Cross training for runners is beneficial for many reasons. It can help improve your overall fitness, make you stronger, and prevent injuries.
Cross training can help improve your running by mixing up your training plan with other activities. This could include strength training, yoga, or swimming.
If you don't cross-train correctly, it can harm your running ability. To make sure you're doing it right, we talked to running coaches and health experts.
What Is Cross Training For Runners?
The main reason to cross train is to avoid injuries by allowing your body to rest from the pounding of running, while still maintaining your fitness level Cross training is a type of exercise that is related to your running training, but is not the same as running. The purpose of cross training is to reduce your risk of injuries by giving your body a break from the impact of running, while still staying in shape.
This is an important point to remember: not all types of cross training are equal.
Obviously, some activities are more specific and more helpful than others. Different forms of cross training can :
- Reduce the risk of a running injury
- Improve your cardiovascular and muscular endurance
- Strengthen your body, which can improve your endurance and running economy
- Provide a mental and physical break by switching up your training
- Allow injured runners to maintain their running fitness while off their feet.
While every different cross-training activity has some benefits and drawbacks in relation to your running fitness, ultimately the best way to improve your running fitness is to simply keep running.
Although yoga is good for mobility and strength, it is not as effective as a good gym session for building muscular endurance.
The advantages of cross training for runners are numerous. It can help improve your running economy, increase your aerobic capacity, improve your running form, and decrease your risk of injury. There are many benefits to cross training for runners, such as improving your running economy, increasing your aerobic capacity, improving your running form, and decreasing your risk of injury.
What Are The Benefits Of Cross Training For Runners?
Cross training is an excellent way to become a more well-rounded runner. It helps build strength, endurance, and prevents injuries and imbalances.
The typical running injury is caused by doing too much too soon, says Steve Stonehouse, certified Run Coach and Director of Education for STRIDE. Most of these injuries can be avoided entirely, or at least prevented from recurring, he explains.
This means that cross-training is especially useful for people who are looking to improve their overall fitness and health.
- runners returning after an injury,
- runners running high volume,
- and new runners.
A successful runner who hasn't had any injuries in the past few years is likely to tell you that they stick to a good cross-training plan, according to Thomas Watson, a Marathon Handbook coach.
Stonehouse explains that endurance cross-training can be very beneficial for beginning runners who have not yet developed strength and flexibility.
Cross training can help improve your endurance without harming your most vulnerable joints, muscles, and connective tissues that aren't used to the repetitive impact of running.
How Does Cross-Training Prevent Injuries?
The reason cross-training helps prevent injuries is because it strengthens cardiovascular and muscular systems at a faster rate than our skeletal system.
Muscles adapt quickly, but tendons and ligaments take much longer to do so. This is because tendons and ligaments don't have the same blood flow that the muscles do, so they take longer to adapt to the stresses placed on them through exercise.
Too much too soon is a recipe for injury when starting a running program. Cross-training provides the perfect complement to help new runners avoid injury.
4 Tips for Choosing a Cross-Training Workout
You will need to tailor your cross-training workouts to suit your needs specifically. To do this, you should consider the following tips:
1. Add a Complementary Routine Based on the 5 Components of Fitness
The five components of fitness are muscular strength, muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Most workouts only target a few of these components, such as cardiovascular endurance, and may not have a significant impact on others, like body composition.
It's a good idea to choose a cross-training workout that will help improve the areas of fitness that you're not already focusing on. For example, if you do a lot of running, you may want to start working on building muscle strength or increasing your flexibility. So, your cross-training workout could include strength training and/or yoga a few times a week.
2. Alter Your Impact
First, let's start with high impact. There are three intensity levels you can engage in when exercising- high, low, and no impact. None of the levels are better than the others, but each level has its own benefits and drawbacks. High impact is the first level we will discuss.
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- High impact activities, such as running and jumping, are great for developing lower-body power and building strong bones.3 Depending on the context, they're also wonderful at developing skill-related components of fitness, including balance, coordination, agility, and speed. The downside? They can be hard on your joints and soft-tissue, and if not approached carefully and with a keen focus on proper form, they can contribute to overuse injuries.4
- Low-impact activities, such as walking and strength training, where at least one foot is always in contact with the ground, are also effective at building strong bones, particularly in the lower body.3 These activities vary widely in context and intent, so you can combine them for a well-rounded workout routine. However, they aren't necessarily as effective at developing skill-related components of fitness, including power, agility, and speed.
- No impact activities, such as swimming and cycling, take the pressure off your bones and joints, significantly reducing the likelihood of overuse injury to your lower body.4 Also, they're often appropriate for individuals who are recovering from injuries or those who are training for extreme endurance events and don't want to risk an overuse injury. That said, no-impact activities don't have the bone-building benefits of low- or high-impact exercise.
You might want to consider changing the impact level of your cross-training workouts. For example, if you normally do high-impact workouts like dance cardio, you could supplement your schedule with a low-impact activity like indoor cycling or water aerobics. Or if you're a big swimmer, you could try something new like strength training or jumping rope.
3. Alter Your Direction
There are three planes of motion that humans can move in: sagittal, frontal, and transverse. Different muscle groups are used to perform separate actions at the moving joints when moving within each plane. If you only move in one place, like runners and cyclists who only move forward and backward within the sagittal plane, you are not using the muscles required to move in the other planes. Over time, this can lead to muscle imbalances and injuries. Here's what you need to know:
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- Sagittal Plane: This plane of motion cuts an invisible path through the center of your body, dividing you into left and right parts. When you move in the sagittal plane, you're engaging in forward or backward motion that runs parallel to this plane. Running, cycling, and biceps curls are just a few examples of exercises that take place in the sagittal plane.
- Frontal Plane: The frontal plane cuts an invisible line through the center of your body dividing you into front and back halves. When you perform exercises in the frontal plane, you're moving side-to-side in a path parallel to the plane. For instance, cartwheels and inline skating take place in the frontal plane. Actually, inline skating is interesting because it requires frontal plane movement of your extremities while your entire body moves along in the sagittal plane. Other examples include performing the breast stroke in swimming and doing a side lunge at the gym.
- Transverse Plane: The transverse plane cuts an invisible line through the center of your body, dividing you into top and bottom halves. When it comes to actions, the transverse plane is the hardest to conceptualize because it involves rotation and twisting movements. Swinging a golf club or a baseball bat are clear examples of moving in the transverse plane, but they're not the only ones. Activities including boxing, dance, and yoga often involve rotation and twisting, and strength training exercises like wood chops and Roman twists are other clear examples.
If you find that your workout routine only consists of exercises that movement in one plane, it would be beneficial to do a different routine that includes exercises that involve movement in multiple planes.
4. Just Try Something New
When you feel like you're stuck in a rut, it's often best not to overthink your cross-training plan. Sometimes, any new workout can “shock” your system and help you to remember that you have a lot of muscles you've been neglecting. Try choosing an activity that you've been wanting to do and give it your all. You might end up loving it, or you might hate it, but either way it doesn't really matter. The most important thing is to keep your body guessing so that you can continue to see improvements in your fitness and health.
Is Cross-Training Good For Runners?
Yes, cross-training is good for runners.
Cross-training should be a part of every runner's schedule, no matter how much experience they have.
5 Reasons All Runners Need To Cross Train
Some runners may not be aware of all the reasons they should cross-train, but there are many benefits to doing so. Here are some of the reasons why runners should consider cross-training: 1. Cross-training can help improve your overall fitness level. 2. It can help prevent injuries by strengthening muscles that may not get as much attention during running. 3. Cross-training can also make you a more well-rounded athlete. 4. It can help improve your running form and technique. 5. And last but not least, cross-training can help keep you motivated and interested in your training. By now, you may be convinced that you should start incorporating some cross-training into your running routine. Great! But where do you start? There are plenty of reasons why runners should cross-train. Some runners may not be aware of all the reasons they should cross-train, but there are many benefits to doing so. Here are some of the reasons why runners should consider cross-training: 1. Cross-training can help improve your overall fitness level. 2. It can help prevent injuries by strengthening muscles that may not
#1: Injury prevention
Running often leads to imbalances in our kinetic chains because we are repeating the same motion thousands of times. This usually causes one muscle to tighten and another to weaken, which often leads to runner's knee.
Running can cause imbalances in your muscles, which cross-training can help fix. Cross-training can also help prevent injuries by making your muscles and the ligaments and tendons that support them stronger.
#2: Improves Running Economy and Endurance
Training your legs specifically can help you make gains in your running economy and endurance. Stronger legs combined with proper running form make you more efficient as a runner.
In addition to helping you run faster, full-body strength training can also help you last longer in endurance events. This is because stronger legs have been shown to fatigue more slowly. Furthermore, strength training can help you maintain good running form in longer events such as marathons and ultramarathons.
#3: Allows You To Target Specific Deficiences
Cross-training allows runners to train specific areas of their fitness without having to add unnecessary miles to their training. This can be done by incorporating other forms of cardio such as swimming or biking, or by adding weight training to their program.
Some examples of activities that a runner could do to improve their cardiovascular fitness are using an Elliptical or swimming.
If you want to improve your running economy, you can hit the gym.
#4: Prevents burn-out and over-training
Many runners will run for miles and miles every day.
When you do the same thing over and over, you only work the specific muscles associated with that activity, which could lead to overuse injuries, overtraining syndrome, and mental burnout.
Cross training refers to participating in a different type of physical activity to improve overall fitness. It can provide a break from running and promote recovery by changing the mental state.
#5: Makes you multi-purpose
What's the point of being able to run 100k if you can't even do a couple pull-ups?
From my perspective, those people who have long and successful running careers tend to be well-rounded. They understand the importance of diversifying their skillset.
It is beneficial to have some athleticism in your life whether it is being able to play football, working out at the gym, playing with your kids, or going mountain biking with friends.
Example Cross-Training Workout Ideas
The following are a few ideas to help you get your creative juices flowing.
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- If You're a Runner: Runners benefit from strength training, core workouts, and flexibility training, particularly through the hips. Adding a quick strength training routine to your weekly runs can help balance out any muscular imbalances. It's a good idea to also set aside time for stretching or yoga each week.
- If You're a Yogi: Yoga does amazing things for flexibility, balance, coordination, and some muscular endurance, but it won't drastically improve cardiovascular endurance or muscular strength. Consider adding a circuit training workout (that combines strength training and cardio) a couple times a week.
- If You're a Strength Trainer: As great as it is to hit the weights regularly, it's also important to maintain flexibility and develop cardiovascular endurance. Add a 10-minute stretch after each of your strength training workouts, and on the days you're not at the gym, consider playing a sport, such as basketball, tennis, or soccer.
- If You're a Cyclist: Cyclists have awesome lower body strength and endurance, as well as killer heart and lung health, but they may not be enjoying the benefits of workouts with more impact. Try adding an upper body strength training routine on the days you hit the bike, and on your rest days, incorporate hiking or rock climbing.
- If You're a Swimmer: Like cycling, swimming delivers stellar cardiovascular improvements and muscular endurance, but it's not going to lead to significant gains in muscular strength or bone density.5 When you're not in the pool, add a boot camp class to your routine to take advantage of the benefits of low- to high-impact strength training.
The subject of cross-training workouts can seem confusing, since there's not a hard and fast program that applies to everyone. Rather than stressing about the details, aim to perform two to four workouts each week of your favorite routine, then add one or two sessions of a completely different activity. Once a month, make a few changes. It really is that easy.
