Strength Training and Running

safarigirlelka

Hello Fellow Runners, I'm training for my second full marathon in February. I read that one should do strength training with high mileage to prevent injuries. My questions are.....

1) How much time should I spend strength training per week?
2) Should I use weights like dumbbells or are bodyweight exercises enough?
3) Does Pilates count as strength training?

Thank you! Hope you all have a good weekend long run!

Elle

The_Enginerd

The types and amount of your strength training is going to depend on you and what your muscle imbalances/weaknesses are. Do training that targets those weaknesses.

I've seen schools of thought vary from just body weight exercises, to just low weight/high rep stuff, to heavy lifting. I haven't seen any solid research in what is most effective, and again, I think it's going to vary from person to person. Personally, I do "heavy" lifting with a 5x5 program. A couple times a week seems to be a common denominator. Even doing just body-weight stuff, you can increase the resistance by modifying the moves as you get stronger. See You Are Your Own Gym (YAYOG) or Convict Conditioning for examples.

I do not count Pilates as strength training on it's own. I think core work is a key part of strength training, (I have to do it as part of my PT for my back), but it's not going to target your legs. You don't really need to target your arms for running, but I do anyway as part of my overall health and strength.

I know, kind of a non-answer answer, but the answer on what kind of strength training to do varies from coach to coach. If you find something you can and WILL do 2-3 times a week, you can fit in with your current training, and targets your weak areas, I think you are heading in the right direction.

safarigirlelka

Great, thanks for that. I think I'll start with body weight exercises on my non running days.

runfoorun

If you're a beginner you'll benefit from body weight exercises so start there. Once that becomes too easy and the repetitions too high you should add resistance in the form of whatever, dumbbells, barbells, weight vest etc. Free weight squats and deadlift variations are best for injury prevention. The deeper the movement the better for the hips and knees. The important thing to remember about strength training is that in order to get strong, you need variation and a good amount of resistance. Otherwise, you're just doing another form of cardio. I would recommend 2-3 days of strength training. One day for a leg workout, one day for upper body and core. A third day just cause it's fun. Enjoy and good luck on your second marathon.

beeblebrox82

Work on that core! Work on those hips, glutes, and stomach muscles. They don't get worked very well with pure running and they can trainwreck you (IT band issues for instance) Weighted squats and lunges are great exercises for runners too.

safarigirlelka

Thanks for tips! So just to get a general idea....would you say you guys do strength training for about 1 hour, 3 times per week? If I go by mood....I'll probably only do 10 min per session!

lporter229

When I am training for a race, I focus on body weight exercises, pilates and yoga. Mostly to strengthen my core and keep my muscles limber. When I am not in the middle of a training plan, then I do lifting with weights to gain strength and retain muscle. I notice that too much heavy lifting wrecks my legs and slows my pace.

jchite84

Traditionally I've done Spartacus 2 days per week. It's an HIIT program that is probably 50% bodyweight, 50% dumbells. I did it more when I was training for triathlons, but I noticed a lot of improvement in my running. That past couple of seasons though, I've switched to olympic lifting 2 days per week. The biggest thing will be to probably cut back as your running mileage increases, or else all of your runs become runs on tired legs.

MobyCarp

safarigirlelka wrote: »

Thanks for tips! So just to get a general idea....would you say you guys do strength training for about 1 hour, 3 times per week? If I go by mood....I'll probably only do 10 min per session!

Strength training isn't really about time spent, it's about what areas you're working on. If I decide I need to do 3 sets of 10 reps of squats at a particular weight, I count those 3 sets as a unit in my strength training. I don't pay any attention to how long it takes me to do those 3 sets.

Anything that says "do this for X minutes" is likely to have some cardio training as a significant part of its goal. There's nothing wrong with training cardio, but runners typically don't need extra cardio from their strength training.

The thing with a time limit to the strength training session is, it makes you decide which exercises are most important. You end up with decisions like, "I don't have time for both the single-leg calf raises and the hip abduction/adduction work. Which one is more important for supporting my running?" If I'm in that position, maybe I decide to do abduction/adduction today and calf raises next time I do strength work. Or vice versa. It's all about getting the work on what I need to work on.

mbaker566

I run 3-4 times a week and yoga and aerial yoga to work on strength and flexibility 2-3 time's a wee for about 30-60 min a session

beeblebrox82

I try to do SOMETHING every day, even if it's just some burpees or some pull ups. I try to do core yoga, IT exercises or a full body weight workout at least 3 times a week... it's a struggle I admit.

TomZot

Lifting twice a week for 90 minutes each time (give or take), yoga twice per week. Seems to work for me.