Endurance, strength and power coexisting
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1st Feb '10, 6:29am
I'm a strength and conditioning coach with 8 years experience. In my time I have heard it all. In college I kept getting told that an endurance athlete can't possess great levels of strength and power and vice versa. This is true, but not to the extreme that that we are led to believe. Most research looks at athletes that engage in either one or the other type of training. They don't observe athletes that engage in multiple modalities. Mariusz Pudzianowski is a fine example. He has been world's strongest man several times yet he skips for 15 minutes before strength training and regularly goes for middle distance runs. I've also personally witnessed an ultra-endurance athlete that was skinny as a rake deadlift 200kg for 5 reps. Now I understand that 20km runs every day will compromise strength and power, but to what extent? By the same token, it doesn't make sense that heavy strength training will compromise marathon times or the ability to play tennis for four hours. Not to the extreme we have been taught anyway. Now, I do have a question for anyone that may know. What research, if any, have you come across that supports the coexistence of strength, power and endurance? I'm writing an article for my website and have come across limited research that supports what I am proposing. I would love to know anyone's views on this topic. Feel free to put forth your educated opinion. Don't be backwards in coming forward.
I think certain qualities
26th Apr '10, 1:32am
I think certain qualities can co-exist, but you can't maximize all areas at the same time. For example, I recommend high weight/low rep resistance training for many long distance runners. I do this because it helps them to improve their anaerobic capacity without making them gain weight, or decrease their endurance. Herb Elliot did this type of weight training and he was unbeaten on the elite level for the mile, setting several world records in the process. I also have noticed that my short sprinters have done very well in 60m sprint races right after we have completed a training block that emphasized track work that is more akin to 400/800m training. I don't really know what the reason for this is other than the hypothesis that the body craves variation, and this variation helps to stimulate improvement.
Chris Gafner
http://after-30-fitness.com/
Just read Tudor bompas
9th Jan '11, 10:31pm
Just read Tudor bompas periodisation book which heavily emphasises the importance of of max strength training for any athlete.
If you can increase force - you can increase performance. In Bompas words "in many of these sports the propulsion phase is the essential phase for improved performance. Swimming - the drive through the water, rowing driving the blades through the water, force applied to the pedal in cycling and force applied to the ground in running. Higher velocity is possible only as a result of superior force application against resistance (eg. gravity, snow, water, ground)"
Superior force application comes by training for max strength to increase force capability, then improving the rate of developing this force through power training (plyometrics, olympics lifts, etc.)
Also I remember getting a lecture on this at uni and the benefits of strength training for endurance were to include:
Improved running economy
Improved Intermuscular coordination
Increased neuromuscular activation
Increased Stretch shortening cycle
hope that helps!
article
9th Jan '11, 10:31pm
also this is one of my favourite articles on strength - may help you!
http://www.elitetrack.com/articles/read/2255/