Top 5 Excuses Endurance Athletes Make for Skipping Strength Training
By Rick Kattouf II, O.D.
Strength training has incredible benefits for endurance athletes.
With that said, why is strength training often times skipped and overlooked?
Let’s take a look at the top 5 excuses endurance athletes make for skipping
strength training.
“I’ll get
bulky”
Wow, uhhh, ok; not real clear on the term, bulky, but let’s go
with it since so many endurance athletes use this as an excuse not to strength
train. Look, there are only 2 things that will make you bulky. Eating too much
is one. And the other is taking anabolic agents (which of course are banned
substances as per WADA & USADA, WADA Prohibited List). With that said, strength
training does have its side effects. Warning…strength training may cause you to
feel incredible, reduce body fat and create a great physique. In addition,
strength training will help to assist in improving strength, power, running
economy and will help to assist in reducing risk of injury. [1][2][3]
Consistent strength training (when combined of course with proper
nutrition) will help to increase lean mass; which means a change in body
composition (higher body water percentage, lower body fat percentage). In
addition, regular weight training workouts help to assist in increasing
strength. [iv]
And it is this increase in strength that we can then put into every stroke in
the water, every pedal stroke on the bike and into every step on the run. If
you have adopted the ‘weight lifting will make me bulky mindset’, no worries;
today is a new day. Let’s change the mindset and limiting beliefs about
strength training and let’s start to focus on the amazing benefits of consistent
weight lifting.
“I don’t run
as well after a strength training workout”
Here is a question for the multisport community. What is a Brick
workout? Easy answer, right? It’s a bike workout followed by a run workout. How
did you run legs feel the first time you did a brick workout? I’ll go out on a
limb and say they probably felt like bricks, right? But, as you continued to
train and implement more and more bike-run workouts into your training, you
found yourself running exceptionally well off the bike. You even built your
body to where you can ride really, really hard and still come off the bike and
annihilate your run. Well, welcome to ‘the other Brick workouts.’ Strength
training workouts done first and then immediately followed up with a swim bike
or run workout are great brick workouts to do. And yes, by design, we are
creating fatigue in the upper and lower body in the weight room and then we are
going to knock out a swim bike or run workout on these fatigued muscles. And
just like the bike-run workouts that you have mastered, the same will happen
with, the other brick workouts. One of the keys to preparing the body for race
day is to teach the body to perform and perform well ‘on tired legs.’ And then,
come race day, when you are rested and tapered, just imagine how great you will
feel. Remember, we do not want race day to be the toughest thing we do.
“The basic principle is to apply a load
and overload the muscle so it needs to adapt and get stronger,” explains Neal Pire, CSCS, an exercise
physiologist and the national director of wellness services at Castle Connolly
Private Health Partners in New York City.
“I do yoga
instead of weight training”
Yoga, huh, in place of weight training? Uhhh, ok, what’s next;
stand up paddle board to replace run workouts? C’mon, stop that. Yoga is great,
as is stand up paddle board. But yoga does not replace
weight training, just like stand-up paddle board does not replace
running. When we are talking about weight training, we are getting after it in
the weight room. We are going to hit the dumbbells, barbells, machines,
plyometrics; nothing shy of chewing on iron…that’s weight training!
“I weight
train…but just 2-3 months in the off-season”
2-3 months of weight training in the off-season, huh? How would
your run performance be if you only ran 2-3 months out of the year? How would
your body composition be if you only focused on eating right 2-3 months out of
the year? The answer to both is, ‘not very good.’ Just like with all aspects of
training and nutrition, if we are looking to get maximum benefit, strength
training must be done year-round. Sure, there are going to changes to the
weight training frequency all throughout the year, that goes without saying; as
that’s just part of the work-to-rest ratio. Point being is that focusing on
anything only 2-3 months out of the year, especially weight training, is going
to produce subpar results.
“If you knew that a certain type
of exercise could benefit your heart, improve your balance,
strengthen your bones, and help you lose weight all while making
you look and feel better, wouldn't you want to get started? Well, studies
show that strength training can provide all those benefits and more.” Chris Iliades, MD
“I don’t
have time”
Sure you do; you have more than enough time. You find time to get
in your swim, bike and run workouts, right? Then why can’t you get in your
weight training workouts? I’ll tell you why; it’s because you don’t make them a
priority. The knee jerk reaction from multisport athletes is, ‘but I’m a
triathlete; I only have so much time, so I just make sure I get in my swim,
bike, run workouts.’ Look, getting in your weight training workouts does not
mean adding more time to your weekly workout schedule. It simply means taking
the available time you have and reworking the work-to-rest ratio and making
sure weight training takes priority just like S-B-R workouts. Whether you have
7 hours/week, 15 hours/week or 25 hours/week to train, it’s just a matter of
taking your available time and putting together the right mix of weight
training and S-B-R workouts.
If you find yourself using such excuses regarding weight
training; no worries, today is a new day and a new start. It’s time to stop
making excuses and to start making time for weight training!
SHOW YOUR WORKOUT WHO’S BOSS®!
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Rick Kattouf II, O.D. is a 2x
Best-Selling Author and Fitness & Nutrition expert and has been named one
of America’s PremierExperts® and one of the World Fitness Elite® Trainers of
the Year. Rick is a Sports Nutrition Specialist, Heart Rate Performance
Specialist, Master Personal Trainer & Triathlon Coach. He has been seen on
ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox affiliates around the country as well as in the USA
Today, Chicago Tribune, National Examiner, Ironman.com, Livestrong.com,
Runner’s World, Bicycling Magazine, Men’s Health UK, FIGHT! Magazine, Florida
Cycling Magazine and The Independent in the UK. Rick is the CEO/Founder of TeamKattouf® Inc,
CEO/Founder of TeamKattouf® Nutrition LLC, CEO/Founder of Virtual Gym
LLC, Creator of TeamKattouf® Nutrition Supplements, Host of Rx
Nutrition, author of Forever Fit, Creator of 5-Round Fury® Nutrition
Supplement, 5-Round Fury Fitness® workout app, Creator of Coach2CEO,
Creator of Fuel Keeper®, Entrepreneur and Inspirational Speaker. Dr.
Rick has personally coached individuals in 30+ states and 10+ countries.
