Why Trail Runners Need to Lift (Even Though It Feels Like Cheating)

If you're logging serious miles on the trails right now, the last thing you want to hear is "go lift weights." Hear me out anyway.

There's been a persistent belief in the running world that time in the weight room is time stolen from actual training. Every hour on a barbell feels like an hour you could've spent putting in miles, and when you're deep in trail season, that math feels even more urgent. Skip the gym, run more, get faster. Simple.

Except it's not quite that simple. A well-known meta-analysis on strength training and injury prevention found that resistance training cuts overuse injuries by roughly half, and general strength training reduces sports injury risk overall by close to a third. For trail runners specifically, more time on uneven ground means more repetitive stress on tendons, stabilizers, and connective tissue that a purely running-based routine never directly strengthens.

There's a performance case too, not just an injury one. Research on highly trained runners has found that strength training, done alongside a normal running program, measurably improves running economy, meaning you use less energy to hold the same pace. That's not a small thing on a long climb with miles still ahead of you.

You don't need to become a powerlifter, and you definitely don't need to give up mileage to make room for it. Two short sessions a week, built around squats, single-leg work, and some posterior chain strength (think deadlifts, hip hinges, calf work), is enough to move the needle. It's not competing with your running. It's the thing making your running hold up.

So next time lifting feels like it's stealing time from the trail, remember it's actually the thing keeping you on it.