Weight Training and Distance Running

Bahanaman

Hi all! Forgive me if this has been covered here before but I'd love to hear people's views on incorporating some weights sessions into training plans for marathons, half marathons etc. I've signed up for the Waterford Marathon this June. All going well it'll be my fifth marathon and I hope to lower the pb as I think I still have scope to improve if I can manage to put in the work! Will weights help. Should I avoid and just stick to putting the miles in?

28064212

Unless you're at the top-end of the field, you will almost always have far more to gain by increasing your running, rather than adding weight-training

ecoli

Have taken my supplement training more serious the last 6 months and I have to say it is making a difference alright. (touch wood) haven't had as much as a niggle (running related anyway) since.

As was mentioned before if you aerobic base decent you will probably get more bang for your buck with the extra miles but if you are going to incorporate it few bits of advice I would give.

1) Its supplementary training not substitute. If you want to bring it in slowly add it to your current workload rather than replace a run etc

2) Heavy weight low reps. Previous misconceptions always geared distance runners towards high reps with low weight for "muscular endurance" because heavy weights caused bulking. The bulking comes from the diet not the weights themselves so low weight won't provide won't provide training stimulus (low weight reference is in relation to effort rather than an arbitrary figure so leave the ego at the door when you walk in)

3) Compound exercises. Aim for exercises which are as close to human movement as possible rather than machines that focus on muscles in isolation. Squats, cleans, lunges, Leg press are a few which use kinetic chains which is important for muscle firing patterns.

4) Technique - Get the technique right before adding weight. For this I would recommend a session or two with a personal trainer or someone who really knows what they are doing. Bad technique is going to cause major issues as the weight increases and could cause serious injury.

It's not gonna be the magic pill that takes 30 min off your marathon time but weight training can have a range of benefits which help any distance runner

HelenAnne

Also, I've found a certain amount of training with weights (weighted squats, side planks with weights etc) has been good for injury prevention. I suppose it depends how strong and stable you were before you started running -- maybe not everyone needs it? But I definitely think core work and strength training have helped me. (Maybe they haven't made me any faster, but I think they've helped with my form).

Inventive User Name

How many weight training sessions do you do a week ecoli?? How do you fit it around your running?

Bahanaman

28064212 wrote: »

Unless you're at the top-end of the field, you will almost always have far more to gain by increasing your running, rather than adding weight-training

Ha ha, far from the top end of the field!

ecoli

Inventive User Name wrote: »

How many weight training sessions do you do a week ecoli?? How do you fit it around your running?

Twice a week is the general pattern either as a second or third session of the day (which means they usually coincide with days off work )

Aim to do them the same days of sessions (try do do sessions in the AM as a result) so that I can keep my hard days hard and easy days easy so as not to compromise recovery in between sessions

tomdempsey200

it is a good supplement

especially as already said re :injury prevention and low rep/high weight

the lunges and squats are good

and you have to be careful starting with weight and form

but definitely worth adding to program