Running and Strength Training – Are They a Good Fit? Arguments For and Against

By Rick Morris

If you want to engage in a rather uncomfortable conversation during your next party or social gathering you might want to consider bringing up the subject of politics. That’s almost sure to get a lively and sometimes violent debate going. If you are a glutton for punishment and want to reach the same heights of zingy debate with a group of runners, just voice your opinion on strength training and running. You will soon be in a no-holds-barred discussion on the pros and cons of strength training for runners.

If you have used my coaching services or are familiar with my writings you probably already know my opinion of strength training for runners. I think it’s a critical part of any training program – but others obviously disagree. So is running and strength training a good fit? I’m convinced it is, but my aim in this article is to present arguments on both sides of the issue and let you decide. So here are the most common debates concerning strength training and the arguments voiced by both proponents and opponents of strength training for runners. Take a look and decide for yourself.

Does Strength Training Improve Your Endurance?

Opponents of strength training say no. They say that only long slow distance running will improve your muscular endurance. Strength training only improves the strength and power of your muscles, not their endurance.

Surprisingly enough, there is agreement on this point. Strength training proponents agree that strength training and plyometrics do little to directly increase your endurance. They think that endurance may be increased indirectly through running economy, but agree that pure cardiovascular endurance is not significantly affected. However, proponents also point out that endurance is not the goal of strength training.

Advantage on this one goes to the opponents. Even current research agrees that cardiovascular endurance and strength training don’t go hand in hand.

Does Strength Training Improve Your VO2 max?

Just as with endurance, the opponents say that strength training will not increase your VO2 max or your body’s ability to deliver and use oxygen to produce energy aerobically. Only running – both long slow distance and shorter intense training – will improve your VO2 max. A French study from 2002 agreed that concurrent strength and endurance training had no effect on VO2 max.

Proponents agree on this one also! What’s going on here; is there any debate? You bet there is – read on. But there isn’t a debate on this point. Both the proponents and scientific research agree that strength training and plyometrics don’t do a whole lot to improve your VO2 max. But, again, the proponents remind us that is not the purpose of strength training.

Advantage again to the opponents. Strength training does not make any significant improvements in VO2 max.

Does Strength Training Improve Your Running Economy?

Running economy is a measure of how efficiently you run. There is no debate among the two groups about the value of running more economically. What is in debate is whether or not strength training will improve your running economy more than pure running. Opponents say that your time is much better spent with running more miles rather than strength training. If you want to become more efficient as a runner you should spend more time running. Not only does additional running make you more efficient but it also makes further improvements in your VO2 max, lactate turn point and endurance.

Now the disagreements start. Proponents of strength training for runners say that strength training and plyometrics will make big improvements in your running economy. The say that the explosive strength and power gained through strength training will decrease your ground contact time, increase your stride length, make your muscle more elastic – so they return more energy, improve your neuromuscular conditioning and make you a more economical runner. Nearly all current research agrees. There have been numerous studies in recent years that have proven the running economy increasing benefits of strength training and plyometrics. A 2008 study conducted in Norway solicited the services of 17 well trained distance runners. Eight of the runners performed a combination of strength training and running while the other 9 performed only endurance training. The group that included strength training increased their running economy by 5% and even more significantly, they improved their time to exhaustion at maximum aerobic speed by a whopping 21.3% without any increase in VO2 max.  The endurance only group showed no improvement in either category.

Another recent study, this one from Australia, investigated the effects of plyometric training on running economy. This one, which used 15 highly trained distance runners, came up with similar results. They found that 9 weeks of plyometric training made significant improvements in running economy.

Advantage to the proponents. It appears crystal clear that strength training does improve your running economy.

Does Strength Training Make You More Injury Resistant?

Opponents believe that while injuries can’t be eliminated, they can be avoided, without the use of strength training, by making gradual increases in both your training volume and intensity of training. They also believe that most running injuries are caused by high intensity running, which can be avoided by doing more long slow distance training and less high intensity training.

Proponents think this is a no-brainer. How can strength training not help prevent injuries? Strength training improves the strength of your bones, tendons, muscles and connective tissues – so it must help prevent running injuries. Again, experts and research tends to agree with the proponents. A 2006 study concerning stress fractures in female Marine Corps recruits concluded that the incidence of stress fractures would be reduced by frequent lower body strength training. Another study from Stanford University found that long distance runners with illiotibial band syndrome have weak hip abduction strength in their affected leg, which could be solved with lower body strength training.

Advantage again to the proponents. Coach, experts and researchers all agree that strength training will help you avoid many running injuries.

Will Strength Training Fight Fatigue?

Strength training opponents point out that running fatigue is due to metabolic conditions such as acidosis, potassium build up and central nervous system fatigue. Only improving your lactate turn point, VO2 max and endurance will fight the effects of metabolic fatigue.

Proponents of strength training concede that there are metabolic causes of fatigue that are best fought off with endurance, lactate turn point and vVO2 max training. But they also say that there are other causes of running fatigue including neuromuscular fatigue, reduced running economy and a decrease in stride length. It has already been shown that strength training will improve your running economy. Strength training will also improve your neuromuscular conditioning by activating more muscle units. A recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Madrid, looked at the stride length issue. In the Madrid study, 18 highly trained distance runners were assigned to one of 3 groups. Group A performed 8 weeks of periodized strength training; group B did 8 weeks of non-periodized strength training and group C was a control group that did no strength training. After a fatiguing running bout it was found that group A showed no decrease in stride length, group B showed a 1.22 centimeter decrease in stride length and the control group B had a 3.05 centimeter decrease in stride length. The researchers concluded that running specific strength training will minimize stride length loss during exhaustive distance running, with periodized running specific strength training being the most efficient method.

Advantage to the proponents. The research seems to back up the proponents claim that running specific strength training will help maintain your stride length and fight the effect of fatigue during races.

Does Strength Training Improve Your Race Performance?

Opponents to strength training claim that the most important variables in running performance are endurance, lactate threshold and vVO2 max. They say that only running will improve those variables and any other type of training is a waste of time. You would be better served by running more than by using your valuable time with strength training.

Proponents again concede the point that endurance, lactate turn point and vVO2 max are best improved by running. But they also say that the improvements made to your running economy, injury resistance, speed and power make strength training a critical part of your training. What does the research say? It agrees with the proponents and it has for quite some time. A study conducted in Finland in 1999 investigated the effects of concurrent explosive strength training and endurance training on performance levels. The 9 week study concluded that explosive strength training improves your 5K running time by improving your muscle power and running economy.

What about the time spent with strength training? Does it interfere with or decrease the results of your running workouts? In a practical sense, proponents say no. A running strength training workout can be completed in minutes per day. Another more recent Finish study from 2007 backs up this claim. This study investigated the effects of concurrent strength and endurance training on 25 participants.  The 25 participants were split into two groups. Both groups maintained the same total training volume, but one group replaced 19% of their endurance training with explosive strength training. The study found that the explosive strength group improved their neuromuscular conditioning and running economy without any decrease in maximal aerobic capacity despite the nearly 20% reduction in endurance training.

Advantage here to the proponents. Scientific data supports the proponents’ view that strength training does improve your race performance.

The Bottom Line – Are Running and Strength Training a Good Fit?

I think the there is a clear decision here. The proponents win – strength training and running are a good fit. I admit to being biased. I have always been a supporter of strength training for runners. But I have tried to present the arguments and evidence in a fair manner. Scientific research supports the proponents winning arguments. Research also supports the first two arguments concerning endurance and VO2 max, which were won by the opponents. But the proponents of strength training have never argued those points. They have never claimed that strength training improves cardiovascular endurance or maximum aerobic capacity. That isn’t the point of strength training. The goal of strength training for runners is to improve your running economy, injury resistance, running strength and power. In my mind there is no question that it does a good job of accomplishing those goals.

References:

Explosive strength training improves 5-km running time by improving running economy and muscle power, J Appl.Physiiol, 1999 May;86(5):1527-33

Short term plyometric training improves running economy in highly trained middle and long distance runners, J Strength Cond Res. 2006 Nov;20(4):947-54

Hip abductor weakness in distance runners with illiotibial band syndrome, Clin J Sport Med, 2000 Jul:10(3):169-75

Epidemiology of stress fractures and lower-extremity overuse injury in female recruits., Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Sep:38(9):1571-7.

Running specific periodized strength training attentuates loss of stride length during intense endurance running, J Strength Cond Res, 2008 Jul:22(4):1176:83.

Maximal strength training improves running economy in distance runners, Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2008 Jun;40(6):1087-92

Concurrent endurance and explosive type strength training improves neuromuscular and anaerobic characteristics in young distance runners., Int J Sports Med, 2007 Jul;28(7):602-11 Epub 2007 Mar 20.

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