Strength Training for Runners: Should Runners Lift Weights?

Yes, runners should lift weights. Two or three strength sessions a week have been shown to improve running economy by roughly 2 to 8 percent without adding body weight, and strength training is one of the most effective ways to lower the risk of sports injury.

If you run the Albert Park Lake loop or the Tan most mornings and you have never picked up a barbell, strength work is probably the cheapest performance gain available to you. Here is what the research actually says, how much lifting a runner needs, and what a sensible session looks like.

Should runners lift weights?

Yes, and the evidence for it is reasonably strong. A systematic review of 24 studies in Sports Medicine looked at middle and long distance runners who already had at least six months of running experience, and compared adding strength training against running alone. Running economy was measured in 20 of those studies and generally improved by 2 to 8 percent. Time trial performance over 1.5 to 10 km and sprint qualities also tended to improve.

Two things are worth noting honestly. The improvements were not found in every single study, and maximal oxygen uptake, often called VO2 max, was typically unchanged. Strength training does not usually build you a bigger engine. It helps you get more out of the engine you already have.

How does lifting weights make you a faster runner?

It mostly works by improving running economy, which is how much oxygen you burn to hold a given pace. A more economical runner covers the same kilometre for less energy, which shows up late in a race when everyone else is fading.

Stronger muscles and stiffer tendons return more of the energy you put into the ground on each stride, so you need fewer of your own resources to produce the same speed. Across a half marathon that adds up to thousands of slightly cheaper strides. This is also why the gains do not show up on a VO2 max test: the change is in efficiency and force production, not aerobic capacity.

Does strength training reduce running injuries?

Strength training is the best supported injury prevention tool we have, though it is not a guarantee. A systematic review and meta analysis in the British Journal of Sports Medicine pooled six randomised trials covering 7,738 participants aged 12 to 40 and reported a relative risk of 0.338, with a confidence interval of 0.238 to 0.480, for acute and overuse sports injuries. The effect was also dose dependent: a 10 percent increase in strength training volume reduced injury risk by more than four percentage points.

Two caveats matter. That review covered sport in general rather than runners alone, and reducing risk across a group is not the same as a promise that any one person will stay healthy. If you are already running with pain, that is a reason to get assessed rather than to load the problem up. Our exercise physiology team works with runners managing niggles and returning from injury, and those sessions can be funded through Medicare chronic disease management plans, NDIS, WorkCover, TAC, DVA or private health.

How many days a week should runners strength train?

Two to three sessions a week is the range the research supports, and two is enough for most recreational runners in the middle of a training block. The review above concluded that adding two to three strength sessions per week, using a mix of heavy lifting, explosive work and plyometrics, is likely to benefit middle and long distance runners.

How you place them matters as much as how many you do. Put strength work on your harder running days or straight after an easy run, so your easy days stay genuinely easy. Thirty to forty five minutes is plenty. If the lifting is leaving you too sore to run well, the problem is usually volume, not the lifting itself.

Will lifting weights make you bulky or slower?

No. In the studies reviewed, measures of body composition were typically unaffected by strength training, and the runners did not gain weight.

That makes sense once you look at the actual prescription. Runner strength work uses low repetitions, heavier loads and only two or three sessions a week, on top of a decent running volume. Those conditions drive strength through better recruitment and stiffer tendons rather than through size. Building noticeable muscle takes far more volume and a calorie surplus to go with it.

What should a runner’s strength session look like?

Keep it short, heavy and specific. A productive session usually has three parts.

• Heavy bilateral strength. A squat, deadlift or trap bar deadlift in the range of three to six repetitions, loaded so the last rep is genuinely hard but your technique holds.
• Single leg work. Split squats, step ups or single leg hinges. Running is a one legged activity, so this is where most runners find the biggest gap.
• Plyometrics and calf work. Pogo hops, bounding and heavy calf raises build the tendon stiffness that makes each stride cheaper. Start with small doses and build gradually.

What you leave out matters too. Runners rarely need long circuits, high repetition leg work or anything that leaves the legs wrecked for two days. Technique under real load is where coaching earns its keep, which is why most runners get further with a coach in the room than with a program off the internet.

Strength training for runners in South Melbourne

Our studio sits at 17A Market Street in South Melbourne, a few minutes from the Albert Park Lake loop and the bayside paths, so we coach a lot of runners building toward Run Melbourne and the Melbourne Marathon. One on one personal training suits runners who want their lifting built around a specific race plan. Semi private training works well if you want coached sessions at a lower weekly cost, with up to four people in the room each following their own program.

If you want to try it properly before committing, the 21 Day Jump Start Program is $327 one off and includes one on one personal training, semi private sessions and unlimited group training, which is enough time to get your technique sorted and feel the difference in your running.

Frequently asked questions

How often should runners strength train?

Two to three strength sessions a week is the range supported by research on middle and long distance runners. Two sessions a week is enough for most recreational runners during a training block, and each session only needs 30 to 45 minutes.

Should runners lift heavy weights or use high repetitions?

Heavier loads for low repetitions work better for runners. Sets of three to six repetitions on compound lifts build force production and tendon stiffness without adding body weight, while long high repetition circuits mostly add fatigue that interferes with running.

Can you run and strength train on the same day?

Yes, and it is often the better option. Pairing strength work with a harder running day, or doing it after an easy run, keeps your easy days easy and gives you a genuine recovery day instead of spreading hard work across the whole week.