Hi, and welcome back to the Mohsin Salya blog.

As a runner, you can sometimes overlook the importance of strengthening muscles and joints. Strength training leads to improved race times, good running form and being less prone to injury. In fact, strength training is one of the single most important non-running aspects of training.

However, runners require a completely different strength training program than the standard gym-goer or bodybuilder. As a runner, you need to focus on targeting the key muscles that will keep you balanced. By targeting the muscles you use most during running – mainly the quadriceps, hamstrings and the calves – you can correct any muscle imbalances that may occur.

Here are some of the best strength training exercises that you can work into your training:

Planks

You may know this already, but all variations of planks are some of the best core exercises you can do to target every angle of the core, lower back and shoulders. This makes it one of the most simple but powerful strength exercises.

1. Lie on your stomach
2. Prop up on to your elbow with feet slightly apart, and toes about hip distance apart. Make sure your shoulders are directly above your elbows.
3. Aim to straighten your whole body so that it’s forming a straight line from the top of your head to your heels.
4. Whilst engaging your core and keeping the straight line, hold this plank position for 30 seconds to a minute.
5. As you get stronger, aim to gradually add more time. You can also make it more challenging by adding weights – placing a plate on your back is a good way of doing this.

Here is a great example of how to plank correctly.

Overhead Lunges

This is a great exercise to target the whole body – quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, shoulders and core muscles as well. If you’re pressed for time and looking to get the most out of your workout, then this is also a good one for you as it’s quick yet effective.

1. Hold a pair of dumbbells straight above your shoulders, with arms straight and elbows locked. Make sure your feet are shoulder width apart and your knees are slightly bent.
2. Whilst keeping the weight directly overhead, step forward with your right leg into a deep lunge position, bending both your knees.
3. Return to the starting position and repeat with your left leg. Do 12 steps on each side to complete one set.

Follow this guide for the ultimate overhead lunge.

Air Squat

As a runner, the squat should be a staple in your runner’s orientated strength training programme. They are the single most important exercise that you can do to strengthen the whole body, as they target a lot of running specific muscles.

1. Stand with your feet hip distance apart with toes facing forward.
2. With your arms out in front of you at shoulder height, squat down by bending your knees.
3. Lean forward at the waist whilst keeping the back flat and knees tracking behind your toes.
4. Squat until your thighs are parallel to the ground or to the point where you can no longer keep your back flat.
5. Press up through your heels to return to starting position.

Check out this guide on how to do a squat correctly.

Until next time,

Mohsin Salya

Some runners sometimes shrug off the importance of strength training when it comes to avoiding injury and improving performance. However, strength training should be part and parcel of your training program, as it will help you in many ways, including avoiding injury and improving your performance.

One of the regions you should be focusing on as a runner, to increase strength and mobility, is your hips.  The hips are one of the most important, and yet ignored, aspects of biomechanics. Hip weakness is a major injury root-cause, so when it comes to warding off running pain (especially knee pain), your hip strengthening exercises are some of the most important you can do.

By committing to a hip strengthening routine two to three times a week, you can increase stability and support of your core region. By starting with one set of eight reps and gradually building on it so that you are doing three to four sets of 12 to 15, you should start noticing major improvement in less than two to three weeks. Here are some suggestions:

Single Leg Bridge

• Lie on your back with both knees bent and feet flat on the floor, arms pressed against the floor by your sides. Lift your hips, tone your thighs and squeeze your glutes.
• Next, raise your right leg up in the air as straight as possible, keeping your foot flexed and extending it whilst raising your lower back. Lift your hip as high as possible by engaging your abs and pressing down through the left heel.
• Hold the position for five to ten seconds, and then lower your hips to lightly touch the ground. Now switch legs.

Donkey Kicks

• Get on all fours, with your hands directly under your shoulders and your knees under your hips, and your wrists aligned under your shoulders.
• Draw your abdominals in as you gradually lift your leg behind you until it’s almost parallel to the floor, with your knee bent and your foot flexed.
• Hold this position and pulsate your flexed foot towards the ceiling by engaging and squeezing your glutes. Keep the motion small and controlled with the muscle doing most of the work.
• Focus on the muscle, and avoid using momentum. Also make sure you keep your back straight and spine in a neutral positon.
• Lastly, return to the starting position and complete one rep.

Bird Dog

• Get on all fours on your hands and knees with your palms flat on the floor and shoulder width apart. Your knees should be directly under your hips and your hands beneath your shoulders. Make sure to keep your lower back and abdomen in a neutral position.
• Next, engage your core to keep a good balance. Raise your left arm and extend it straight out in front of your body as you raise your right leg and straighten it behind you.
• Hold this position for three to five seconds, and then return to the starting position and repeat.

Until next time,

Mohsin Salya

It probably goes without saying, but if you want to perform to the best of your ability when running, it’s vital that your warm up routine is right.

When you start running cold, your body is going to take time to get into its optimum running mode. You’ll be inflexible and stiff, and your body will inhibit your natural stride. By warming up correctly, you’ll start your run without limitations. There are not only physical benefits to warming up, but also psychological – you’ll know in your mind that you’re ready for that run.

Warming up should never take more than five minutes, so it isn’t too much effort and it isn’t too time consuming. Here I’ve put together four warm up techniques to get you ready for your run.

Hamstring stretch and hip mobiliser

1. Stand upright and sideways on to a wall
2. Keep your weight on the leg furthest from the wall, and balance with your hand closest to the wall
3. Swing your non-standing leg backwards and forwards 15 times
4. Repeat on your other leg

Hip abductor mobilisation, gluteal and iliotibial band

1. Place both hands on a wall and lean slightly forward
2. Swing your right leg to the left, across your body and pointing your toes in the air as they reach the furthest point of motion
3. Swing your leg back across your body and as far to the right as is comfortable, again pointing your toes upwards as they reach the highest point
4. Repeat this 15 times, and do the same on your other leg

Knee lift and hip rotation

1. Stand on one leg, supporting yourself on a wall if necessary
2. Raise your non-standing knee directly upwards to hip height
3. Keeping your knee at hip height, move outwards as far as is comfortable and then slowly lower to the ground
4. Repeat 15 times, and then do the same with your other leg

Iliotibial band and oblique stretch

1. Stand with your legs crossed with your feet close together. Start with your left leg behind your right
2. Raise your right arm so that it is pointing straight up
3. Gently stretch to the left, without leaning forwards or backwards and hold for 20 seconds
4. Repeat starting with your right leg behind, raising your left arm and stretching to the right

Until next time,

Mohsin Salya

There’s so much demand on our time these days, that it can be hard to fit running into our schedules. But if you really want to start pounding the pavement, consider handling other pressing tasks while you run, so you can keep up with everything. Here’s five easy ways to multitask while you run.

Change the world

So many people decide to run marathons to support good causes, such as Cancer Research or Operation Smile. Join them, so you can raise money to make the world a better place and get an extra motivation for running. It’s easy enough to spread the word about your fundraiser. Create a crowd funding campaign on sites such as Just Giving and share the page on social media, so your loved ones can get involved!

Do some errands

If you plot your running route carefully you can do some errands while jogging, making more time in your day for other activities. You could, for example, include your local post box on route so you can drop off any letters you need to send. It’s a good idea to invest in a lightweight backpack here, which you can buy easily enough at most good sports stores, so you can hold these items while running.

Expand your mind

You may be occupied physically, but your mind is free. Put it to good use, by listening to audio books as you jog so you can educate yourself. Download audio books to your phone, and buy a running armband to keep it secured to your bicep, allowing you to listen. You’ll need sports headphones, and the Monster iSport Strive is a good option here. The cheapest model in this range, these can be secured to your ears easily, so you can listen without fear of the buds being jostled out of your ears.

Thinking time

The beauty of running alone, is that it gives you a lot of time to think. You might want to turn this to your advantage, by working out the pressing issues in your life as you pound the pavement. You could take the time, for example, to do some brainstorming for work, coming up with new ideas to impress your boss. It’s wise to invest in free voice capture apps here such as Smart Voice Recorder, available for Android phones, so you can capture your brilliant ideas as you go.

Be social

It can be so hard to make time for your family and friends, with modern life putting so many demands on our time. You can kill two birds with one stone, by making your own running group and recruiting your loved ones to join, so you can spend time catching up with them while getting fit together. You could also join a running group and meet new people, which can be difficult when you’re busy!

Maximise your time

There are so many physical and mental health benefits to running. It can help you do everything from tone your muscles and improve your heart health, to boost your brain activity. But if you take the advice in this article, you can get even more benefits when you’re strapping the running shoes on, as it will ensure you can maximise your time. What more do you need to begin jogging right now!

Until the next time,

Mohsin Salya