Tag Archives: cross training for runners

01.02.15
by

Core Strengthening – blog post 2

Continuing with the series of exercises I am doing for strengthening my core muscles, I am showing below two exercises to strengthen the quads, hammies and glutes.

Done right, you are going to engage your glutes and hamstrings.

I am not a pro doing these exercises. Rather I am learning these from my social circle and chiropractor. Most of the runners, triathletes out there already know these exercises. Jotting them down in a blog post, and creating videos will only help to revise them, or switch your core strengthening exercises a bit. Challenges are always good :).  Continue reading →

12.29.14
by

Strength and Stability, an integral part of any athletes training

Our earth is able to hold us up, inspite of ever increasing population, because of a strong core :).

So learning from nature, remember that your core is the integral part of you as a runner or a cyclist, or a swimmer. A strong core and muscle stability is what differentiated Mark Allen and Dave Scott from the rest of the field. Strength in your glutes and lower back is what will avoid you from faltering in the last miles of your marathon leg.

Having been there, done my share of mistakes. And now recovering from them, I thought of sharing and blogging the important strength training routine. Continue reading →

09.03.11
by

Train while you are strained..

Doctor’s, in this case it was my podiatrist, who has asked me not to run for the next two weeks… its bullshit, I freaked out.. 🙂 ..

Already annoyed at myself for hurting my heels, and the residual pain is not relieving, inspite of new pair of shoes 😦 .. regular icing.. and now am taking anti-inflamatory pills.

Well, instead of sitting on the couch, I have started biking more, hitting the gym for circuit weight training, and just started swimming yesterday. Off all this I feel that swimming is the best to keep the heart rate healthy.

While you are suffering from a running injury, you can utilise that time to give most rest to your legs, and exercise your upper body, and cross train. For a runner nothing can be more frustrating than not hitting the pavement or the trails. But it is always best to respect your body.

Listen to your body, listen to your doctor, read and talk to other runners, and check this out- http://runninginjuryfree.org/2008/09/foot-strike.html

Certain things that one can do at the gym-

  1. Do elliptical
  2. work on the glute muscles
  3. work on the quads  (do the first three depending on the injured area on your leg)
  4. do planks, and side planks
  5. with moderate or low weights do more reps for shoulders, biceps, and chest
  6. Rowing is a great way to keep the heart rate going
  7. spinning and biking are amazing, but again depends on where you are injured
  8. Lastly, swimming is always a great alternative
the upper body is as important for a runner as the lower body, one realizes this with his right hand movements while running uphill. Plus right strength exercise builds motivation during runs, and makes you feel strong.
One thing, I have read, and been told is that always rest the injured area 100%, before starting fresh.
So happy training, and happy running.. !!