Message sent by: Ercole
Hi Ercole,
first of all a premise: muscle strengthening is a very important goal even in a discipline of resistance such as running.
It is not possible to schedule a racing season without performing some strengthening work on the lower limbs and trunk in the early stages of preparation.
The endurance race, especially if prolonged and without changes in rhythm, inevitably leads to a weakening of the muscles involved in the running action (triceps sural, trunk stabilizers, muscles of the front and back of the thighs).
I don't know your racing commitments but usually muscle strengthening is a goal to be pursued in the winter months.
A good muscular reactivity allows you to successfully face short climbs, cross-country races and all those situations that require abrupt changes of pace.
The runner must not use large workloads but perform the exercises on natural load or with the help of small tools (dumbbells, rubber bands and anklets) aiming at increasing the so-called "reflected elastic explosive force or stifness".
Plyometric exercises are very suitable for this purpose.
These are the classic exercises, practiced at school during the hours of physical education:
Sprung stroke: stroke action, during which the pushing limb, through a complete distension, performs a definite forward impulse. The free limb advances with greater stability of the knee to allow contact on the ground with the forefoot.
Together with plyometric exercises it is possible to combine other exercises such as:
Stroke with increased frequencies or amplitude
Lateral hops on the steps
Get on a rise
Jump to frog
Step on the steps
Game of the "lame fox": running in support on a single limb, he tries to touch the comrades who will also run on one leg.
Obviously in the presence of muscular imbalances or in the case of osteoarticular problems it is good to avoid those exercises that cause greater stress to the spine and to the skeletal muscle apparatus in general (frog jumps, race jumps and skips on the steps).
In this regard, it is advisable to perform the strengthening exercises on soft and not uneven ground.
The training of the upper part of the body should not be forgotten (abdominals, bending on the arms, dip between chairs, see: Keeping fit without going to the gym), to avoid excessive force imbalances between the various body regions.
One last note on training methods:
FREQUENCY: 2/3 times a week for 5 weeks + 1 or 2 times a week for 3 weeks;
INTENSITY: ceiling / submaximal
RECOVERY: 2/3 minutes for the first period, to be reduced to 1-2 minutes in the second period.
Sincerely
