A Must or Nice-to-Do for Runners?
Or put another way: would you rather spend 30–45 minutes twice a week on prehab or risk being sidelined for weeks or months due to injury? What if someone told you they could help make you a stronger, more resilient runner, less prone to injury, while also improving your performance—would you be interested? While this might seem like an obvious question, it’s one many runners overlook. I was one of them, learning the hard way before I finally gave strength training a chance. Once I did, my injury rate dropped and my performance improved. This wasn’t just because strength training made me stronger—it also allowed me to train more consistently by preventing minor issues from developing into full-blown injuries. I was finally able to break the frustrating “train, get injured, rehab” cycle. In short, strength training became my prehab.
Research backs this up. A 2015 systematic review reported injury rates in runners ranging from 20% to 80%! The most common injury sites are the knee, ankle and lower leg, while overuse and training errors account for about 80% of these injuries.
The good news? Adding strength training to your routine can significantly reduce your risk of injury. If you want to move well—and for the long haul—strength training is essential for runners. As we begin to lose muscle mass in our 30s, strength training becomes even more critical to offset that decline. It helps prevent injuries by strengthening muscles, bones, ligaments and tendons, improving your overall stability and running efficiency. In short, it makes you a stronger, faster and more durable runner.
What Does Strength Training for Runners Involve?
Running is a full-body movement, so strength exercises should target the core, legs, hips and upper body. Think squats, lunges, deadlifts, planks and plyometrics (like jumping or bounding). Many of these can be done with or without weights. For example, you can start with bodyweight exercises like squats or planks. Single-leg variations are also beneficial since running involves constantly shifting your weight from one leg to the other—exercises like single-leg squats, step-ups and single-leg Romanian deadlifts (RDLs) can mimic this motion.
Benefits of Strength Training for Runners
- Improved posture through core, leg, and full-body exercises, leading to better coordination, balance, and joint stability.
- Addressing weaknesses created by running itself. Running primarily strengthens muscles in the sagittal plane (forward and backward movement), often creating imbalances that can lead to injury. Strength training corrects these imbalances, helping prevent overuse injuries.
- While strength training won’t guarantee you’ll never get injured, it can lower the risk and help reduce the severity of any injuries caused by training errors.
- Improved running performance by enhancing strength, stability, and endurance, which allow you to maintain better form and improve running economy.
Where To Go and What Do You Need?
Strength training for runners is essential, and you don’t need anything fancy to start. You can strength train anywhere—at the gym, at home, or even while traveling. Better yet, you can simply use your body weight or simple equipment like resistance bands, making it easy to incorporate into your routine no matter where you are.
How Often Should Runners Strength Train?
Like any part of your training, the frequency of your strength training depends on where you are in your training cycle. During the offseason or between training cycles, you can focus more on strength work. As you begin a new training cycle for a target race, you might want to periodize your strength training along with your running.
For example, in the base-building phase (4–6 weeks), you might do 3 sets of 10–15 reps of basic exercises. As you move into the strength phase (another 4–6 weeks), you can introduce more challenging movements. Consider switching from bodyweight squats to goblet squats, deadlifts to single leg RDLs. In the sharpening phase (3–4 weeks), the focus might shift to building power, so you would add weights or resistance and reduce reps. Then, as you taper before a race, scale back strength training in the final 2–3 weeks, returning to more basic movements with lower intensity. During race week, you may only do one or no strength training sessions.
As your body recovers during the offseason, you can ramp up strength work. This is a great time to review your training log, identify weaknesses, and adjust your strength routine to target areas where you’re prone to injury.
Generally, aim for 2–3 strength sessions per week, each lasting 30–45 minutes. This usually translates to 3 sets of 3–5 exercises, with 6–15 repetitions per set, depending on the phase of your training.
When To Strength Train?
To make the most of your time and training, follow the same philosophy you apply to your running: keep easy days easy and hard days hard. That means strength training on the same days you do your harder runs, allowing your easy days to focus on recovery. The caveat is if time constraints prevent you from lifting on your hard days, the day after is the next best option.
Do You Need a Strength Training Plan or Coach?
Sold that strength training is essential for runners but not sure where to start? Many runners find a structured strength training plan or guidance from a coach tailored to their specific needs beneficial. You can search our directory of Team RunRun Coaches for “strength” to find experts in strength training for runners.
Your Next Step:
Join the upcoming Talk with the Experts: Strength Training for Runners on Wednesday 9/25/24 @ 8:15pm ET. This is a live panel discussion with four Team RunRun Coaches all about why and how to embrace strength training.
All Team RunRunners and Coaches can find the Zoom link here: https://teamrunrun.com/team-happy-hour/. You must log into the website first to view it, and we’ll post the replay there afterwards.
Gary Wightman is a Team RunRun coach based in Ashburn, VA. He works across the board with runners – from beginners to advanced, spanning the 5K up to the marathon.