Friday Feature- How To Fit In Strength Training While Also Running 50+ Miles a Week

in ,

It's FRIYAY! What are you doing this weekend? Anyone racing this weekend? Sunday is the Denver Rock 'n Roll Marathon and I'm SO bummed to be missing it this year. Definitely one of my favorites!!

I wanted to share with you a few tricks that's worked for me to keep fitting in (the ever-important) strength training while also running a pretty demanding 50+ mile-a-week training plan!

  • Give yourself a time limit and work it in around that. I typically have around an hour and a half budgeted for both my runs/stretching/strength training in the mornings. I typically try to plan out my week for running/ training on Sundays, so I'm prepared and am focused each morning. I know that if I have a double-digit run to get done, I will not have enough time to fit in strength training that day. So, I work in my strength sessions during the other days of the week when I have less mileage on the schedule. 
  • Take advantage of workout classes. This is probably my favorite way to sneak in a really REALLY good workout. I'm really loving Barre or Pilates classes right now and love how the class exercises change every week (working different muscles)! I can always fit in these classes during my lunch breaks, so I can still get in a good training run in the morning AND get strength sessions in the afternoon. Double workout days= SO tough but also really builds those muscles (*insert flex emoji*)
  • Limit your exercises to a few REALLY REALLY good ones. I love exercises that work multiple muscle groups- you get more bang for your buck AND they take significantly less time (#winning when it comes to marathon training). Hoping to share a few of my staples over on the work-out page here soon!
  • Do it before your run. I know that if I wait until AFTER my run, there is only about a 5% chance that I will get it done. If I do it before my run, I feel really warmed-up and SUPER accomplished afterwards. 
  • Treat it like a run. Prep for it and never skimp on those exercises! They are what produces injury-free and PR-ready runners afterall, so why shouldn't they be just as important as our training runs?

 

Any hacks to fit in strength training?

Workout classes- yay or nay?

How many times do you strength train each week?