The Runner’s Guide to Cross Training

About 50 million Americans consider themselves runners, which means that nearly 15 percent of us lace up our shoes and hit the trails, road, or hop on the Peloton Tread or Tread+ on a regular basis. The benefits of running and jogging are proven and legit, however, if those strides are the only part of your fitness strategy, you could be doing a disservice to your muscles, your joints, your pace, and beyond.

To become a better runner, you have to run, true. But to become the best runner you can be, and to step up your total body training routine, cross training is key.

What Is Cross Training?

“Cross training is performing or engaging in multiple and varied training activities or exercises in order to improve fitness for performance in one’s main role, sport, or skill,” says John K. Koniuto, a doctor of physical therapy and the owner of FYZICAL Johnson City in Johnson City, New York. 

So in the case of runners, cross training could refer to any other workout that could compliment your end goal: Becoming a stronger, more efficient, and safer runner who’s less prone to injuries and more likely to PR.

Is Cross Training Good for Runners?

“I am a huge proponent of cross training for runners; mixing up your training with other activities,” says Robin Arzón, Head Instructor and VP of Fitness Programming at Peloton.

During his 30 years of practicing as a physical therapist, Koniuto has developed a philosophy that he advises clients about often: “Train to run, and don’t just run to train.”

The benefits of cross training for runners, or, in Koniuto’s words, of training to run, include:

Injury Prevention

 “The vast majority of the runners who come to me do so because they have suffered an overuse injury of some sort,” Koniuto says. This is often caused by an imbalance in the body, a lack of stability or mobility, or muscle weakness in a specific region, such as the core.

“Often, a properly targeted cross training regimen can successfully address many of these issues,” he explains. Cross training can also come in clutch if you’re on the mend. “If you're swapping running for something more low impact like cycling and or rowing, this allows injury-prone or injured runners to maintain their cardiovascular fitness and their running fitness when they're off their feet,” Robin says.

Improved Cardiovascular Health 

If you had to choose between cardio, strength training, or a combo of the two, variety is your best bet if you want to take care of your ticker. One small study found that when individuals performed a mix of 30 minutes of aerobic training and 30 minutes of resistance exercise three days per week, within eight weeks, it had a better impact on the measured risk factors for heart disease more than their peers who did three hours of strength or three hours of cardio alone during those same eight weeks. Although the study authors mentioned more research with a longer study duration and more people involved is needed, the study is promising for making the case that doing both types of exercise is ideal to help lower your risk for heart disease. 

Increased Muscle and Bone Strength 

Challenging your muscles in different ranges of motion and with increasing levels of resistance can lead to an improvement in muscle strength, endurance, and flexibility, research suggests. And any weight-bearing exercise, especially strength training, has been shown to bolster bone strength (a key factor to help prevent stress fractures). 

A Mental and Physical Breather

 “Switching up your training can be a great mental break,” Robin says. If you ever feel like you’re hitting a wall or are bored by your training, variety might be beneficial to engage your body and brain in new ways.

How Often Should You Cross Train as a Runner?

The most crucial detail is to avoid overtraining. “For most runners, I think one to three days per week [of cross training] is going to be a good idea, depending on the race distance and the running volume. That is also going to mean incorporating strength training primarily on those days,” Robin says.

Mobility is always a great idea, and can be done as an active warm-up to your run. If you’re recovering from an injury, ask your doctor or physical therapist if swimming or pool running might be an approved alternative.

If you’re unsure of your optimal training program, a physical therapist, a running coach, or personal trainer can help you dial in your personal routine.

The Best Cross Training Workouts for Runners

Between your indoor and outdoor runs, consider interspersing these cross training modalities, most available on the Peloton App.

Strength Training

“The number one cross training for runners that I would recommend is weight training. This is armoring yourself for the ‘long game’ of running and improves running economy,” Robin says. “When combined with proper running form, stronger legs, hamstrings, quads, calves, and glutes make runners more efficient.”

Strength training that targets the legs can directly help you become a stronger and faster runner, she continues, and stronger legs have also been shown to fatigue slower in endurance events as well. For this reason, Robin particularly recommends that distance runners (think: marathoners and ultramarathoners) prioritize strength training.

But don’t overlook the importance of core and upper body strength, regardless of how far you hoof it. These areas are important to ace your best runner’s posture—which doesn’t involve hunching, excessive arm swinging, or looking down.

You might think of targeted exercises like a leg press machine when we mention strength training for runners, but “I more strongly support performing combination moves in functional positions, like squat variations, deadlifts, and lunges,” Koniuto says. 

Also among Koniuto’s picks for the best strength training moves for runners: Plank variations with sets facing the floor, facing the ceiling in a bridge, side planks, as well as any body weight or dumbbell exercises that move your body laterally (like side lunges), front to back (inchworms, for instance), and in a twisting fashion (such as a dumbbell chop).

Yoga

From better posture and more core strength to improved stability and mobility, yoga gets a big thumbs up from both Robin and Koniuto. 

“A strong core is also going to make a stronger runner,” Robin says. 

Plus, many poses offer the ability to stretch muscles that are often overtaxed by running (we’re looking at you, hip flexors). 

“Power yoga can also help people develop better strength in the stability centers of the lumbar spine and pelvis, knees, and arches of the feet,” Koniuto says.

Although restorative yoga might feel like a “waste of time” to athletes who are more familiar with fast-paced running workouts, this is ideal for recovery days. Plus, the breathwork and body awareness will pay off in your running over time, Robin adds.

Cycling

For a no-impact cross training option that gets your heart pumping and offers a similar cardio challenge to running, saddle up.

“I particularly like cycling for runners because you're working the major muscle groups in your legs just like running, and it works your cardiovascular system to make you fit, but without the pounding,” Robin says.

Cycling and running involve strength and endurance in some similar muscle groups—the pushing muscles of the arms and upper body, the butt, quads, hamstrings, and calves, according to Koniuto—“but with much less ground reaction forces and therefore much less impact on the lower body joints.”

Everything from flat rides to climbs to HIIT rides will pay off for runners. Mix and match or choose according to your goals (endurance, strength, improved cardio fitness, respectively).

Rowing

“Rowing can benefit runners by developing fitness and stamina in similar muscle groups as cycling, but with a bonus of engaging the ‘pulling’ muscle groups of the arms, shoulders, and upper back in a low-impact manner,” Koniuto says.

Although it might look smoother and perhaps “easier” than running, get this: Rowing works a large amount of your muscle groups 86 percent of your body’s muscle groups simultaneously, Robin adds. And in other positive news, rowing works the opposing muscle groups of cycling, so they’re terrific complements of each other.

Aim to work until you notice light to medium fatigue to challenge the muscle groups but not strain them to the point of requiring excessive recovery of more than a day. 

“This way, you can still feel well enough to perform your training runs,” Koniuto says.

Mobility Work

These 8 at-home mobility exercises are beneficial to help athletes of all kinds reduce their risk for injuries, and they’re quick and easy to incorporate into your routine before or after your run. 

If Koniuto could recommend just one piece of equipment to invest in to support cross training for runners on the mobility front, it would be the foam roller. 

“Few people really know how to properly use it, and if they do try to use it, they highly dislike it because it feels very uncomfortable, so they avoid it,” Koniuto says. But similar to how avoiding those long runs won’t pay off come race day, it’s worth the work: “The truth is that the more you use it, the easier it gets to tolerate, and the more it helps them address any lack of mobility.” 

The goal is to normalize soft tissue tone, Koniuto continues. If an area is stiff, deep pressure for up to five minutes on the target fascia can slowly but surely help loosen things up. If an area is “asleep,” deactivated, or weak, the aim is to “wake it up,” or activate the tissues, by moving the target fascia quickly with lighter pressure for about 90 seconds or so.

These foam roller exercises for your back are incredible for nailing your running form, improving posture, and opening up your upper body. And don’t miss these foam roller leg exercises that can help soothe sore muscles. 

Swimming

The buoyancy benefits of being in water means you can achieve a strong cardio workout with minimal impact.

Aside from performing swimming strokes like freestyle and butterfly, “a runner can also perform running movements having the water provide resistance in all directions,” Koniuto says. 

The deeper the pool, the more of your bodyweight will be offset while aqua jogging, which makes it feel easier. A neck-deep pool offsets about 90 percent of your body weight so it feels nearly gravity-free, according to Koniuto. For a more vigorous challenge, head to the shallow end and jog in hip-height water.