Stronger, Faster: Does Heavy Lifting Boost Endurance PRs?

The goal of every good strength and conditioning coach is to enhance the physical preparedness of athletes for their sport. This kind of training is done outside of working with a technical coach—for example, a running coach. For endurance athletes, especially runners, this often includes lifting heavy as a strategic tool to build strength and resilience. Strength and conditioning coaches have three primary goals for their athletes: improve performance, increase capacity for training, and reduce the risk of injury.

Myths about strength training for runners: 

• Will adding heavy lifts to my training program cause more soreness, and affect my ability to complete longer runs? No. An effective S&C program will focus on intensity over volume through selecting exercises that are pertinent to improving strength and coordination of movements that are specific to runners. You’ll avoid unnecessary “junk volume,” with ample recovery time integrated into the program to optimize your progress.
• Will lifting heavy add unwanted muscle bulk that will slow me down? No. A well designed S&C program for endurance runners would focus on power production, strength, and functional exercises to improve performance without increasing bulk. 

How does strength and conditioning benefit running performance?

S&C programs are designed to cause several adaptations to the neuromuscular system. They will improve your body’s ability to generate force, more effectively use elastic energy from tendons, and help you run with more efficiency which will help you run farther by preventing muscle fatigue. 

All of this is to say – When you’re an athlete, you should train like an athlete. Here is how you can incorporate S&C into your endurance training program:

Building Endurance That Lasts

Plyometrics/Power: Plyometrics: 3x/week @ 50 reps per session// Power: 30-70% of 1RM performed @ high velocity for 3-5 reps per set. 

Plyometrics are exercises that are used to make you more explosive in your movements – like pushing off the ground more forcefully as you’re running, and accepting the force through your tendons as you land. When you teach your body to rely on the elastic properties of tendons to repeatedly create force off the ground, your muscles will fatigue at a slower rate and you can run farther. 

Power exercises should focus on lifting a lighter weight fast. Because of the focus on speed you should reduce weight to 30-70% of your 1RM and focus on patterns that include “triple extension” (more on that later). Including plyometrics and power in your training benefits your feet, achilles/calves, hips, knees, and ankles which are all common sites of injury for runners. 

Speed Starts with Strength

Strength training: 2-3x/week @ 80% or more of your 1RM for 3-6 reps/set

Strength is required for muscle groups to produce force during coordinated movements. If you want to run faster, you need to be able to produce a high level of force rapidly. Running speed is directly related to the amount of force your body is able to produce against the ground. Also, it is no surprise that runners tend to suffer from common overuse injuries, known as tendinopathies. These occur due to the high volume and repetitive loading on the body (joints and lower limbs in particular for runners). When you strength train you are strategically placing load through a muscle with the goal of increasing its tolerance to repetitive stress. Training in this way helps reduce the risk of injury. 

My advice is to focus on one major lift, that you will perform heavy, per training block (4 week period). If you are training for strength you should focus on 80% or more of your 1RM for 3-6 reps/set. A heavy stimulus and fewer reps per set are required to create these adaptations. 

Train Running Mechanics to Build a More Resilient Body

Dynamic warm up/functional exercises: 3x/week @ 15-30 minute sessions. These can be performed after a short duration/high intensity training run. 

As discussed above, focus on selecting exercises specifically for runners so we don’t waste time/effort on “junk volume.” For runners, a dynamic warm up should include hip mobility, single leg stability, hamstring activation, calf strength, and trunk control. Strength that you acquire in the gym does not always translate to activity unless you train it to do so. We want to make sure the strength you are acquiring from heavy lifting can be used to express force well during running. 

Runners should choose exercises that will develop force to improve running and should involve the lower body producing “triple extension,” which is the action of the ankles, knees, and hips straightening in a coordinated pattern. Think of jumping straight up to create this movement. This type of training allows your body to accelerate at a high level of force similar to a running stride.  

In conclusion… 

Nobody falls in love with strength training through bridges and core work. Real change comes from lifting heavy, training power, and teaching your body to handle force.

So, will heavy lifting help you PR? If you follow a smart S&C plan, progress your lifts, and recover well—absolutely.

The takeaway: If you’re serious about running stronger, faster, and longer, it’s time to train like it.

Written by Cassie Santana – PTA, CSCS, NASM| Physio Room

Sources: “Strength and Conditioning for Endurance Runners,” (Blagrove)

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As the temps rise, runners of all levels are hitting the pavement and trails again. Whether you’re training for a big race or just enjoying the sunshine, it’s the perfect time to get moving.

Before you lace up, check out these expert tips to help you stay injury-free and running strong all season long:

What are the most common running injuries?

While there are certainly exceptions such as a fall or (heaven forbid) being struck by a vehicle – the vast majority of running related injuries can be summed up into 2 categories: Bone Stress Injuries and Tendinopathies. 

Understanding These Common Running Injuries

A Bone Stress Injury (BSI), which can range from “stress reaction” to “stress fracture” is when the bone cannot hold up to the mechanical demands we are putting on it and begins to fail. On average, a Grade 1 BSI will sideline a runner for 41.7 days. If it is ignored and progresses to a Grade 4 BSI, a runner will on average be sidelined for 98.5 days!

A Tendinopathy encompasses any injury that prevents a tendon from working and being able to withstand load properly. This can be broken down into 3 main subcategories: Tendinitis (inflammation of a tendon), Tendinosis (breakdown of a tendon), and Tenosynovitis (inflammation of the sheath around a tendon). I also like to include plantar fascia pain in this category, because while it is not technically a tendon, the plantar fascia responds VERY similarly to tendon and will be treated very similarly.

What causes these injuries?

While BSI’s and Tendinopathies are treated very differently, their causes are very similar. The biggest trigger when it comes to running related injuries, is typically doing “too much, too fast”. By this I mean we made a dramatic change in one (or more) variables, quicker than our body could handle the change. The most common causes of this that I see are:

• Increasing volume of weekly mileage too quickly
• Too high a percentage of weekly mileage being “hard” efforts
• Increasing both volume and intensity at the same time
• Switching directly to a new shoe without weaning into it
• Making a drastic change in shoe “drop height”

Underlying factors that predispose you to injury:

• Faulty running mechanics
• Not supplementing your program with resistance training
• Under-fueling***
• Poor sleep
• High stress levels
• Systemic factors (autoimmune disorders, pregnancy, etc.)

What Does Treatment Look Like?

While the causes of these two types of injuries are very similar, they have a VERY different treatment approach. The biggest of these differences is that with a bone stress injury you will likely have to spend time non-weightbearing initially, with a very gradual build back to loading, and all at a pain level of 0/10. With a tendon-related disorder, however, you will likely have a quicker return to run, and should actually expect some mild to moderate discomfort in the strengthening and loading phases of rehab. You can see why it’s imperative to find out which you’re dealing with, right?

What steps can I take to prevent these?

• When building up mileage, increase your weekly mileage by no more than 10% each week, and plan for a “down week” of slightly less mileage every 3rd to 4th week
• Roughly 80% of runs should be easy mileage, only 1-2 runs per week should be a “hard” effort
• If switching into a shoe with a drastic change in drop height (especially switching to a “zero drop” shoe), start with just 10% of your weekly mileage in that new shoe and progress by 10% each week to give your body time to adapt to it
• Have a trained clinician assess your running form 
• Have a quality strength program (running is a high intensity sport, runners need to be strong!) 
• Make sure you are getting enough fuel with high quality food (this is a BIG one when it comes to BSI’s. If you are struggling with this I highly recommend consulting a nutritionist)
• Getting 8 hours of quality sleep per night
• Managing stress (as best you can)

If you think you may be dealing with one of these injuries, don’t hesitate to schedule an assessment at Physio Room. Better yet, be proactive and don’t let it get to that point, so you can enjoy your summer – whether it be 5k, Marathon, or Leadville.

Written by Dr. Drew Short – PT, DPT, CMFA| Physio Room

The post Can I Keep Running? The Truth You Need to Hear appeared first on Physio Room.

Key Takeaways

• Use the first half of a marathon as a warm up, race slower than your goal race pace

• Runners can use strength training to restore damaged body tissue and build a more robust body

• All 3 macronutrients are important for runners, but protein is actually the most important

“People talk about hitting a wall. To me the wall just means that you ran dumb. You’ve been too fast and you have nothing left,” explains Tristan Mitchell, owner, manager, and coach at Lions Den SMP. Tristan has completed 24 marathons and has learned a lot about training for running since his first attempt at age 20. Today, he joins host Dr. Andrew Fix to discuss strategies for smarter marathon training.

Running for extended periods of time is very rough on the body because it is incredibly repetitive. In order to master the marathon without harming your body, it is important to train strategically. This means not only learning how to pace yourself properly throughout the race depending on its length, but also knowing how to fuel your body efficiently beforehand. People are quick to think of carbohydrates for runners, but protein is even more important as a building block for your body to function at its best. Additionally, adding in strength training can help restore the body tissues that have been damaged by the repetitive motions of running.

If you start off a marathon running your hardest, you will likely hit a wall pretty quickly. That’s why it is imperative to pace yourself and purposefully run slower than your race pace goal for the first half of the marathon before kicking it into high gear for the second half. Be sure to fuel up on lots of protein beforehand and consider adding strength training to your regimen to help your body become more robust.

Quotes

• “Learning how to negative split races was huge, and ever since then it’s something I’ve really worked at in the marathon and prided myself on. (20:20-20:29 | Tristan)

• “The way I always like to think about it is having these things that I can draw upon to elicit an adrenaline response, something that just fires me up. And I save these things for the second half of a marathon.” (21:51-22:05 | Tristan)

• “If you go out too hard, you simply burn up too much of your stored carbohydrates.” (33:00-33:06 | Tristan)

• “People talk about hitting a wall. To me the wall just means that you ran dumb. You’ve been too fast and you have nothing left.” (33:11-33:19 | Tristan)

• “When it comes to running, strength training builds a more robust body. It builds a body that can tolerate the demands of running training more effectively.” (49:25-49:38 | Tristan)

• “All three of the macronutrients are highly important aspects of a runner’s diet, protein, fat and carbohydrates. But I think that we must get runners to think through the lens of protein first, because it is the building block.” (1:05:41-1:05:59 | Tristan)

Links

Connect with Tristan Mitchell:

Website | ​​https://www.lionsdensmp.com/

Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/lionsdensmp/?hl=en

Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/LionsDenSMP

Connect with Physio Room: 

Website | ​​https://physioroomco.com/

Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/physioroomco/

Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/physioroomco

Andrew’s Personal Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/dr.andrewfix/

Andrew’s Personal Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/andrew.fix.9/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

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