Strength Training and Cross Training for Runners

Read this only if you want to get faster, fitter and stronger in order to make it to the finish line of your ultra race!

What if I told you that replacing a run or two per week to strength train and cross train will actually make you a faster, fitter, and stronger runner?   

Not only will it make you faster and stronger, but it will help you prevent burnout and injury.  

As a runner of almost 30 years, and a strength coach for 18 years, I often see runners and endurance athletes like ourselves skimping on the importance of strength training in favor or more mileage, and in most cases….junk mileage.

Best selling author, Ben Greenfield, refers to this as “black-hole training” in his epic endurance book Beyond Training.

Avoiding the black hole to run stronger, faster, longer...

How to avoid “black-hole training” you ask? Well, without going down the rabbit hole and getting too sciency, a runner needs to properly cross train including strength workouts.  

“As to methods, there may be a million and then some, but principles a few.  The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods” - Ralph Waldo Emerson.  

Keeping things really simple and easy to implement for per our boy Ralph above, we need to focus on a some simple principles:

• Keep it simple to stay consistent
• Strength train 2 times per week. During the off season 3-4 times per week..
• Use High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) in our strength training, as well as run training
• Increase either volume or intensity to build strength and endurance
• Focus on multi joint exercises

In terms of training as an endurance athlete...a HIIT workout is most effective for building your VO2 max as well as your endurance engine.  In studies involving subjects that performed 8 weeks of either a HIIT program or an aerobic-endurance exercise program, the increase in VO2 max was significantly higher in the HIIT group (15 percent) than in the aerobic-endurance group (9 percent).

So a HIIT interval style strength workout not only covers your needs for strength training, but is also the best form of cross training you can do.

Let’s Have Some Fun!

Below outlines some of my favorite strength training moves as a runner and coach, with a sample HIIT format that you can do at the gym or at home.  Per above, keep it simple to stay consistent. 

These workouts are intended to compliment your run training & challenge you, but not leave you feeling absolutely wasted or depleted.

I’ve uploaded videos of the moves below and some additional moves here: https://bit.ly/3shRrBY . You can pick 5-8 of any moves and design your own workout.  Also included are body weight only moves if you don’t have equipment.

Sample routine with weights (dumbbells or kettlebells) - 2 times per week

Timing:  3-5 min warmup. 40 seconds of work, 20 seconds of rest for each move.  3-5 rounds.  1 minute rest between rounds.  To make it more challenging, eliminate rest between moves. 3-5 min cool down.

• Squat Thrusters
• Rows
• Push-ups
• Single leg deadlifts
• V-ups

Sample routine without weights - 2 times per week

Timing:  3-5 min warmup. 40 seconds of work, 20 seconds of rest for each move.  3-5 rounds.  1 minute rest between rounds.  To make it more challenging, eliminate rest between moves. 3-5 min cool down.

• Squat jumps
• Single leg hops
• Push-ups
• Superman's or Pull-ups
• Around the worlds

Those are two great, yet simple, routines that will get you stronger, faster, and fitter when combined with your running training.  Remembering one of our core principles above...as you get better you can either increase either volume or intensity to build strength and endurance.

You can add more weight, sets, or increase reps.  You can play with the timing schemes of 30 seconds on / 10 seconds rest, 40 seconds on / 20 seconds rest, and 60 seconds on / 15 seconds rest.

In the words of Ross Edgley, best selling author of The World’s Fittest Book - “There are many ways to get fitter, stronger, and leaner.  You shouldn’t discriminate against any or strictly favor one.  As soon as you do, you close your mind and limit your potential.” 

As runners we should keep this in mind to take a well rounded holistic approach to our fitness, in addition to just racking up the miles.

And as athletes, I encourage everyone to learn as much as you can about some of the training principles outlined here, as this blog post just scratches the surface. Below is a list of some of my favorite resources if you want to learn more.

Happy Training Team! Stay Strong! -Vin Framularo

Sources & Fun Resources:

• “Beyond Training” by Ben Greenfield: https://amzn.to/3siyleL
• “The World’s Fittest Book” by Ross Edgley: https://amzn.to/3acrqO1
• “Running Rewired” by Jay Dicharry: https://amzn.to/3mMZyVP
• “Run Less Run Faster” by Pierce, Murr & Moss: https://amzn.to/3uULY5L
• “Build Your Running Body” by Pete Magill: https://amzn.to/32e9e29
• “8 Week Strength Program for Runners” by Lisa Tamati & Neil Wagstaff: https://strength.lisatamati.com

A bit about Vin

Vin Framularo is a marketing consultant by day,  and an ultrarunner and coach by night.  Vin's been a competitive runner of almost 30 years and a strength coach for 18 years.  When not leading fun marketing initiatives or running, Vin is an avid skier, snowboarder, and coach at EPIC Interval Training in Connecticut.  This is Vin's 3rd year on Team Run 2 Empower.  His enthusiasm & energy he brings to the team is contagious. 

Challenging Times - Some Advice

I am sure that many of you are facing similar challenging times with the global pandemic.  There is lots of fear over the uncertain future, there is tons of worry for ourselves and our loved ones, and there are (for many) financial and logistical challenges as we weather this situation.  I don't know about you, but I have been feeling a bit worn down as I process everything, and have also had some issues quieting my mind enough to sleep.  It's tough!

There's nothing I can offer you to ease this situation, but I'll at least provide the following advice:

1. Don't take in too much news!  In the beginning of all this, I was reading many articles and listening to NPR on my way to and from work, and just getting an overload of COVID-19 information. On a drive to Virginia (to do a 50-mile race!) a few weeks ago, my husband and I listened to the news for the first 3 hours of the trip and got a continual stream of COVID-19 news - we finally turned the radio off and streamed an episode of CarTalk just to laugh!

150 Days to Go!

Today marks 150 days to go until this year's Vermont 100.  That's 150 days left to train, 150 days to think about cleaning up the diet, and 150 opportunities to prepare yourself for success come July 18th.

At this time of year, sometimes the best things you can do is focus on the little things that will help us achieve big things in July.  For me, the winter is always a time to focus on building good strength and improving a few eating habits.  These are both achievable without freezing outside, which is just a bonus!  But, these (at least the strength portion) is something that often gets minimized during the summer months when I spend more time on the trails instead.

Training Tips by Coach Faith

Faith and crew at the VT100k 2018
PC: Scott Livingston

By: Faith Raymond

Well!!  It’s been a up to a month since we registered for the Vermont 100 Endurance Race as a part of Team Run 2 Empower and we’ve all been busy fundraising, enjoying the holidays, and looking forward to 2020.  With six months to go until race day (yikes, is it really that close?) some of you might be wondering how to drag yourselves off the comfy off-season sofa and get cracking.

Easing back into training can be a challenge for some of us (you know, not me, but some of you!).  We compare ourselves to our last year’s selves, to our friends and training partners, and to the runners that we are hoping to be when the gun goes off at 4am/9am on that July morning.  We also might be feeling a little overwhelmed with the enormity of the job we’ve bitten off for ourselves, especially if this is our first race of this distance.  Let’s talk about a few things we can do to make the transition easier, and some details that we can focus on as we ramp up our training.

Training with 8-months

Alright, it's mid-November, you've joined the 2020 Team Run 2 Empower and committed to running next year's Vermont 100!  Awesome.  Holy crap...now you have to run 100k or 100 miles in 8 months!  Best we not think about that too much...

The reality is - there are a few things you can be doing now to start thinking ahead, but most important is to not do too much.  Your first instinct might be to immediately start training, but it's much more important to recover from your 2019 adventures and to lay the foundation for next year's success.

100 Days till VT100

It's getting warmer, the trails are thawing out....and we're 100 days away from this year's Vermont 100.  So, what can you be doing to gear up for this summer's adventure?

Now is the time to start running on rolling terrain (if you aren't already).  While running on hills isn't accessible to everyone - do what you can, even if it means taking a trip every other weekend to hit some super hilly trails.  You'll want to get in the habit of power hiking the uphills and relaxing (but running strong) on the downhills.  These will both be good skills come race day.

Surviving the Winter

I find the last month of winter is sometimes the hardest - as warmer days are long forgotten and the long cold (dark) miles start to wear on me.  On those -10 degree mornings, I use every tool available to get in the training while staying safe and relatively warm.  Below are a few of my tried and true tips to survive the deep freeze and build fitness throughout the winter.

(Bundled up, embracing the snowy conditions)

Strength Training in the Winter

Winter is the time to build strength (plus, it's something you can do inside!).  Try to incorporate strength training a few times a week and your legs will thank you as you're pounding down yet another short steep hill at this summer's VT100. 

Here's a quick and effective at-home strength routine:
- 3 rounds of - 20 x lunge squats, 20 x air squats, 20 x single leg squats, 1 minute bike crunch
- 3 minutes continuous planking (switching from front to sides)

Easy peasy!  Done in 20 minutes...and your quads will thank you this summer!

Got another 10 minutes?  Here's another few great exercises:
- 3 x 10 push-ups
- 2 x 15 step-ups (step from the ground to the 2nd step)
Alternate between the two exercises.

Getting Through the Holidays

The holidays are hard - there's so much temptation to eat too much, drink more than your share, and maybe skimp on the mileage.  It doesn't help that daylight is dwindling, and there just seem to be more functions, parties, and work to do than time actually allows.  Here's a few tips to keep you on the straight and narrow during the holidays so you can hit the ground running come January 1st!

Winter Fitness Challenge

Winter is often the most challenging time to train.  Not only is it cold, the trails are often snowy and slow while the roads can have dangerous ice.  Goal races are months away.  Add to that the limited daylight…and it’s sometimes hard to motivate.  However, my college xc ski coach used to say ‘good skiers are made in the summer’.  Similarly, some of the most important training you can do towards an awesome Vermont 100 is during the winter.