legs, keeping your hands on the ground. Instead of extending the leg backwards like you did during Bird Dogs, keep the knee slightly bent and kick upwards, with the bottom of your shoe facing the sky. Repeat 15 to 20 times on each side.