Should I strength train as a runner?
A high rotation question at the Everyday Athlete Clinic is, “Should I be strength training as a runner?”
There’s an overwhelming body of information out there telling us what we should and shouldn't do to meet our running goals, but if we roll back a decade or so, strength or resistance training barely entered the conversation.
Historically, runners avoided the weight room to protect their whippet-like physiques, fearing that added muscle mass would compromise performance. This belief has largely been overturned. Firstly, endurance sport is increasingly adopting a health-first approach: maintaining a healthy body weight and adequately fuelling the substantial energy demands of training are now recognised as foundational, not optional. Secondly, meaningful hypertrophy is difficult to achieve alongside high-volume endurance training due to its inherently catabolic nature. However, as discussed below, any muscle gained should be considered a positive adaptation.
Are you Human?
The first question you should ask yourself is, “Should I do strength training as a human?”
The resounding answer to this is YES!
As a human, building strength training into your life will be a game changer for now and the future. Research supports this; from building strong healthy bones, to regulating blood sugar levels and lowering risk of all-cause mortality. And the best part, it does not have to be complicated, two 20-30 minute full body workouts a week are a fantastic training stimulus. If your main focus is building strength and muscle mass, then this will need to be scaled up as your body adapts. But for a runner a couple of short strength sessions per week is gold.
Running performance
The bounty reaped from strength training for the everyday runner includes;
Improved running economy - how efficient you are at running at a given pace.
Improved fatigue resistance - how long you can keep going before your legs feel tired.
No detrimental effects to VO2max - you maintain cardiovascular fitness despite adding in non running related training.
Improved long term health.
Reduced injury risk
It’s well touted in literature that strength training reduces sports related injuries. However, when we look more specifically at running, the outcome is less clear. Factors such as study design and compliance can make this type of research challenging to draw conclusions from. However, one study by Desai et al 2023, looked at the effectiveness of a twice weekly 30 minute strength and foam rolling program on reducing running injuries. The outcome was that those most compliant with the program, completing >90% of the training sessions, had an 85% reduction in running related injuries, compared to the non strength training group. This point is further supported by a large systematic review by Wu et al 2024, that concluded supervised exercises programs - thus improved compliance - reduced running related injuries compared to unsupervised.
So here is an easy way to answer our question; Should I strength train as a runner?
Are you human? If YES, then do a little strength training in your week.
Do you want to optimise your health? If YES, then do a little strength training in your week.
Do you want to reduce injury risk? The jury is out on this - but being consistent and joining a group may be beneficial.
Do you want to become a fast runner and improve your running economy? If YES, then add some heavy strength and plyometric training to your week.
Look out for the next article which will further discuss exercise selection, session planning, and get into the discussion around volume, sets, reps, intensity and fatigue.
NB; You DO NOT have to do any strength training to enjoy running and perform at a top level. If you find it boring or don’t have the time, that's ok. Plenty of elites have never been in a weight room.
References;
Desai, P., Jungmalm, J., Börjesson, M., Karlsson, J., & Grau, S. (2023). Effectiveness of an 18-week general strength and foam-rolling intervention on running-related injuries in recreational runners. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 33(5), 766–775.
Wu, H., Brooke-Wavell, K., Fong, D. T. P., et al. (2024). Do exercise-based prevention programs reduce injury in endurance runners? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 54(5), 1249–1267.
Lauersen, J. B., Andersen, T. E., & Andersen, L. B. (2018). Strength training as superior, dose-dependent and safe prevention of acute and overuse sports injuries: A systematic review, qualitative analysis and meta-analysis. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 52(24), 1557–1563.
Gonçalves, C. E., et al. (2024). Effect of strength training programs in middle- and long-distance runners’ economy at different running speeds: A systematic review with meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 54(4), 895–932.
