Forums >Cross Training>How counter productive are Running and Weight lifting?
H RIMZ
After Graduating High school Ive become more of a seasonal runner, taking off much of the summer and winter. To fill that time I often lift weights. I'll probably get up to 165, and then once fall and spring come around, I'll start back up running and drop back down to 155. I know running is counter productive to muscle gain, but is weight training counter productive to the performance and times of a good runner? Personally, I know I'm not going to be some big jock. I have a runners body for sure, but I like to see the progression of my work in the gym. Is it worth my time to weight train while I'm training for a goal race?
mile- 4:37
2 mile 10:05 (Training run)
5 km-16:38 -5:22 11/15/2009
Depends on the weight lifting - Many elite runners have a weight lifting rountine - Many even do upper body with very high reps. Others think weight lifting is a waste of time.
It also matters the distance you are looking to run - Almost all the 100 meter sprinters look more like a body builder than a marathoner.
I was a weight lifter - I have puposefully taken off 20# of upper body muscle in the last 6 years as it does not help marathons and beyond. I have restarted doing maintenance light leg weights for injury prevention and ligt upper body for life function. Life function = being able to do the other physical things I want to do.
Long dead ... But my stench lingers !
Weight lifting like running success is built on consistency - I do not understand the ideology of doing either weight lifting or running for part of the year.
Hoodoo Guru
I try to do running and weight lifting throughout the year. When I do more running (marathon training) in the fall, I find it harder to work out due to less time and less energy. After my fall marathon, running drops off and weight training becomes more consistent again.
The tangents are moot.
A Saucy Wench
I do both as well, I suppose it depends on what your ultimate goals are.
I have become Death, the destroyer of electronic gadgets
"When I got too tired to run anymore I just pretended I wasnt tired and kept running anyway" - dd, age 7
Feeling the growl again
The only reason I don't lift is time. In college and grad school I lifted a lot. I figured my legs got plenty of work running, so I only did upper body and core.
Unless you are a) trying to train to your limits, and b) lifting so much that it inhibits your recovery from running, I don't see an issue. I guess if you put on extra weight from lifting that would be counter-productive....you can get pretty strong without putting on significant weight.
"If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does. There's your pep talk for today. Go Run." -- Slo_Hand
I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills
Upper body lifting and running don't conflict too much. I have personally found, however, that lower body lifting (which, for me, includes squats and deadlifts) is greatly impacted by running. In my first 3 or so years of running I put very little effort into maintaining the lower body strength I'd developed when lifting was the only thing I was doing. Squatting in particular was just no fun. My legs would feel sore much of the time and I found myself unmotivated to lift heavy due to this. This year I'm trying to get some of my lower body strength back and it's a bit of a challenge so far
Of course, I'm a little older than you so that's going to play a role as well. On that same note, as you get older taking layoffs from specific physical activities requires more and more effort to get your performance back up. I have still not really learned this lesson as my running dropped off a bunch over the winter and it is tough going to get back to where I was in the fall (and we're not even talking about a high performance level). In other words your approach is going to work worse as you get older, at least in my experience.
2010 - I did a bodybuilding show on Friday and placed 1st Overall and 1st Masters. 12 hours later on Saturday ran the Twin Cities Marathon and ran 3:01.
Not sure if weight lifting helped the running or running helped with getting lean while training in the gym. Regardless, the two joined forces and proved successful for me. I'm not a stereotype bulky bodybuilder, but more the streamlined, lightweight version.
This year I stepped away from the bodybuilding routine and incorporated circuit and core training with my running plan. So far so good.
One of the advantages I have found with lower body lifting as I age is it clues me in to stuff that is starting to go wrong long before it impacts my running. I can feel something in my hip in deep squats that I remember briefly aching after a run earlier this week but had forgotten about and was able to work it out. Imbalances in strength exercises, tightness in areas, are all more easily recognized for me in the weight room.
2010 - I did a bodybuilding show on Friday and placed 1st Overall and 1st Masters. 12 hours later on Saturday ran the Twin Cities Marathon and ran 3:01. Not sure if weight lifting helped the running or running helped with getting lean while training in the gym. Regardless, the two joined forces and proved successful for me. I'm not a stereotype bulky bodybuilder, but more the streamlined, lightweight version. This year I stepped away from the bodybuilding routine and incorporated circuit and core training with my running plan. So far so good.
I was hoping you would chime in on this one, Willie.
"I aim to misbehave."
Thanks Drink
Yeah, well I got to start ringing bells in the gym more consistently again. Limited on time and access to equipment these past couple month. I'm sure by summer I'll have it all balanced out again and each sport will help the other.
+1
Your toughness is made up of equal parts persistence and experience. You don't so much outrun your opponents as outlast and outsmart them, and the toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head." - Joe Henderson
I think you can absolutely do both, it's all about finding the right balance! I've never had my lifting interfere in my running other than in the beginning when I haven't figured out my eating to support both. I have to say I have had my running suffer because I wasn't lifting.
I'm with you there. DB also hits it right on. Keep em both going through all season. You can taper both when the time is right but we need it.. it's that darn job and family business that gets in the way...I'm going to start doing some body weight circuit routines at home maybe my 6 yr daughter can do with me. She can do burpees like it champ and she loves to correct me on push up. If I train in the morning it has to be done by 6am or over lunch and I only have an hour. Time to find those dumbells and KB that I put in a safe place and put them back in action.
Eating for both isn't that complex. It can be complex and exhausting by counting this and that, but can also keep it simple and be successful.
Eat clean (processed food to a minimum) for a majority of your diet and with every meal make sure you have some protein with those complex carbs. Of course don't forget your greens!
I'm with you there. DB also hits it right on. Keep em both going through all season. You can taper both when the time is right but we need it.. it's that darn job and family business that gets in the way...I'm going to start doing some body weight circuit routines at home maybe my 6 yr daughter can do with me. She can do burpees like it champ and she loves to correct me on push up. If I train in the morning it has to be done by 6am or over lunch and I only have an hour. Time to find those dumbells and KB that I put in a safe place and put them back in action. Eating for both isn't that complex. It can be complex and exhausting by counting this and that, but can also keep it simple and be successful. Eat clean (processed food to a minimum) for a majority of your diet and with every meal make sure you have some protein with those complex carbs. Of course don't forget your greens!
Totally agree with DB! I have a neck injury that lifting keeps in check. Unfortunately I stopped lifting last year after being hit by a car and haven't really gotten back to it. Every time I try, I screw my neck. I've finally realized that as I age I can no longer start off like I used too. As far as eating, I'm not one to count or worry about how much of this and how much of that I get. I just forget to add more calories in when I start lifting. I'll run 70-80 miles a week, workout 3-4 times a week for a month or so then realize I'm not eating enough. Always afraid of loosing my 6 pack lol MTA:UNLESS I'm in a bulking phase lol
MTAA: speaking of lifting I REALLY need to get back to it if I'm going to accomplish what I'd like to in July for my 100 miler