Doesn’t strength training make runners and cyclists bulky and slow? Why should you do squats and deadlifts if your goal is to qualify for the Boston Marathon or cycle a century race? Won’t weightlifting take away from my endurance training?

Guess what? Getting strong and “bulky” are two different things. Here’s why all endurance athletes need to spend at least one day/week in the gym. If you’re curious about what to do in the gym, I’ll be writing about that in a few short weeks. Or send us a note!

1. Improve relative strength

One of the biggest misconceptions about strength training is the difference between sports performance and the bodybuilding style of training that has risen to prevalence since Arnold was posing for Mr. Olympia. For 90% of our athletes, we focus on relative strength by improving motor unit recruitment. The definition of relative strength is the amount of force a person can generate at their body weight. In the simplest terms, there are two ways to get strong – making muscles bigger (and heavier) or making muscles work more efficiently. Most strength training for endurance athletes centers on 20 or more repetitions per set. We go the exact opposite and keep athletes under 5 repetitions per set, but make the exercise HEAVY for the athlete.

If you look at the chart above, it’s easier to see that low reps and high weight are a great supplement for endurance athletes. We train low reps for endurance athletes because it is the ONLY way to build relative strength, create a neural adaptation, improve power production and build bone density. Oh yeah, bone density… speaking of that, let’s look at injury prevention.

If you want to take the deep dive on learning why high weight and low rep will keep you from being big and bulky, I HIGHLY recommend putting Practical Programming on your nightstand and reading a few pages every night.

2. Injury prevention

Not many people are “built” for running. It’s hard on the body. But, if it’s your jam, who am I to tell you not to do it? What I can do is tell you that regardless of your body type, incorporating barbell squats once a week will do a lot to keep you injury free.

Let’s say that the root of most training injuries come from one of two things: bone microfractures (think shin splints), or soft tissue damage to tendons and ligaments. The good news is that bones, tendons, and ligaments can all grow stronger, and strength training is the best way to do it. High weight, low rep has been proven multiple times to stimulate bone density growth for years, even after muscular adaptations plateau. That’s just one of the reasons that women really need to be in the weight room.

In a 2015 study in the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy, Dr. Jason Brumitt linked tendon strengthening to heavy weight training. Tendons respond to chronic resistance training by increasing total number of collagen fibrils, increasing the diameter of collagen fibrils, and increasing in fibril packing density (2015, Brumitt). It is important to note that even though the tendons became stronger and more resilient, they also showed a tendency to stiffen. However, it is easy to prevent this lack of mobility in strength athletes with a good stretching routine or a weekly yoga class.

You can also cause injury to bones, tendons, ligaments, and muscles by having poor mechanics… which brings us to the third point!

While the article 5 Things Cyclists Don’t Understand About Strength Training by Chris Carmichael is geared towards cyclists, it is well researched and applies to all endurance athletes. For a deeper dive on bone mineral density and strength training, give it a read.

3. Body mechanics

From my experience working with a variety of endurance athletes, they typically have muscular imbalances that they don’t know about. The glute muscles are primarily involved in extending the hip (think of when you’re pushing off from your foot, and the hip straightens most of the way). So if you’re not intentionally strengthening your glute muscles, then other muscles are having to compensate and work harder to accomplish this movement. Want a stronger stride? Work your butt!

How can you tell that your glutes are not engaged or are underdeveloped? Walk across a room looking at a mirror – do your knees knock in towards each other? Do a squat looking in the same mirror – with your feet flat on the ground, do your knees cave in towards each other? Do your arches collapse inward when walking or squatting? If you even answered maybe to any of those, it’s time to work on your butt.

This FloTrack article by Garrett Reim speaks at length about the benefits of strength training for elite endurance athletes.

4. Varied off-season for runners and cyclists

If I haven’t convinced you to spend some time in the gym, maybe -10 degree weather and icy running paths can. Incorporating a good strength training program can give you a well-rewarded alternative to just logging hours on the treadmill or stationary bike. A once/week program in the summer and a twice/week program in the winter can give you many of these benefits. If there was any question that the world’s best athletes spend a large chunk of time in the weight room, just follow Lindsey Vonn on Instagram or look at all the commercials during the Winter Olympics that featured athletes – of all sorts – training with barbells in their hands. 

Want to get hands-on? We’re hosting a Strength Training for Endurance Athletes clinic on April 15th, 2018 at The Body Architect in Portland, Maine. There are limited tickets available, so sign up soon!