Of of all the perks of strength training, the promise of a boost in my running performance—and injury-proofing my body—was one of the most compelling to me. Strong muscles help improve form and help you run with more stability and control, meaning you’re less likely to get a sidelining injury. But that’s not all: “Resistance training will improve fatigue resistance and efficiency in energy use when you run,” says Rich Velasquez, Equinox Regional Training Manager and avid marathoner (his marathon PR is 2:39:26 from Chicago in 2013, people!). In fact, a study published just this week in the journal Sports Medicine found that adding strength training to an endurance athlete’s program can improve their economy, muscle power, and performance (to me, this sounds like the recipe for a PR in the upcoming Brooklyn Half Marathon I’m signed up to run).
I started this 6 Weeks to Bootcamp Fit blog series off confessing to my running addiction. And as much as I want to turn my focus away from my Garmin and running shoes while I concentrate on building a strength base, I also don’t want to totally give up on running. It’s something that not only yields physical perks (some of which you won’t get in the weight room), but mental ones to boot—sometimes a good long run is all I need to de-stress and recharge. So, I turned to Velazquez for tips on finding the right balance. Here, 7 tips for lifting, running, and staying healthy, all in one week.
Pick a focus
With fitness, it’s so important to have both short- and long-term fitness goals to keep you on track and motivated. While you can work towards more than one goal at a time, prioritizing one over the others can help you determine how to divvy up your (probably limited) workout time. If you’re starting from scratch strength-wise like me, you’ll want to prioritize resistance training for the next 6-8 weeks—and aim to hit the weights three days per week. That should be enough time to develop the base you need, says Velasquez. Then, if you’re training for a race (so your priority switches to a running-related goal), drop your strength days down to two days per week to allow for more mileage. “Cutting down to two times per week will help you maintain strength w ithout risking injury due to overtraining,” says Velazquez.
Make time for yoga
It’s not just about R&R. Yoga can help build and maintain the flexibility and mobility that many runners lack. In fact, running can actually decrease mobility in certain joints, since the repetitive motion doesn’t allow hips and ankles to go through their full ranges of motion. If you can’t make it to an actual yoga class (you’re already strength training and running—I hear you!), try spending just fifteen minutes first thing in the morning or before bed doing a few of these yoga moves specifically for athletes. Or, add a few key postures (my favorites are Pigeon and Eagle) to your cool-down post-workout.
Pencil it in
Trying to pack all of this into one week may feel overwhelming—it definitely did to me at first, too! To simplify things, Velazquez recommends assigning a goal to each day of the week (i.e. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are strength days, Tuesday and Saturday are cardio/running days, Thursday is yoga, and Sunday is total rest). I actually enter my workouts into my calendar and treat them like I would any other appointment or important meeting. It’s a bit neurotic, but it helps… and now I’m never double-booking during my workout time.
REST!
Phew! “Every good program should always have at least one complete day of rest, which will help you to avoid overdoing it,” says Velasquez. And if you need more, take ‘em! “Listen to your body. If you're tired, adapt your workout (think, run for 30 minutes rather than 45, or pick up 8 pounders instead of 10 pounders) or take an extra day off,” he says.
Pull a 2-in-1
If your week is packed, you can run on a strength-training day, but it should be low in mileage, duration, and/or effort. And make sure to hit the weights before the road—doing so ensures you get the most out of your weight training and can maintain form. Having a small snack (try one of these 10 best fitness foods for women) or slurping a sports drink in between the two is also a smart idea, says Velazquez.
Think in minutes, not miles
Pace can vary based on how you're feeling from your strength days, so rather than keeping tabs on how fast (or slow) you’re chugging along, focus on how long you spend out there. “The body is not a pedometer, but it can keep track of duration,” says Velasquez. This is great advice for those training for a longer-distance race—experts say if you fatigue before finishing your mileage goal on a training run, keep walking for as long as that mileage theoretically should take you. So, if your goal race pace is 10 minute miles and you’re running a 6-miler, you want to be out there on your feet for 60 minutes—even if you don’t finish all 6 miles. This trains you to be on your feet for the amount of time necessary—even if you’re not running at the pace you’re aiming for.
If you can fit in three runs a week, aim for one long day, one short but faster day, and one medium recovery day (i.e. long: 60 min; short: 20-30 min; medium: 30-45 min). If you’re running twice a week, nix the recovery, says Velazquez. With that much time between running days, you can focus on quality vs. quantity.
Train right
Since I’m committing so much time and energy to this process, I want to make sure I’m getting the absolute most out of the experience—and doing the exercises that will most help me with my running. Velazquez suggests focusing on the larger, lower body muscles (think: glutes and hamstrings) which will encourage movements from the hip joint when running, minimizing stress on the knees, while also helping me to maintain proper running gait—and core, which helps you maintain proper running posture. For the former, try squats, dead lifts, and step-ups—and for your core, it’s hard to beat the standard plank (all ETC staple moves).
To follow along on my 6 Weeks to Bootcamp Fit training plan, check out the 6 Weeks to Bootcamp Fit homepage. See the Week 1 Circuit Workout here—and keep your eyes peeled for the Week 2 Circuit, coming up soon!
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