Arthur Lydiard, the coach who pioneered modern running training in the 1950’s said this when asked about strengthening the legs for running: “it’s the quads you should focus on, once they’re in good condition you’ll be able to maintain your form for an entire marathon.” 50 years later, his advice holds true. Even if we aren’t looking to run a marathon, every runner needs strong quads if they want to run easily and prevent injury. Today we’ll show you the best quadriceps exercises for runners and explain how to incorporate them into your training.
Do runners need to strengthen their quads?
The quads are one of the primary engines of the running stride. At 8:00 per mile, the quads produce 35% of the force that propels a runner forward (study). So yes, runners need strong quads if we want to run forward!
Strengthening the quadriceps can also help alleviate knee pain and probably reduce the risk of it developing in the first place (study). Also, performing regular strength training exercises has been shown to improve running economy, race times, and top speed in experienced runners (systematic review). Basically, strengthening your quads can make you a fitter more injury resistant runner. Who doesn’t need that?
Does running strengthen the quads?
It’s natural to think that running alone will strengthen the quads. After all, thousands of steps up and down hills should make the muscles stronger right? Well, running might make our quads slightly stronger, but if we want to prevent injury and improve our running ability, it’s best to strengthen the muscle directly with resistance exercises.
Here’s why: running is a chronic type of stress (moderately difficult for a long period of time) whereas resistance training is acute (very difficult for a short period of time). Our body responds to the chronic stress of running by making the muscles more aerobically fit (better able to receive oxygen and run longer). But, the body responds to the acute stress of heavy quadriceps exercises by making the muscles stronger. If we want to get stronger, we need the heavy, short stress of lifting, rather than the long, moderate stress of running.
The best quadriceps exercises for runners
If we want to strengthen the quadriceps there are two ways we can go about it. One is by isolating the quads with exercises that only work them, and the second is by selecting compound exercises that mostly involve the quad. If we frequently have tight quads and want to get them stronger, isolation exercises are great. If we want to get stronger overall and improve our running economy, compound exercises are best.
The best quadriceps isolation exercise: Banded quad extension
Why it works: this specific exercise has been shown to elicit near maximum quadriceps activity (study). If you know your quads are your weak link, this can be a great exercise to start building strength quickly.
The best compound quadriceps exercises
1 – Rear Foot Elevated Split squats
Why it works: this muscle strengthens the quads specifically and the legs overall. It also helps us identify and solve strength differences between our two legs.
2 – Lunges with weight
Why it works: this strengthens the quads and some other key muscles of the thigh like our adductors. Strength in all these muscles protects our knee and improves our running economy.
You can try these exercises, and even build a custom, quad focused prehab routine in the Recover Athletics app. The Recover App helps runners fix aches and pains and prevent injury. A year’s subscription costs less than one trip to physical therapist and we have an unlimited free trial. Give the app a try today!
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