Building Endurance and Preventing Injuries: Strength Training for Runners
If you want to feel stronger during your next long run or workout, eating better and getting lots of sleep isn’t going to help you.
Well, actually, yes they will help you. But not in the way we’re going to discuss today.
No. Instead, you need to be adding strength sessions to your weekly routine.
We need strength work to help prevent injuries. I know the majority of us don’t do enough strength throughout the week, but we all see the value in it.
You do not need fancy equipment. Hell, if all you have is a freakin’ gallon jug of water, you can move that around and get in a good strength session.
Personally, I think really short sessions (10-15 minutes at a time), multiple times a week is valuable and efficient at making us stronger.
Today, I’m going to share simple pieces of workout equipment that you can use to get in a really good workout.
Remember, you do not need fancy equipment or a gym membership. Do they help? Yes, of course, but you don’t need any of it.
If you can’t or aren’t willing to purchase some of the equipment below, then try taking some online yoga or Pilates/ strength classes.
*There are affiliate links present. If you purchase something through my link, I make a commission.
Kettlebells – 20ish pounds
With kettlebells you can do:
- single leg dead lifts
- squats
- hip lifts
- swings
- forward lunge twist
Resistance bands
With resistance bands you can do:
- glute activation
- ankle flexibility
- lateral slide
Slam Ball
With a slam ball, you can do:
- core work
- “around the world”
- squat throws
TRX-style bands
With TRX-style bands, you can do:
- body weight routines
- single leg drills
You have the time for it and you know it’ll be good for you. So get to it.
Start small: if you currently do zero strength training, you’ll want to add 1 day/10-20 minutes to each week. Once you adjust and find some consistency, you’ll want to add 10 minutes to another day until you adjust again.
If you are looking for some resources to help you with your strength training, fill in the Google Form below:
Want to Improve Your Strength Training?
Do you want to improve how you strength train during the season? If you or someone you know wants to get better at strength training and they haven’t had success recently, it might be time to get a coach to get you over the hump.
Remember, you can benefit from having someone give you workouts so you can focus on executing!
Fill out this form and let’s get started:
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