This is Part Two of Coach Kylie’s explorations into the strength training that we do and the impact on our running. This blog is her own personal experience of training for two different marathons in 2019 and the strength and mobility training that she did for each. Enjoy!
Race 1: Great Wall of China Marathon // May 2019
In 2018/19, as a new mum, I began my training for the Great Wall of China Marathon. Being somewhat housebound and time challenged, I knew I had to find smart ways to compliment my normal running training. I didn’t have the luxury of ample time to get out on the trails, hills or hit the gym. I now had a sleeping, eating dependant and our house or the local park was going to have to do.
So what did I do?
I would create a little workout space at home or in the garage, often with my daughter on the ground beside me and work through a series of body weight, theraband and light weight workouts to rebuild the strong foundation I knew I would need in order to climb the steep sections of the Great Wall on event day.
I didn’t factor in big weights, just lots of repetitions with light weights and bands. I also did a lot of balance and stability exercises as well as some good old fashioned HIIT training, particularly on days when my scheduled run sessions didn’t go to plan for some reason.
I wanted to get my core and glutes super strong and my muscles used to volume. So I focused in those areas with these regular exercises as part of most of my routines:
Lunges, jump lunges, step back lunge drives
Step ups, squats, medicine ball weighted squats, squat jumps
Curtseys and skaters
Skipping, burpees and more burpees
Mountain climbers
Push-ups, planks, plank shoulder taps, commando push ups
I also did a lot of walking in addition to my running to increase total volume.
Thankfully this approach to regular strength work from home worked! I’m not going to lie, I was nervous about my lack of stair and hill specific training, particularly as I heard many of the other runners boasting about theirs at the start line. Lesson: Don’t compare to others.
Deep down though, despite this insecurity closer to the surface, I knew I had trained the best way I could for my current lifestyle and commitments. My body felt strong, injury free and stable. And this is always what you want to feel at the start line!
Our Coach - Runner partnership worked really well, I thought. Chris focused on getting me running to the best of my ability and we agreed that I would be tasked with designing the best cross training sessions I could, to fit around my new parameters. We were both relaxed and realistic about what life looked like and actively discouraged comparisons to our previous training regimes and races where there was much more time and scope for more running.
You can read more about my actual event day and the race itself here, but needless to say, the wall was tough, but I conquered it! Afterwards I felt very proud of what we had achieved and the role that my own simple strength training had played in that success. I also felt I had proven to myself that it was more than possible to do big events, even when the training situation couldn’t be considered ideal or specific!
Race 2: Four Vines Marathon // November 2019
After the Great Wall of China Marathon, we took a short break but I was soon keen to take on a new challenge. In late 2019, the Four Vines Marathon came into view and I went into it with a goal of a Marathon PB on a flat, but not necessarily conventional course.
I did a lot more running and specific speed work in this preparation and given that we live in the flattest part of Melbourne, this was super convenient. I continued with my stability and mobility sessions that I had used for China, but truth be told I dropped from four strength sessions per week down to two or three, as my sleeping baby became an energetic toddler and maternity leave became part time work.
In hindsight this adaptation was a mistake. The Four Vines Marathon course threw me a great challenge and in some ways, I found it a tougher race than China, despite achieving the PB I was after. The course had every type of terrain - country road, gravel, dirt, around the vine fields and even through a hay paddock (No path, just the paddock!) As I hit the 27km mark, my legs were almost audibly screaming and only got louder the further I went on. It seems that 8km over the rough terrain had worked them hard and it felt like every fibre of my hamstrings, calves and adductors were working to the max.
On reflection, I can see that a better strength training program would have made a difference and that time under heavier loads, especially in lateral movements would have been the perfect inclusion. I think I would have added in more time under load. A more strength and power based focus would have been perfect here, with exercises such as:
Heavy weighted squats
Deadlifts
Weighted lunges,
Weighted lateral lunges
Weighted step ups
Clean and press.
I also would have kept a higher level of stability and mobility work that all runners need, plus the more dynamic strength work that we can get through burpees, jump squats and skipping.
Ideally I should have been doing 2-3 strength/ power sessions per week and 1-2 mobility/ stability sessions per week in addition to my runs. 30-40 mins per session would have been fine.
Hindsight gives us the power to learn and become better and with that knowledge. As a result of just these two experiences, I have learnt a lot and feel even better equipped to train my athletes up for similar events in the future. I may even challenge my PB at Four Vines at some stage!
If this article rings true for you or if you have further questions, please get in touch! I would love to hear from you and you can drop me an email at: kylie@gorun.com.au