To many runners, the weight room is unfamiliar territory, and lifting weights is often thought of as an extraneous addition to training. With so much emphasis on running specificity, a concept in physiology that says you get what you train for, most athletes and coaches tend to believe that if you want to run faster then you should be out running.
However, running alone cannot improve the efficiency with which you run or increase the power output of your stride. Incorporating a strength-training program, emphasizing functional movements, can fill in the blanks of your training, helping to correct muscular imbalances, and build the power and core strength necessary to run your best.
Simply put, that means training the muscles in the movements that mimic a running stride. The human body works as an integrated unit, not one body part at a time, so it should be trained as a unit. Sitting in a leg curl apparatus is the equivalent to going out for a 10-mile run and not bending your knees to isolate your hips. Of course that doesn't make sense, so take the same philosophy into the weight room.
The strength training routine below can be incorporated into your training throughout your entire season, but focusing on these exercises during your "offseason" will guarantee a better season to come.
Runner's Workout
The strength training routine below will provide single-leg power, stability and balance. It will also train the core of the body to generate a better pulling action. In every physical endeavor, the human body operates best when it is in balance. Perform 8–12 reps of each exercise. Make sure you are using enough resistance to make the last repetition difficult (but not impossible) to execute. Do 3-4 sets, two or three times per week, preferably on your easy running days.
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3. Starting with the cable handle even with your chest, drive the load as if you are punching at something. These can be done with one or both arms at the same time (if you have a two-cable pulley system).
Static Lunge on Stability Disc (photo below)
1. Stand in a split-legged position, with one foot on the disc and the other foot about 3 feet behind it, toes on the floor, heel up.
2. Place your hands on your hips, or hold barbells with straight arms by your sides.
3. Bend the front knee forward, trying to touch your hamstring to the back of the calf, leaning forward (it's OK for your toes to go over your knee). Try to touch your back knee to the floor, making sure to keep your spine extended and long, head up, eyes forward.
4. Push through the foot on the disc to return back to the starting position. Repeat with the other leg.
1. Using a low cable machine, stand on one leg, grabbing the attachment with the opposite hand.
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4. Let your arm back out with your shoulder stretching forward.
5. Repeat.
Medicine Ball Hammy Hip Lift (photo below)
1. Lie on your back, arms out to the side. The sole of one foot is on the ball, with your knee slightly bent. The other leg is extended straight up into the air, perpendicular to the floor, heel flexed to the ceiling.
2. Push down into the ball, and lift your hips, pushing your raised foot toward the ceiling. Lower down until your hips are just off the floor and repeat.
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1. Lie face up on the floor with your arms by your sides.
2. Bring the left knee in towards the chest and lift the torso off of the floor, so you are balancing on your sit bones.
3. Simultaneously drive your right elbow forward and your left elbow back (mimicking the motion of running).
4. Straighten the left leg out to meet the right and lie flat with arms by your side again (keep your feet hovering if you can).
5. Switch sides, bringing the left arm forward with the right leg. •
Sarah Scholl, Ed.M., a former All-American runner at Georgetown University, trains athletes as a strength and speed coach, yoga teacher and sport psychologist in New Canaan, Conn.
