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SUMMARY
ALTHOUGH STRENGTH TRAINING HAS BECOME COMMON AMONG MANY ATHLETES, ESPECIALLY THOSE IN STRENGTH/POWER/SPEED SPORTS, IS IT NECESSARY TO IMPROVE DISTANCE RUNNING PERFORMANCE THAT IS PRIMARILY LIMITED BY THE ABILITY TO TRANSPORT AND USE OXYGEN? THIS ARTICLE EXAMINES THE ISSUE OF STRENGTH TRAINING FOR THE DISTANCE RUNNER AND TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT THE POSSIBLE BENEFITS OF STRENGTH TRAINING WHEN DONE FOR POWER.
KEY WORDS:
distance running; strength training endurance performance; power; running economy
I am sure that you have seen it looming in the corner of your gym like a mother who proselytizes about eating your vegetables: a big lime green exercise ball that has become the symbol of flat stomachs and represents the new craze among sports coachescore training. Much has been written about strength training for the runnereverything from lunges while holding dumbbells in your hands to calf raises on the edge of a stair to endless repetitions (reps) of abdominal crunches while balancing on that big lime green stability ball. A stronger core aside, have you ever wondered if these training suggestions will really lead to a faster 5K or marathon?
WHY STRENGTH TRAINING WILL NOT MAKE YOUR CLIENTS FASTER RUNNERS
Unlike most sports, which require strength, speed, and power to be successful, distance running is primarily limited by the delivery and use of oxygen. As your clients run faster, the demand for oxygen increases. For the speed to remain aerobic, and therefore to be able to sustain a faster pace, the supply of oxygen to the working muscles and to the heart itself must be equal to or greater than the oxygen demand. If the demand for oxygen exceeds its supply, exercise becomes oxygen-independent (anaerobic) and fatigue is imminent Therefore, to become better distance runners, your clients need to increase their supply of oxygen to the working muscles to match the increasing demand.
There are no studies showing that strength training increases oxygen delivery from lungs to muscles. The responsibility of oxygen delivery rests on the shoulders of the cardiovascular system. The greater your clients' stroke volume (the volume of blood pumped by the heart per beat) and cardiac output (the volume of blood pumped by the heart per minute), the more oxygen will be delivered to the...