quote:<HR>Originally posted by pwinkle:
This is the 2nd summer that i have been training for a fall marathon and I just cant seem to fit in all of the marathon training and continue with my strength training (ST) routine. In the winter i ST 2/wk. I know that the ST helps me with my running so i get very concerned when i get down to 1/wk or even skip a week or 2 of ST during marathon training.

when do you guys fit in the lifting ?? after a run? before a run? on a day off from running? skip it while marathon training? do you still train legs? when i do, my legs are like lead the next day for my run - recovery issue?


advice - suggestions - thoughts - thanks<HR>

I love Mary, but I love Jane too... What should I do? Any suggestion?

What do YOU want to do? What's YOUR ultimate goal?

quote:<HR>Originally posted by pwinkle:
. I know that the ST helps me with my running

<HR>

This is not true...running helps with running. Now don't get me wrong, I'm in the weightroom 3 times a week religiously...but I am not under the false impression that it is making me a better runner. I'm sure some will argue that it helps with injury prevention and makes you run stronger...but there is not much evidence to support that strength training helps you run faster...(with the exception of good old fashion core-work)...for what it's worth, I do NO leg work in the weight room, but I'll do plyometric stuff when I'm in my "off season"...otherwise I try and lift as a seperate workout-if I have to put them together I lift THEN I run...that's what I've read is best...otherwise I spend about 30 mins x 3 times a week working on core work and upper body. So my arguement is not to sweat it...it you can't get in the weightroom, it should not hurt your marathon performance...

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"Fortitudine vincimus"

their is huge debate weather strength training helps running or not. After a self experiement I have found that strength training for me is a must. Some people were born with natural strength others not so lucky. Me being 120 lb male I lack some serious strength. I think it's an indivisul thing really.

What I do is lift weights for strength and power during a base buildup when the miles are at a decent pace. At that time I will place a emphasis on weights lifting 6-10 reps till faliur. As the marathon training gets more intense I will decrease down to 15 repish with sub maxiumal weights. Finally during the last few peak weeks of training I will do general maintenance stuff with lighter weights more reps(like 20ish).

I find it most important to work on the legs though I do work upper body as well. Without strength training I form muscle imbalances so I condition all muscles far beyond the strength it takes to run even a steep hill. I tried just running hills for strength training before. It seems like a good plan..kinda like having your cake and eating it too. For me though it just contributed to the muscle imbalances plus you really limited to how much strength you can gain(unless you overload adding weighted vest).

So in short you need to periodize your weight training. During off season place a good deal of attention to building strength, thats the time to break down as the easy runs aren't too taxing on the same muscle fibers that you use in running. by the time intense training comes about all your fast twitch muscles are conditioned so just do maintenance stuff in the weight room. If you go from strength type lifting to maintenance lifting, the maintenance stuff is like a walk in the park. For me it's 2x 30 min sessions in the gym...thats just enough to maintain the strength I have built yet I can squeeze it in anywhere as it doesn't require recovery. During maintenance it shouldn't be hard because you are no longer training by a progression overload scheme like before,you just stay at the same level. So yes you can have your cake and eat it too.

Good Luck

My anecdotal evidence.

I also never lift wieghts, never ever. That stuff is heavy and hard to pick up for crying out loud. Seriously though, maybe I'm built just muscular enough or maybe cycling and running keeps my legs strong enough. Hills and hard efforts are all the extra work my legs get.

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I usually lift during lunch M-W-F. I run doubles most days. I never lift legs. There's really no need.

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quote:<HR>Originally posted by runninirish:
///for what it's worth, I do NO leg work in the weight room, but I'll do plyometric stuff when I'm in my "off season"...

<HR>

Why offseason? Most of the runners on the XC at U of AL downhere do the plyo work in-season. These guys are running 8-10k, though, so the explosive drills might be more apt to them than a marathoner (though not by much).

That said, I periodize strength work. Base strength and core work pre-season; core, plyometrics, and med ball work in season...

quote:<HR>Originally posted by tuscaloosarunner:
Why offseason? Most of the runners on the XC at U of AL downhere do the plyo work in-season. These guys are running 8-10k, though, so the explosive drills might be more apt to them than a marathoner (though not by much).

That said, I periodize strength work. Base strength and core work pre-season; core, plyometrics, and med ball work in season...<HR>

I just found that when training for a marathon I never had a "good" day to fit in plyo work...for me, 70 mpw was all I could handle...when training for short stuff (5-10k) I have used plyo through my training...I also have my xc and track teams do plyo work in-season...

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"Fortitudine vincimus"