Can you lift and train for a marathon?

FitFitzy331

I'm currently not training for any marathon but it's on my bucket list to complete someday. This is just for future reference when I decide to finally sign up and train for one.

I love lifting and want to keep that up but I've read some things that basically say you can't lift on a normal schedule and actually train for a marathon at the same time.

Has anyone here done both? Just wondering how you were able to keep it up and how many hours a day were you working out. The training for the marathon alone looks like it can get up to 8 hours a week. I'm not sure if lifting along with that is realistic or if it will hurt the marathon training process.

_runnerbean_

Having trained for one marathon I would say that it would be best to pause your lifting programme when you are in the last two months of marathon training. I followed a 16 week programme (from runners world) and found I was exhausted towards the end- to the point of nearly falling asleep at work! If I had been strength training too I would have either got I need or been to tired to function during the day. I was doing a desk job at the time. I'm interested to see what other peoples opinions are on this.

in4nomz

I tried to do both (I'm training for a marathon in October this year) and I found that I just didn't have the time to do a run anywhere from 1-2 hours plus another hour of lifting. I also have a hard time eating enough to energize myself for all of that, so as of right now I've just been running.

It's hard to do, but you CAN do it. I would suggest not doing a super long extensive lift routine. Maybe just stick with compound lifts instead of doing certain muscle groups each day.

tkillion810

You will absolutely want to continue strength training while training for a marathon. You may find you'll need to make some adjustments to your current routine though. Training for a marathon is like having a part time job; its very time consuming. If you are doing splits right now, you might find when you get into the higher mileage weeks, that you need to switch to full body routines for the sake of time.

I'm training for my 13 marathon, currently in the taper phase as I'm just over a week away. This training cycle I made a committment to not let my strength training slide as I have in the past. I've hit new personal records this time, in my highest weekly mileage and highest monthly mileage, as well as nailing my speedwork sessions. I believe I have been able to do all this and remain injury free because I've maintained the strength training.

Since you have some time, do some research on different running plans available. Plans vary as to how many days per week you run. There are so many options that surley there is one that will fit your schedule to allow you to committ to both.

Good luck, and keep us posted!

runner475

It entirely depends what your definition would be for "lifting" while you are training for Marathon.

If you are doing upper body strength training and/or beginner's non-ambitious weightlifting + Marathon training at the same time you should be good to go.

However if you want to PR your squats and deadlifts while you are adding mileage weeks after weeks that, IMHO, may not do justice to either sport.

I have done Oly lifting and trained for HM sometime back and I never got PR for either sport that season. It's also terribly painful to throw in a squat day - a day or 2 after your long run of 16 Miles or a tempo run of pace 30 secs faster than your race pace.
It's like "what the h3ll was I thinking"

Hope this helps answer your question. Good Luck.

TAsunder

Lower weight, high-rep lifting is not only no problem, but generally recommended. Especially if you are working lesser leg muscle groups.

FitFitzy331

Thanks everyone! :flowerforyou: I'll look for a training program where I can still get a couple full body lifting days in. No PRs but just lower weights and higher reps than I would do without the marathon training.

cwolfman13

Can you lift? Absolutely...and personally I wouldn't train without lifting. You're going to lift differently though...when you're training for an endurance event like a marathon, that training is going to take precedent...your lifts will be in support of that training. What this means is that most of your training volume is going to be running...with some lifting as an aside and basically assistance work.

You would be hard pressed to follow a traditional strength (heavy lifting) program like Starting Strength or Strong Lifts and train for a marathon at the same time...you might be able to do it, but results would be less than optimal for both...you'd likely be pretty beat up as well, especially your legs. Hell, I had issues just running 10Ks and squatting 3x weekly.

I don't really run much save for here and there to do something different...but I do participate in cycling endurance events as well as race cyclocross. Basically I break things down into seasons to avoid over-training and to optimize my training for the specific event or race.

For example, I like to do my endurance rides in the spring and early part of summer...so starting in March I usually pull back from the weight room where I've been doing traditional strength training for most of the winter and lifting really heavy things. I pull back from that and I start logging more and more miles on my bike. My lifting during this time generally goes from 4x weekly split in the winter to a 3x weekly full body with lighter weight and more reps to train muscular endurance more than strength and size...I also do a lot of body weight stuff here. As the weeks pass by and I get closer to events, I generally drop my frequency down to 2x weekly...by this time I'm simply putting in too many miles to effectively lift, ride, and recover...something has to give. This is pretty much my spring and into early summer. (March, April, May...and maybe the first couple weeks of June)

In the summer I basically deload the miles and start working a more balanced fitness plan that involves pretty much even parts cardiovascular work and weight training. I generally do a 3x weekly lifting routine that works in mixed rep ranges and try to ride about 60 - 80 miles per week for general fitness. This takes me through June, July, and August...and into early September.

In the fall I race cyclocross so I'm back on my bike more....but rather than long endurance rides, I'm doing more sprinting along with some hills and practicing other cx type of skills. I stick to a 3x weekly program here, but I tend to work in a higher rep range with lower weight...I also emphasize more explosive movements like box jumps, jump squats, kettle bell swings, and clean variations. These things help me with exploding out of turns, sprinting up hills, and other explosive types of movements that are necessary when racing cx. I'm not a true hard core cx racer yet, so I pretty much only do this in Sept and Oct...maybe into November if the weather holds. The hard core guys are out there getting soaked in sub freezing temps, and that's just not my thing.

In November I really take to the gym and the weight room..it's cold outside and nice and warm inside the gym. I switch things up to a 4x weekly split usually. I do a little spin and this is about the only time of year I actually hit any cardio equipment. On nicer days, I still prefer to be outside on my bike. This generally takes me from about mid November, December, January, and February...but in February I'm already starting to de-load a bit for spring riding.

And then the circle starts all over again.

RachelRuns9

Cool, I like reading people's experiences with this. I'm always looking to improve on my lifting/running balance. I lifted heavy all summer (4 split days) and then when I started marathon training, I managed to keep in two full body days for the first 2 months, going pretty hard. For the latter 2 months of the training my legs are just too fatigued to keep up the same intensity. Like others said, I went for lower weights and higher reps just to keep up general fitness and mobility. I made sure to hit upper body & abs even if I couldn't really do legs. In general, lifting became an "accessory," as stated above. I miss the gym and I'm looking forward to having more of a balance when not focused on a particular race, but I really needed to prioritize so that I could attempt to reach my potential for the race. My advice is to just give it a try and be open to adjusting (frequently) as you go.

Ohhim

Stayed away from doing much with my legs last time I did a marathon plan. Just stuck with mostly upper body (with an occasional calf press/leg press once/week), and didn't have any trouble.

Still, my ex shaved 30 minutes off her last marathon PR when doing crossfit (lower intensity, high reps) last time around and swears by it.