Strength training and the older runner

[orangeguy]

I have recently been reading about the importance of strength training for older runners because losing muscle mass as we age. I already do some weight lifting but I am thinking maybe I should be devoting more time to this and other strength building exercises. I’ve certainly noticed over the last six months running is getting harder work, maybe at 67 that is to be expected but I don’t want to give up running for a while yet. I would be really interested to hear what other ‘older runners’ do as regards strength building and how much time they devote to it.

[Cmoi Graduate10]

I'm sure you'll get lots of helpful replies orangeguy , and there's a whole HU Strength and Flex forum if you're interested.

Personally, aged 63 and three-quarters and hopelessly lazy, two minutes of squats (one-legged as well as two) when brushing my teeth in the evening is about as good as it gets for my strength training.

There again I prefer trails and live somewhere hilly, so even my shortest runs rarely come in under 100m elevation gain.

[GTFC Graduate10 in reply to Cmoi]

👏👏👏👏

[MissUnderstanding Administrator Graduate10]

If you’re already doing some weight lifting, why not ask at your gym if there’s a PT who can put a programme together for you? Ideally someone experienced in working with runners but I don’t think that’s necessarily essential-you can explain what your goals are.

I don’t have specific older running resources I can direct you to but I really like the Strength Running podcast and there are lots of resources on the site that accompanies it…

strengthrunning.com

Runner’s World has a great podcast and article here about how runners can get started with strength…

runnersworld.com/uk/trainin...

shows.acast.com/the-runners...

I’m sure some of our older runners will have recommendations too!

[Oldfloss Administrator 60minGraduate in reply to MissUnderstanding]

Loads of great advice given and, as it happens, the last few days of June and my next post on S and F forum, are going to be aimed specifically at the more seasoned runner!

I have a vested interest, as I am 74!

Loads of great and simple but effective exercise on there... e.g.

healthunlocked.com/strength...

Tai Chi is fantastic for strength , balance and muscle improvement... there are posts about this too..

healthunlocked.com/strength...

Gentle workouts, but oh so much of an impact... our class is an hour where you feel as if you have done very little towards building muscle mass or anything else, up but by gosh... an hour or so after you KNOW you have!

I have a regular strength routine and a lot of that is simple , short and effective.

Go and explore the S and F forum, see what you can find

Some fun ideas here... you do not need a gym necessarily... just a bit of lateral thinking!

healthunlocked.com/strength......

[Beachcomber66 Graduate10]

At age 72 I do some strength work and that has to be coupled with post run stretches to iron out the lumps which develop very easily in calf muscles and hamstrings.

I start with three runs per week. A long slow run, which inevitably involves hills around here, a 5k particularly hilly run, and flattish intervals.The hill run and long runs are definitely strength builders (five peaks with a total ascent of 155m on the hill run). Running up steep/ long hills is hard work which tightens hamstrings, and the steep downhill stretches hammer the peroneal muscles down the outside of my calves. That is where the post run stretches and assaults on lumpy muscles with a massage ball come in. Post run stretches are aimed at quads(standing on one leg and pulling the other up to my backside), adductors -adductor muscle stretches (easier to google it than follow my description!) and Happy Baby pose for glutes and hamstrings. In order to warm up pre stretches, I do a nerve glide exercise which helps the heel, sideways/ crab walk with exercise band and squats with exercise bands. That is about it; I walk our dog every day and swim once per week too. I do have dumbells, but I mainly use them for upper body strength.

[mrrun Graduate10]

Strength training is essential but so is knowing exactly what you need to do, how many reps and how often. Or else you can get hurt in a bad way trying to execute that Romanian deadlift and your lower back simply pops out.

It’s true, as we age our muscles are wasting away and in order to walk taller when older we need some heavy lifting.

I can only give you my example, on the eve of tender age of 60. Experimenting in the gym with younger guys may not always be a good idea so l paid a personal trainer for a few months and he advised on specific exercises around my body build, available strength and my targets. At times he drove me to the point of being sick or simply faint, lol, but that’s how l found out where l was at. Then l was on my own in my local gym.

So, l now hit raw weights two or three times every week, often ‘training to fail’, as in pushing myself to total limits. I also do planks and old school push-ups and squats with weights.

In between l work on my cardio through running and tennis as well as martial arts. I also watch what l eat and take supplements, mostly electrolytes to compensate for the loss of salts through sweating and Creatine with HMB to keep maintain the muscle and bone density.

All that combined seems to be working well for me but you’ll have to find your own formula. With muscles being engaged and looked after, running becomes easier although, let’s be realistic, you’ll not be braking any speed records but you’ll look and feel better than almost anyone in your age group (the rest are still active former pro athletes 😉).

Of course, it’s hard work but we are aiming at end results and that’s health and longevity.

Good luck! 👍

[JonathanP Graduate10]

I've found this article helpful and use the exercise plan included in it regularly zoe.com/learn/muscle-buildi...

[JoP61 Graduate10]

I do two 1-hour sessions in the gym each week with a personal trainer, and have been for about the last 8 months. All resistance work and some abs/core work.

My strength has increased (probably from a very low base!), including my core strength. I'm running three times a week but not doing very long distances. Though I am working my way back to 10K at the moment.

[orangeguy Graduate10]

Thanks everybody, really interesting to read what everybody is doing to build and maintain strength and also the links you provided, I’m working my way through these. I think the biggest take way from this is that I certainly need to devote more time to this than I am currently doing.

[Curlygurly2 Graduate10]

I have recently discovered the Nike Training Club, loads of good stuff on there. I also tend to just pick up stuff along the way - Joe Wickes has loads of videos on YouTube, James Dunne has a runners programme on Facebook, there was something in the Guardian a few weeks ago specifically for us oldies, I've got a personalised set of exercises for my osteoarthritic hip.

I also do stuff like planks, air squats and wall squats, triceps dips, planks, biceps curls... I have resistance bands and sometimes take one in my pocket on a run if the weather is fine and workout in the park.

I do the Conqueror virtual challenges, they have a conversion chart for different exercises, so 14 mins of strength work = 1 KM. I'm currently making my way around Singapore...

[Kat332zz Graduate10]

I am so lazy about strength training and it tells. When I was training for a marathon I did do resistance band work, squats and lunges etc. as a matter of course, three or four times a week, but after doing the marathon I stopped, way too lazy! Now it is really hard to do decent (for me) 5k times at my Parkrun. I just need an incentive to do something that I find hard and boring, so I may be forced into joining a gym, once there I feel I need to do something to justify the cost and time to get to it, so will be inclined to do the training.

[orangeguy Graduate10 in reply to Kat332zz]

Totally understand, I would rather go for a run any day rather than do strength training 😕 but I think I really need to do it and give it the same priority as I do my running.

[mrrun Graduate10 in reply to Kat332zz]

I recently spoke to someone who told me that she ‘enjoyed going to the gym’. I personally don’t. Working out is hard, and it requires mental will, consistency, discipline. None of it is easy when you’re struggling to complete 12 raps. And doing it two/three times per week. Every week. But then you see the results. You walk up the stairs talking to someone without losing breath or feeling your thighs burning, or even breaking sweat. And realising that you can run better, more comfortable and with less effort.

As Mike Tyson said: ‘Discipline is doing what you hate to do, but nonetheless doing it like you love it.’

[Vragtes Graduate10]

I make no claim to any expert knowledge but now I’m 69 this is my strength and running regime that has made a noticeable difference to my muscles in terms of preventing wasting.

Three times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I go for early morning runs. These are normally around 8km sometimes up to 10km. When finished, I do my warm down stretches and strength exercises. These include calf and hamstring stretches (5 repeats of each exercise per leg). Then I lie flat on my back, hands behind my head, legs straight, knees together and toes pointed. Then I lift my legs, keeping them straight about 8” off the floor and hold this for 30 seconds. Then legs down. This I do 5 times varying it by keeping my legs stiff but opening them wide then closing them again and repeating this for the 30 seconds. Do 5 repeats of this. This strengthens my abdominal muscles and they now feel flat and hard when you push them.

I finish my exercise routine by doing 40 push ups and 20 chin-ups using a bar fixed securely over a door. My arms have lost the loose flabby bits near the shoulder and the horrible crépey skin has gone too. Don’t do any weights at all and dislike gyms!

[RollingPea]

You are so right about loss of muscle mass, or muscle wasting, in later life. This is counteracted by building our muscles, through running and other exercises. Increasing the proportion of protein in our diet will support this muscle building and help to counteract muscle wasting. So, whenever you are planning a meal, or selecting a choice from a menu, make sure to ask yourself if it contains a decent portion of protein, such as fish, egg, beans, peas and other legumes, nuts, meat, tofu, mushrooms, cheese. The amino acids from the protein we eat are incorporated into building/maintaining our muscle protein.

[Flimflab]

Did you see the article in today's Guardian? I'm just starting to look at strength training so I can't help you benchmark, I just cant get excited about going to a Gym.

To get a more focused plan I finally saw a physio yesterday for a running assessment particularly focusing on my ankle and hamstring that tend to get injured to at least reduce the risk of injury, if not to gain strength.

To start he gave me a few simple, tailored, exercises. I estimate that will be an hour a week spread over 3 sessions he also added one thing to add to my warm up and cool down. Other things can be added once or if I get into a good habit and weight increased.

Hopefully having shelled out money it will motivate me to follow the plan, it also feels the exercises are focussed on the areas of greatest benefit for me and will be reported back to the physio in 6 weeks for accountability,

Ask me in a month if it is working😆

P.S. If its of any interest the exercises were a dumbbell stiff legged deadlift, dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat and a sidestep with band

[Fasterthanshizu]

I did one strength session a week during marathon training. Hated it. Hated that it was working and I was getting stronger! I really must get back into it.Part of my motivation - my Dad. He's 89, generally fit, but frustrated with loss of strength. Just things like putting a bag of sugar away on a high shelf. If he'd known what he knows now, he'd have worked on strength in his 60s and 70s. I should learn to learn from his experiences.

[orangeguy Graduate10 in reply to Fasterthanshizu]

I totally understand, I would rather go for an extra run than do strength training but I know I must start to take this more seriously otherwise I am sure I won’t have the strength to run in the coming years.