After Monday's post about needing a training plan, I sat down and planned out the rest of the year. I think it is a pretty good plan. By the end of the year, I should be consistently running 5 days a week and my long run will be up to 10 miles. At that point I will still have an additional 7 weeks to get ready for the Disney Princess Half.
I didn't work any strength training or cross training into my plan, but I really need to. Not getting injured is probably going to be one of my top goals for 2015. And to minimize the risk of injury I am going to need to do some strength training. I hit the gym on Tuesday and did the following:
 |
| Not listed: calf raises, bent over rows |
I'm definitely not an expert in weight lifting, but this seemed like a good mix of running specific leg stuff and upper body stuff. It also served as a nice reminder that I haven't gone to the weight room in approximately 6 months. The single leg dead lifts ended up being just normal dead lifts and I needed assistance with the single leg squats. I am so out of shape!
I was reasonably sore on Wednesday even though I only did one set of each exercise. Not sore enough that I couldn't run, but sore enough that I needed to spend some extra time stretching and warming up. At least I had company while I stretched.
 |
| Little kitty insisted it was petting time. Good thing she is cute. |
I'm not sure how often I am going to incorporate strength training into my routine. Does anyone else lift weights? If so, how often per week? I think I could set one day per week aside for weights, but I'm not sure if that is enough. I also know that every time I plan to lift after a run I end up skipping the lifting every.single.time. So there is no sense in setting myself up for failure.
I lift weights, but I also don't run as much as you. From what I've read, you get the most benefits by lifting at least twice a week. You should focus on a full body workout if you're only going to be able to lift twice a week to make sure you don't "overwork" a particular body area (upper/lower body).
ReplyDeleteAlso, if it makes you less likely to skip your lifting, change your schedule around so you lift then run. It isn't as miserable/hard as it may sound.
Thanks, Mudder! I was hoping you would chime in with your expertise. I have tried lifting followed by running and thought it was a major suckfest. Maybe I'll need to try it a few more times and see if I can adapt.
Delete