I am often asked "Coach, should I add weight training to my training program?" My answer is "It depends, but for most runners the answer is yes." The reason that I cannot answer yes or no depends upon the runner's goals.

Weight lifting builds muscle mass and the additional muscle mass gained from lifting will make a runner heavier. Putting on a few pounds of muscle can actually result in the runner being slower. If you are an elite athlete or someone who is solely motivated by age-group competition, slowing down even one or two seconds per mile can be the difference between winning an event and placing out of the money. Just take a look at the photos of elite men and women marathoners. They do not have upper body muscle mass. Thus, I might advise such runners not to lift at all or to engage in very limited lifting.

For the rest of the running community, the answer is that you probably should consider incorporating lifting into your weekly workouts. There are many reasons. Lifting helps to strengthen your core in a way that simply doing crunches or "ab" work does not. A stronger core leads to a better running posture. Lifting also strengthens the back, shoulders, and arms. This additional strength will help most of us in long distance races, especially marathons, to hold our form at the end of the race when major fatigue sets in. Lifting also will help with flexibility, a problem that many runners face. Increased flexibility can actually help most of us get faster.

Weight lifting is even more important as we get older. It is shocking how much strength we start losing in our 50s and even more so in our 60s and 70s. Weight lifting can make a difference in quality of life, as I have experienced personally. I have only been lifting consistently about three years. In this very short time, I have more than doubled the amount that I can lift and have strengthened my core significantly. I have added about ten pounds while losing almost an inch on my waist--a tradeoff I would take any day.

Runners are advised to consult with a personal trainer. If you do, check out the trainer's certifications first to make sure they know what they are doing. (Editor's Note: See the article on selecting a personal trainer in the Jul-Aug '05 issue.) There are many very qualified personal trainers in the D.C. area who are also accomplished runners and will design a lifting program that is consistent with your running goals. But the main reason to consult with a personal trainer is to get instruction on proper form because it is quite easy to injure yourself if you use improper form. For instance, when doing bicep curls, many people try to lift too much, resulting in back strains.

Most studies indicate that you only need to lift twice per week to build muscle. All you need to do is one back, chest, shoulder, bicep, and tricep exercise, consisting of two working sets of 10 to 12 repetitions. It can easily be done in 45 minutes to an hour. Most runners do not need to do much in the way of leg work, especially if hills are part of your daily routine.

I generally advise staying away from squats and heavy leg presses. Marathoners should stop lifting for a couple weeks before the race. If you are a serious racer, you probably want to concentrate your lifting durng your training phases while backing off during racing season.

I would appreciate any comments, feedback, or insights from other runners about their experiences with lifting.

Coach Kirt West is a private coach for motivated adult runners. Questions can be sent to kirtwest@comcast.net