Less Weight, More Reps

A simple word of advice that most of you have probably heard before, but some of you may not have, is that for runners, it is better to do more reps at a lesser weight than more reps at a greater weight when weight lifting. This is because runners need to build up muscle that is effective and strong, while not being overly bulky. Lean muscle is strong and enough to allow a runner to propel themselves for ward and do what they need to accomplish without weighing too much. Runners need to carry their body weight with them as the run, so seemingly, they don’t want to carry too much excess weight around with them, because that will just make it harder for them to run and slow them down. At the same time though, muscle is a great asset to runners and can help them push through and tier less easily, as well as allow them to have greater power in their motion and push offs. So as you can see, there is a delicate balance when it comes to muscle for runners.

One way to reach this balance is to concentrate on body weight exercises. Seeing as when you run, you are dealing with carrying your weight and exercises in which you are only working with your weight can help ensure that you are not bulking up too much, but are still getting a good workout if you do enough reps of each different exercise. These workouts should do a pretty good job of building up enough muscle for most runners to perform well, however, free weights and machines can also be a great way to assist you in gaining muscle mass and endurance. Weights will clearly help you get bigger, and they can be very beneficial, but putting too much weight on your barbell can have a negative effect at some point if it is causing you to gain too much weight, because keep in mind that muscle does weigh more than  fat.  In addition, too much weight can be dangerous if one is not properly advised and prepared. But given all of this, if you are careful and do plenty of reps, you can build strong, lean muscles that will be very beneficial during the season! Just remember that muscle and getting big is not the primary goal for competitive runners, especially those that run distance. I mean there has to be a reason why so many successful cross country runners seem to be twigs right? J