Runner’s Strength Workout

You made it to Friday! Hopefully you had a good week and were able to soak up some family time amidst the hecticness of your regular schedule. Zoey is in a stage of wanting to do everything herself and we have spent a lot of time this week having her try to put on her own diapers and socks. Thankfully she is now skilled at putting on her own shirt, pants, and shoes. If she was not, then I do not think we would ever get out the door!

With the spring and early summer weather, there also comes lots of races. If you check out Running in the USA for your area, I am sure you will see multiple races listed for each weekend. I highly recommend signing up for one of these races even just for fun. The race community and race day itself is so much fun and can really add some motivation to your weekly workouts.

If you do sign up for a race and plan to train for it in anyway, then you need to be doing some strength training in addition to the typical interval and long runs. Strength training for runners is often overlooked, but spending at least two days a week doing load bearing exercises can be vital to prevent injury, increase speed, and improve your core stability, which is vital for keeping for form throughout an entire race.

This Runner’s Strength Workout is a good one for your strength days while you are in the midst of race training. Simple, compound moves that focus on your full body and high reps so your muscles are ready for the repetitive motions of running and you are not bulking up.

Before starting the workout, be sure to warm up with some light cardio (5-10 minutes), and dynamic stretching. Do the same as a cool down when you finish your workout. Get a copy of the warm up and cool down routine I recommend here.

You can also check out my must have workout resources here. These are the things I use weekly, if not daily, to make my workouts as easy and comfortable as possible.

Runner’s Strength Workout

Head here to watch the video of each exercise. 

Complete 12 reps of each move. 3-4 rounds total.

• Arnolds
• Bulgarian Split Squats (each side)
• Tricep Dips
• Side Plank Toe Taps

If any of the moves are too much for you right now, take a look at the modifications below. Always modify your workouts and specific moves as needed. Additionally, if you want to challenge yourself further by advancing the moves, there are descriptors below on how to do that as well.

Arnolds

• Modified: Seated, back straight.
• Advanced: Stand on one foot.

Bulgarian Split Squats

• Modified: Regular front lunge, with or without weights. Rest hand on wall or chair.
• Advanced: Raise front foot to toe (calf raise) as you lunge.

Tricep Dips

• Modified: Sit on bottom with feet flat on floor. Place hands, with fingers pointed towards toes, and dip backwards.
• Advanced: Straighten legs to rest on heels. Stack one foot on top of each other.

Side Plank Toe Taps

• Modified: Rest bottom leg knee on ground.
• Advanced: Hold a very light weight in your kick touch hand and touch it to your toe.

Let me know if you try it out and how you liked it!

More runner specific workouts to try:

• Glute Burner Workout – Glutes are one of the most ignored parts of a runner’s body, but this workout will give you more focused time on them.
• Wow ‘Em Wedding Arms
• Tabata Abs

What are your plans for the weekend? Do you have any races coming up?

Get a your 10k and Half Marathon Training Plan here which combines interval runs, long runs, and focused runner strength workouts so you can cross that finish line feeling strong, confident, and ready for more.