Strength Training For Endurance Athletes

Between running, cycling, swimming, who has time for the gym? Endurance athletes get caught on this dogma that says the only way you can get better at something is to do it for hours and hours each day. This is partially true, but I’m here to tell you that a “secret ingredient” to the success of your next racing season may be lifting weights: and not in the manner that you are probably thinking.

       Imagine walking into your local gym. You see red-faced powerlifters benching, squatting and chugging protein shakes. Middle aged women spending an hour on the mats doing the same two glute and abdominal exercises. Then, you see a guy in running shorts doing some exercises that are so subtle you wonder if he is even working out. With so many ways to go about a strength training program, how do you decide where to begin? What if I told you that as an endurance athlete, you should be closer in routine to the powerlifter than the skinny guy in running shorts? Hold on, I’ll explain.

      Think about this for a moment. You spend anywhere from 5-16 hours a week dragging your body weight through miles and miles of training. You’re heart and lungs are strong, and you muscle are slim and slender from building all of those slow twitch muscle fibers. Lifting light weights for high repetitions sounds like your normal training schedule. The stress placed on the muscle is too similar to cause any new adaptations physiologically. Although endurance sports generally don’t resemble power sports, (until that final sprint to the finish) race performance and overall speed can be improved through the recruitment of fast twitch fibers and more motor units within the muscle. Lifting heavy not only can make you a more powerful athlete, but it can also help prevent injury by giving the support system for your bones and tendons—your muscles—an added boost of strength. However, there is a time and place for both heavy lifting and light(er) lifting.

      Think of heavier lifting as an augmentation to your program. Just because you start doing lifts such as bench press and squats doesn’t mean you should stop doing one- legged body weight squats, lunges, or hip flexor exercises. A good rule of thumb is to use traditional lifting to strengthen large muscle groups, and integrated, endurance-based movements as accessory moves for neglected muscle groups (such the gluteus minumus/medius, hip flexor, calf muscles, deltoid/rotator cuff muscles). Also keep in mind that muscle imbalances are the leading cause of running and overuse injuries. Include unilateral exercises with light weight to gauge strength imbalances between sides. Be in tune to which side feels weaker or less balanced. You just may prevent an injury before it starts.

     One last ingredient to strength training for endurance athletes (and certainly not the least) is core training. Since the role of the core during swimming and running is actually to decrease movement, it’s important to do core exercises that mimic this demand. Exercises such as planks (both normal and side, stationary and moving), cable woodchops, and other exercises that involve the deceleration of weight are imperative to include in your program. There is value to crunches, twists, and other crazy ab exercises , but make sure to incorporate the aforementioned stability exercises as well. Also, don’t forget about the lower back! The building is only as strong as it’s weakest pillar. Think of your back and abdominals as the “pillars” that hold your body together. Balance out those crunches with back extensions or some variation.

     So how do you incorporate this into your training program? It’s important to have a recovery day the day after heavy lifting, so your best bet is to add in a strength training workout to an already “hard” day. For instance, add in some lifting on a day when you do bike intervals or a tempo run. The next day should be easy—a single recovery ride or run should do the trick. Start out your strength training program with 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions using moderate weight, so that you can prep your body for harder work later on. After about 3 weeks at this intensity, slowly begin to increase your weight as you decrease your reps by 2 every two weeks. (i.e. Every two weeks you will decrease from 10 to 8, then to 6) Once you get to 6, then just increase the weight from there. There is no need to lift a weight that you can complete less than 6 times. Lift 2-3 times per week, and you will see some pretty awesome results!

Here are some examples of heavy lifting exercises: Bench press, deadlift, squat, shoulder press, rows and power cleans.

Lighter lifting exercises: Straight-legged (or almost so) deadlifts, one-legged calf raises and squats, lateral arm raises, push-ups (including wide grip and narrow grip variations), lateral leg lifts, lunges, etc.

    Remember that form is extremely important when you lift heavy, so if you try a new exercise, be sure to ask someone who has mastered the movement to watch your form. Form is more important in the beginning than the amount of weight you use. If any of you have any questions, just ask me. I’d be happy to help!