During the off season it is important to devote yourself to the strength component. Some advice if you don’t have a gym (or don’t like it at all)
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Runningcharlott
Speak about lecture a runner is always a difficult mission. The average runner dislikes indoor activity. Used to the outdoors, he is annoyed by the four walls, even more if we are talking about a completely different effort, such as strength exercises. Squats, deadlifts, hip trusts, barbells and dumbbells, how awful! Yet by now we have heard it everywhere how important exercises that develop muscle strength are for an efficient run and a productive stride. In addition to being an ally against injuries.
How much work in the gym in the off season?
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In the winter time we often talk about construction. The construction period is in fact the first phase of training towards the objectives of the new season and mainly focuses on strength, technique and aerobic background. Perhaps the most sensible advice is to dedicate two weekly sessions to the gym, but we have to be realistic: in some cases the gym just doesn’t go down. Then how to do it?
Alternative to the gym
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One possible alternative is to introduce hill running workouts once or twice a week. But which workouts do you prefer? Uphill workouts are basically of 3 types, if we want to be brief:
- sprint in salita
- average uphill repeats
- continuous climbs
All three are useful and should be mixed in training depending on the goal.
Continuous climbs
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If we are preparing long distances, continuous climbs are very useful. If you have the possibility, identify a stretch of about a kilometer uphill and use it as a yardstick. Climb trying to push well on your feet and maintaining a demanding speed and descending at a small trot. 4 to 8 reps. The difficult thing is if we live in a city on the plain, where it’s easier to focus on shorter distances.
Sprint in salita
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Also very useful sprint in salita, to be carried out on a rather sloping stretch of a maximum of 100 meters. One, two, or three sets of 10 sprints give your legs a noticeable strength boost. Recovery is important in this caseto be done by walking down to the base.
Medium repeats
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The average repeats they can be done remotely or timed, say 300 to 500 meters and 2 to 4 minutes. This type of training can also be introduced during the specific preparation phase, once every 15 days.