Have you ever been in a race where in the last 200m you couldn’t find enough gas in the tank to continue? How about noticing everyone else kicking and racing past you? What is the solution? A good balance between doing your cardio and your resistance training is the missing piece of the puzzle.



When I say resistance training I don’t mean slow movements performed on a machine. I’m talking about explosive and power exercises done with free weights or even your bodyweight. For the sake of keeping this article short, let’s keep it simple. Train with weights train 3 times a week, 2 on non cardio days and the third day mixed with light cardio work. The reason being is that too much long distance cardiovascular training increases a destructive hormone called cortisol. Cortisol will help you lose body fat but it also breaks down muscle tissue that you need to have power in the race. A lot of people over look this. What we want to do is control the amount of cortisol we produce to make sure we build muscle, get lean and gain enough power to blow your opponents away at the finish line.



Here are some exercises you can do: 



A) Front squat
 


B) Single leg romanian deadlift
 


C) Box jump
 


Biomechanics are always very important for runners of every level.



Simply doing A’s and B’s in your dynamic warm up will give you the proper posture and teach your body to eventually do the movement involuntary when running which will increase speed gradually. 



If you follow this plan along with a healthy diet you will see a great improvement in your running. If you are looking for further guidance I would love to help you and am offering free assessments.

James Elliot
Free Form Fitness – Personal Training Redefined
www.freeformfitness.ca