So I’ve never lifted before and I’m pretty weak in comparison to the other guys when lifting but I still have decent times, I’m graduating high school this year and then going on a church mission then planning on walking on the the track team freshman year of college. If I’m lifting that whole time how much faster can I get. I’m abt at 55 400 and 215 800 right now and I think I can get them both down at least 2 and 7 sec respectively.
The degree to which you get faster by weightlifting is right between none and a little. I'd still say you should do it for other benefits, but it won't help much with that.
The degree to which you get faster by weightlifting is right between none and a little. I'd still say you should do it for other benefits, but it won't help much with that.
This is incorrect. Strength to weight ratio is an important component to running fast, especially in mid-distance, as the OP is a 400m/800m runner. Additionally weightlifting would aid in injury prevention, as the ability to stay healthy is another key to performance.
With the proper regimen it is possible to gain power without weight gain unless the weight gain is needed. So, I do mostly agree with you that it can be very helpful.
For each pound you gain, you need to not only be able to provide enough force to carry that pound efficiently, it also has to provide enough power to make you faster with the weight you already have. This is a tall order unless the athlete is really underweight.
With the proper regimen it is possible to gain power without weight gain unless the weight gain is needed. So, I do mostly agree with you that it can be very helpful.
For each pound you gain, you need to not only be able to provide enough force to carry that pound efficiently, it also has to provide enough power to make you faster with the weight you already have. This is a tall order unless the athlete is really underweight.
no joke, power cleans and power snatches unlocked my athletic potential.
went from average to very competitive within a few months as a result.
This is a joke.
And, to the OP, traditional weight lifting leads to injuries so be careful. It's best to use resistance band exercises specific to the running motion for strength.
no joke, power cleans and power snatches unlocked my athletic potential.
went from average to very competitive within a few months as a result.
This is a joke.
And, to the OP, traditional weight lifting leads to injuries so be careful. It's best to use resistance band exercises specific to the running motion for strength.
Any high impact activity such as running has a much higher correlation with injuries.
It would be helpful for O.P. to state his age. It would be helpful for O.P. to state her or his free weight squat personal best. Don't bother listing dead lift personal best. If O.P. is a 150 pound 18 year old male and unable to free weight squat 135 lbs. bar once, weight training will help improve 100m to 800m. If O.P. is a 150 pound 18 year old and is already capable of free weight squatting 350 pounds, more weight training will not necessarily mean greater success, 100m to 800m.
It would be helpful for O.P. to state his age. It would be helpful for O.P. to state her or his free weight squat personal best. Don't bother listing dead lift personal best. If O.P. is a 150 pound 18 year old male and unable to free weight squat 135 lbs. bar once, weight training will help improve 100m to 800m. If O.P. is a 150 pound 18 year old and is already capable of free weight squatting 350 pounds, more weight training will not necessarily mean greater success, 100m to 800m.
I’m 6 2 160lb and maybe squatting 185 for a couple reps, but it hurts my back and shoulders a bit cause I’m so skinny it’s right on bone. And I’m not even going to mention how much I can bench. It’s not good
The trouble with this discussion is that "weightlifting" can mean so many different things to different people. You need the details to get meaningful feedback. What do you mean by weightlifting? What exercises specifically? How often? How much weight...as a % of max? Recovery? And so on. You get the idea. Personally, I've never seen anyone actually improve their running with weightlifting...but that doesn't mean there isn't a way to make it work.
With the proper regimen it is possible to gain power without weight gain unless the weight gain is needed. So, I do mostly agree with you that it can be very helpful.
For each pound you gain, you need to not only be able to provide enough force to carry that pound efficiently, it also has to provide enough power to make you faster with the weight you already have. This is a tall order unless the athlete is really underweight.
I haven't lifted since gyms shut down from covid in 2020. In hindsight, I think I wasted a ton of time and energy there.
Since 2020, Ive focused my training on actually doing the specific movements I wanted to do (running fast) and what do you know, my speed is as good as it ever was when I was putting in gym time on top of the running.
Do the specific activity you want to get better at, at the speeds/efforts you want to do them at. Best way to improve your speed. Running fast is a skill, start putting the time in on that (and not some non translatable gym moves that have little to no carryover to sprinting)
You should go watch Clayton Murphy’s YouTube on it. He talks through all of this. I’ve seen guys like Galen and Mo regularly use the weight room as well. you can lift and not get big, but lifting should allow you to do more on the track vs looking at it as a direct way to get faster
Weightlifting requires a certain balance and the ability to step back. Runners typically do not know how to do that. If you go into weightlifting with the same mentality as running then you will just end up tired.
In order to lift during interval training weeks you will have to lift as a secondary workout on the same day as your hard effort, a consolidation of overload stresses.
You shouldn' be in the gym long, and you shouldn't be trying to do a whole bunch of reps. Your goal should be about strength and power.
It's impossible to tell you how much improvement, if any, you'll get from weightlifting. You can look up peer reviewed research on the matter.
My bogus is that weightlifting doesn't help speed directly.
but, I really feel it does. while it won't help me lower my interval.. i feel it does help me run that interval 3 times with lesser effort. and that, 5 weeks later, will help me run that interval faster.
most importantly, consistent conservative weight lifting cuts down on injuries and tweaks and that alone makes it worth it.
it's also a mind game boost. I know going into a tough point I have put in the work and others have not. Perceived effort of all is less.
I think all the skinny runners on this website must be jealous of those who have more muscle and body definition b/c their aversion to lifting is not based on science or reality. Michael Johnson, Wayde Van Niekerk, Butch Reynolds all did lifting as part of their training regimen. I don't know of any serious 400 runner who doesn't do some amount.
Not only will weight lifting help with one's strength and explosive power but long term it has been shown to reduce the risk of injuries, help build bone density, and it boosts metabolism as muscle cells burn more calories than fat.
Will powerlifting have a dramatic impact on your 5 or 10K time, probably not though it still might help with injury prevention but for the 400 and 800 it definitely won't hurt and should help a lot with the 400 in particular.
185 pounds for your weight is not bad. Weight lifting usually increases your power and helps with top-speed, but, as other have mentioned, your 800m time sucks compared to your 400m time, so it is likely that you are more endurance-limited (or the 800 is not your distance). I would continue weight lifting 2-3 times/week after you learnt proper technique (it should not hurt your back if you do it properly) because there are a number of benefits in doing it, but without the expectation that it will make you much faster.