As I told you earlier, strength training is very important for runners to stay injury-free.
Through the links below, you can download 3 different strength schemes. The first schedule focuses mainly on strengthening the gluteus, the second on hamstrings and quadriceps and the third schedule is with plyometric exercises.
It is very important to have strong gluteus because it is responsible for the push-off during running. The stronger it is, the stronger your push-off will be and also the faster you will be able to go.
Your hamstrings are both tightened (swinging out your leg) and stretched (stretching your leg) during running. Not only for this reason, it is important that they are sufficiently strong, but also because they are responsible for supporting your knee during running and also hip.
Quadriceps are also very important during running. Especially if you know that when you run, 35% of the force you use to push yourself forward comes from this muscle. If you often suffer from knee pain, it could be because your quadriceps are not strong enough.
In the strength schemes below, I have added enough exercises that are going to help you become a better/faster/injury-free runner. If you’d like a more comprehensive strength schedule that’s going to help you become a better runner, be sure to check out my 12-week strength training programme made especially for runners. By the way, with the code “STRENGTH”, you get 15% discount on the programme.
If you are not that familiar with strength training yet, I would wait a while before trying the third schedule as it is quite demanding of your muscles anyway.
In the videos below, the exercises are also demonstrated so you can easily follow along. Good luck & a lot of fun too!
Week 1:
Week 2:
Week 3: