Should runners weight train?

[Runningversity]

TL:DR – yes, a bit of weight training is useful for endurance runners.

Running can cancel muscle gains.

Long runs or other intensive running sessions like sprints cancel weight training’s muscle building effect. They inhibit the “build muscle quickly” signals, so it’s hard to gain big muscles while doing lots of running. But is weight training still useful? Whilst muscle building is inhibited, it will still happen a little.

Leg weight exercises aren’t strictly *needed* for endurance running (by this I mean, not sprinting, so anyone running more than about 1500m), since doing enough running will build those muscles over time. This assumes that the training matches whatever races a runner might be aiming at in terms of terrain and any hills.

If we live in a totally flat training area, but aiming for a long race with lots of hills, some weight training could help, although getting experimental with stairs or multi-storey car parks would be beneficial too.

Running is mostly just legs.

However, running doesn’t really train the core or upper body and sometimes life throws things at us that we’re not prepared for. Being off running for a few weeks because “Gah, I put my back out while picking up a heavy box” will damage the running consistency.

Additionally, sometimes in Running we meet the unexpected – foot down a hole, sudden turn, jump out of the way of a dog/bike/car – and these sudden non-running movements would be less risky if we were stronger in the legs and torso.

When to do weights?

So even though it takes us runners longer to build strength, it’s still worth us doing some weights and dynamic bodyweight exercises once a week. A lot of runners think they should do these on a rest day so that they can do a better weights session, but…. then it’s not a rest day and rest is the most important day!

Instead, do them on a hard day. If you have a fast session of intervals for example, do your weight routine later that day.

I hope that helps. If you have any questions, ask me!

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