The Benefits of Squats for Runners
If you're racking up miles every week, you better be
squatting as part of your training routine.
BY AMY SCHLINGER
OCT 14, 2018
As a runner, you need to have strong, healthy legs in order to log miles on
the regular. One of the best ways to ensure your legs stay healthy:
squatting. And while it can sometimes be hard to give up a day of running
for a day of strength training, the benefits of squatting for runners
outweighs the pain of skipping a run day.
The Benefits of Squats
The squat is a multijoint exercise that primarily strengthens the
hamstrings, hips, quadriceps, and glutes. “These are the biggest and most
important muscles for runners because they power your stride,”
explains Jason Fitzgerald, USATF certified coach and creator of Strength
Running. “When these muscles are strong and functional, you’re far less
likely to get injured,” he says. Healthy, strong legs often equal faster legs,
too.
Besides just strengthening the major muscle groups used during running
and giving you more resilient joints, squatting boasts a bunch of other
benefits as well. A proper squat with correct form requires a certain amount
of flexibility. “That flexibility will provide a more efficient and economical
stride,” Fitzgerald explains.
And while squats appear to work the major glute and leg muscles, they are
also an incredible core exercise. “A weighted, heavy squat requires more
abdominal bracing than a plank,” Fitzgerald says. “That trunk stability is
vital to performance, injury prevention, and improving a runner’s economy.”
Speaking of injury prevention, because squats are a compound, fullbody
exercise, they prompt a big release of beneficial hormones such as
testosterone and human growth hormone, Fitzgerald adds. “These are
critical for the recovery process.”
How to Squat Like a Pro
Ready to give squats a shot? Start standing with feet just wider than hip
width apart, toes pointed slightly out, and hands clasped at chest for
balance. Initiate the movement by sending your hips back, then bend
knees to lower down as far as possible while keeping your chest lifted.
Press through heels and engage glutes to return back to the starting
position.
The Downside to Skipping Squats
If you have an injury or issue that prevents you from squatting, don’t stress
—it won’t be detrimental to your running career. Instead, Fitzgerald
recommends substituting squats with lunges, deadlifts, or similar
exercises. Why? There are other ways to strengthen the glutes,
hamstrings, hips, and quads, but being weak in those areas can actually
hurt you as a runner.
“Injuries afflict up to 70 percent of runners every year, and strength training
is one of the most valuable injuryprevention strategies that you have
available,” Fitzgerald says. “It’s a nobrainer to include strength training,
namely squatting, in your running program.”
The Best Types of Squats for Runners
If you’re new to strength training, it’s best to start with bodyweight squats
to perfect the movement before adding on weight. See above for proper
form. Once you’ve perfected a bodyweight squat, the next step is adding
weight to the squat. And once you have that form down, you can also move
on to more complex squat variations such as an overhead squat or front
squat.
“In general, all squats are good for runners,” Fitzgerald says. “It’s a good
idea to include a variety of squats to vary the movement, get stronger in
different ways, and improve flexibility.”
As runners, you shouldn’t ever lift for endurance. Fitzgerald says you
already get enough of that from running. But the goal isn’t to lift for
hypertrophy (or increased muscle size) either, because you’re not looking
to become a body builder and have to carry along big muscles on your run.
Runners want to lift for strength and power.
“This is done by lifting moderate to heavy weights for a moderate or short
number of reps,” says Fitzgerald. An example might be three sets of 10
reps of a bodyweight squat (strength for a beginner) or four sets of three
reps of a heavy, weighted squat (power for a more advanced runner).
How Often Runners Should Squat
Because the squat is a complex and demanding movement, it’s an
exercise that should always be done after a run–not before—or on a non
running day.
Weighted squats will generally be part of a longer more challenging
weightlifting routine done in the gym. “These types of sessions are best
done on your hard running days, like after a fast workout or a long run, to
ensure that hard days are kept hard, and easy days remain easy,” says
Fitzgerald. “Runners only need two formal weightlifting days per week at
the maximum.”
If you’re a beginner or just learning to perfect a squat, because you’re only
using bodyweight, these can be added after almost any run. They can be
included with other bodyweight exercises, which can also be done after
every run. “The easier the squat, the less important the scheduling,” says
Fitzgerald.
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