Seven Recommend Strength Training for Runners

Running a marathon requires strength, endurance, stamina, and performance. Don’t expect to win to win or even finish a race, if your body is not fit to function at its best. Strength training can help your body function at its best.

Aside from running, there are other ways, to prepare for a marathon. Strength training designed to tone the different parts of the body, but you need to be serious about it before you can see some results.

Here are seven recommended strength training for runners:

1. Kettlebell Long Cycles

Kettlebell long cycles help you to develop strong hips, glutes, core muscles, shoulders, and overall cardiovascular conditioning. All you need is a single bell that has a moderate resistance. The exercise must be done in an open space so that your body can move freely without hitting anything.

2. Cycling

Cycling toughens quadriceps, shins, calf muscles, and hamstrings. It is a strength training workout, which lessens the athlete’s susceptibility to injury. This is because cycling strengthens the connective tissue of the hip, knee, and ankle regions that are often overused when running.

3. Swimming

If you’re into sport, then you would encounter swimming more since most sports trainer would recommend it as part of your training. Swimming exercises bring positive impact to the whole body. As time passes, you will develop muscular strength and endurance and improves flexibility of the body. Moreover, swimming eases fatigued muscles and improves an athlete’s breathing and oxygen-holding capacity.

4. Deep Water Running

Running in water gives athlete the resistance training they need without the risk of injury when running on solid ground. This exercise especially designed for patients who are recovering from physical injuries.

5. Use Of Elliptical Trainer

Elliptical trainers can also be used as strength training for runners because they allow movements that make the major muscles of the body work simultaneously just like in the real marathon. With the help of an elliptical trainer, you can experience several movements such as skiing, hiking and mountain climbing.

6. Use Of Rowing Machines

Exercising on this equipment fortifies quadriceps, buttocks, hips, and upper body. You’ll need a strong body when the lower body gets tired towards the end of the race. You won’t have a problem carrying yourself when your lower body strength gets drained at the end of the finish line.

7. Running On A Hill

Running on flat terrain works the same sets of muscles. This exercise can make you competent enough to keep up with other runners as you can do both the easy running and the much faster running. Other muscles that running on hills develop are quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves. Those muscles needed for you to run longer distances at shorter speeds and win the race of your dreams.