Most adult runners in the Bay Area treat strength training as a thing they "should probably do" — a few weighted squats once a week, some clamshells, maybe a session at the gym when a hamstring is acting up. Then race season hits, they cut it entirely, and the body that's been doing 30 miles a week with no real loading work starts breaking down somewhere around year five.
The strength work I do with runners isn't about making them gym-strong. It's about giving the running body the structural support it needs to keep doing what it's doing — and ideally, to do it faster.
What runners actually need from strength work
It's not what most coaches sell. It's not five sets of weighted lunges and some core work. It's heavy bilateral strength (deadlift, squat), single-leg strength (split squats, step-ups under load), and posterior chain work (Romanian deadlifts, glute-ham raises) at intensities most runners avoid because they're worried about being sore for their next run.
The math: 30-50 minutes of focused strength work twice a week, with enough load to actually matter (working sets in the 3-6 rep range), and the running stays intact. Soreness is usually mild after the first three weeks. Performance improves — easier paces, fewer niggles, better mile-six form.
What I usually cut
Endless core work. Most adult runners have plenty of midsection endurance from the running itself. What they're missing is bracing capacity under load, which you get from carries and squats, not from planks.
Random "running-specific" exercises pulled off Instagram. The single-leg deadlift on a Bosu ball is a great way to look interesting on social media. It's not the work.
Calf raises as a primary calf strategy. Calves grow from running, not from calf raises.
What I usually keep, in some form
Heavy deadlifts. Heavy squats. Loaded single-leg work. Real hamstring work. Loaded carries. Weighted hip thrusts for glute strength.
The 12-week consult
Coaching starts with a 12-week consult — free, in person, about thirty minutes. The point is to figure out where you're at, what your race calendar looks like, and whether what I do fits into your current training week.
FAQ
I'm in a marathon block — should I be lifting heavy? Yes, just less of it. We pull volume during peak training, keep intensity, and ramp back up after the race.
Will I get bulky? No. Strength training at the doses we're talking about doesn't add meaningful muscle mass in someone running 30+ miles a week. It adds capacity, not size.
How sore will I be? First three weeks: noticeable but manageable. After that: usually mild.
The next step is the consult. Thirty minutes. In Palo Alto.