To keep running long and strong, you need a strength foundation. This strength base plan, including three workouts, will help you build it.
When life gets hectic, especially when training for a race, it’s easy to skimp on strength workouts or put them off entirely. To put your best racing foot forward, though, getting some consistent strength training into your plan is a must.
“Many people don’t have a lot of experience with resistance training, and I think that’s quite common with runners,” says Matt Jones, personal trainer, running coach, and founder of Run Strong Academy in the U.K. “But having a strength foundation is so important for making it through daily life comfortably—and it helps make you a more adaptable, efficient runner, too.”Get the strength plan that works for all runners! Race-Ready Strength, our new progressive 4-week training program, will get you in the best shape to reach your racing goals.How much time you need to establish a solid base varies from person to person, depending on factors like your training history and how regularly you strength train once you start, says Jones. “But if you’re consistent and work out three times a week, four weeks gives you a really good time frame to establish a strength base,” he says.Here’s what you need to know about how getting a strength base can benefit you as a runner, the general principles of how to do it well, and a four-week plan to get you there.The Benefits of Building a Strength Base for Runners“Like an aerobic base, you want a solid strength base as you embark on a new running goal,” says Erin Beck, NASM-CPT, director of training and experience for STRIDE Fitness in Santa Monica, California. “Building a good base can help you improve form and technique while also enhancing the endurance and performance of muscles that undergo repeated use while running, especially your quads, hip flexors, and glutes.”With that improved form, adds Jones, you’ll also become a more economical runner—meaning you can run faster for longer and more comfortably.Getting some strength training under your belt may also help you sidestep some aches and pains. “You’re never going to be able to prevent injury entirely, as running is such an impact sport, but you’re improving the tendons and connective tissues as you build strength, so you won’t be under as much strain while running,” says Jones.The Basics of Establishing a Strength BaseFollow these go-tos to reap the biggest benefit of your resistance training and get strong in all the right ways to support your running.Aim to Start in the Off-Season“Establishing a good strength base in the off-season is optimal because when you’re not actively training for races, there’s not as much strain on your muscles from running more mileage and competing,” says Jones.Plus, from a practical perspective, when you’re not spending as much time running, you theoretically should have more time to lift. “That being said, if you’re getting into a training block and having been strength training, don’t worry too much about when you’re doing it and just do it,” Jones says, noting that it’s better to start late than to not start at all.Work Your Entire BodyRunning might seem lower-body-specific, but it incorporates your upper half, too—and so should your resistance training. “Running is a full-body cardio workout,” says Beck. “Some of the muscles undergo repeated use and stress—like the quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, glutes, and hip flexors—but the core is important, for rotational power, and your arms help counterbalance your lower body while running.”In fact, fatigue in the trunk and upper body diminished people’s running economy in a 2019 study in the journal Sports. Researchers suggested that strengthening the core muscles and upper body with strength endurance training could help offset those negative effects.Jones recommends making each strength session a full-body one. “If you have a leg-only day, you’re going to create more fatigue and your legs will be hurting more on your next run,” he explains. Plus, when all three weekly strength workouts are full-body, if you miss one, you’ve still hit all your muscles for the week.Schedule Your Workouts RightTwo to three strength sessions a week is ideal, and you can do them on run days or not, depending on what works for your routine and your goals, says Beck: “Alternating run and strength workouts throughout the week might be more conducive to your goals if you’re training for a longer distance,” she says. “Those who are running with a goal of a few miles or a 5K, on the other hand, would be fine to incorporate both modalities in the same day. It really depends on your goals and how you’re feeling.”When tackling both a run and strength on the same day, Jones recommends spacing them out by several hours so you don’t feel fatigued going into either.Go Beyond BodyweightDoing loads and loads of bodyweight exercises is the biggest mistake Jones sees runners make with their strength training. “Establishing a base can start with bodyweight exercises, but you need to build from that,” he says. “If we’re looking at getting a base going in only four, five, six weeks, you want to get the most bang for your buck. The bodyweight stuff won’t get you as much as you need in that amount of time.”Find the Ideal WeightWhen you’re figuring out how much weight you can lift for each move, aim for enough that the last couple reps are tough but not impossible, says Jones; aim for an RPE of around 7 on a scale of 1 to 10 for those final reps. “You want the load to be good enough that it’s a bit of a struggle but you’re not sacrificing form—quality over quantity is always a good rule to go by,” says Jones.Consider Hiring a ProWorking with a running coach who specializes in strength can help you zero in on a plan aligned with your goals. Beck recommends working with a certified personal trainer to check your program and form. “People without a plan may try lifting too heavy or too frequently and wind up injured—and strength training is meant to enhance running performance, not hinder it,” she says.Your 4-Week Strength Base PlanIf a coach isn’t in your budget, no problem. We asked Jones to put together a routine to help you set up a strong base in just four weeks. You’ll do three workouts per week, each with a compound movement , a superset of two moves, and a core exercise . Follow the reps, sets, and rest time listed below.What you'll need:You can use a barbell for some of the exercises if you want, but all the moves here are totally doable with just a pair of dumbbells. In fact, Jones actually prefers dumbbells—because they’re more accessible and “give you a bit of instability, which means you’re working your balance and activating your core a bit more with each move,” he says.💡 To progress from one week to the next, add a little weight while keeping your sets and reps the same.Workout 1Goblet Squat ⬇️ SUPERSET: Perform the next two moves back to back, then rest 2 minutes and repeat for 3 sets.Step-UpBench Press Dead BugSave WorkoutWorkout 2Deadlift⬇️ SUPERSET: Perform the next two moves back to back, then rest 2 minutes and repeat for 3 sets.Glute Bridge3-Point Dumbbell RowPallof PressSave WorkoutWorkout 3Bent-Over Row⬇️ SUPERSET: Perform these two moves back to back, then rest 2 minutes and repeat for 3 sets.Reverse LungeSingle-Leg Calf RaiseFarmer’s CarrySave WorkoutDownload PDFSave Workouts
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