Stronger = Farther: Why Strength Training Makes You a Better Ultrarunner
- Justin Biays
- Apr 17
- 10 min read
Let’s get something straight: If you think training for a 50K (or any ultra, for that matter) means stacking endless junk miles, running six days a week, and sacrificing your strength training, you’ve already lost.
You’ve lost the race, you’ve lost the longevity, and you’ve lost the plot of living an overall healthy lifestyle.
Look, we know and understand that not everyone loves strength training in the same way that not everyone loves running. But regardless of your preference, strength training is an absolutely necessary component of training if you desire optimizing performance or simply living a longer and healthier life than the average American.
At Dark Horse Athlete, whether we are training for an ultra or a powerlifting meet, an Ironman or bootcamp, we do things differently and for a purpose.
Our athletes don’t just survive ultramarathons—they dominate them, and they come out better on the other side; physically, mentally, and emotionally, our athletes meet their goals with more resilience and power than they started with.
And they couldn’t do that without our conservative-mileage and progressive-strength methodology.
Unfortunately, many running coaches with the best intentions are building fragile, overtrained mileage junkies who will burnout in a year or two.
With our approach, we build durable, powerful runners who can take a beating and keep moving for the long haul.
This blog is going to expand on the foundational programming principle that gets these results: lower running volume, higher strength volume. (If it’s your first ultra, check out this Registration to Race Day post)
We’ll lay out why—and how—that works when training for an ultramarathon like a 50K, as well as giving you some additional guidance on the practical implementation of these ideas in your own workouts.
While we recommend reading the full post, you can jump to article sections here:
Why Strength Training Improves Running Performance
Most runners think strength training is just “cross-training.” This mindset is a problem, and regrettably, leads to runners putting in plenty of extra effort without reaping the actual payoff.
Cross-training as a runner, by definition, is simply training in modalities other than running. Cycling, yoga, swimming, or even circuit classes with weights can all be considered cross-training. So, sure. You can call strength-training cross-training, but not all cross-training is strength-training; It's like calling all shoes running shoes just because they go on your feet.
And steel-toed boots are not going to serve you well on mile 17.
Cross-training keeps your cardio engine running without pounding your joints into dust, and there can definitely be a time and place for it in your programing; but strength training is what actually bulletproofs your body against ultrarunning’s slow-motion breakdown. While cross-training maintains endurance, it doesn’t reinforce the frame—strength work, however, rewires neuromuscular efficiency, fortifies tendons, and builds the biomechanical armor you need to not just survive 100 miles, but hammer through them.
Strength work is not an optional side dish—it’s the backbone of a successful ultra prep.
The Big Three: Bench Press, Squat, Deadlift
Most endurance athletes scoff at these lifts. They think they’re reserved for meatheads in lifting belts chasing big totals. That mindset is short-sighted.
The Big Three build the foundational capacity every runner needs: force production, posture under load, joint stability, and fatigue resistance. These compound movements target major muscle groups, reinforce connective tissues, and demand full-body control.
While you may not be thinking about how important these things are when your lungs are burning, you will be the second your knees start to ache for days after long runs, your quads give out on a hill, or your pace slows to a crawl when you can’t keep your posture upright.
The other reason we are going to hone in on these big three lifts is simply because of time, dosage, and efficiency. Likelihood is, you barely have enough training time as-is to squeeze in everything you should be. While calf-raises or rear-delt flys have their place, the Big Three is going to get you the most bang for your buck.
Let’s break them down:
Squat
The standard squat is the king for a reason. The squat builds strength across the entire posterior chain—glutes, hamstrings, quads, and core. In ultrarunning, your posterior chain is what drives you uphill, keeps your knees aligned downhill, and stabilizes your pelvis over thousands of steps.
Stronger glutes = more propulsion
Stronger quads = better shock absorption
Stronger core = less energy leak in every stride
A solid squat pattern also protects your knees and ankles once fatigue begins to set in. And when you’re 5 hours deep in a race and descending rocky terrain, that stability matters.
There are dozens of squat variations that you can implement, but again, simplicity is a beautiful thing when it comes to efficient training. Think back squat, front squat, or even goblet squat so we can load a bit heavier and benefit a little bit faster.
Deadlift
The deadlift is your engine builder. This lift teaches you how to generate force from the hips and maintain a neutral spine under load—two things that directly translate to running with better posture and efficiency, especially under fatigue.
Deadlifts also train grip strength, which matters more than people think when you’re on your feet for 6+ hours. Your upper back, lats, and traps all stabilize your torso, which reduces postural collapse and keeps your breathing efficient.
And let’s be honest—if you can pull double bodyweight off the ground, you’re going to handle elevation gain, steep descents, and technical trails with a different level of confidence.
Bench Press
This one throws people off. Why in the world would an ultrarunner need a strong bench? If any one of these lifts can get thrown out, it’s bench…right?
As ultrarunner say: not so fast.
Ultramarathons aren’t just about legs. You need upper body endurance to carry hydration packs, manage trekking poles, climb obstacles, scramble with your hands, and most importantly, maintain upper-back posture mile after mile.
The bench press trains the pecs, shoulders, and triceps, but it also reinforces the shoulder girdle and thoracic posture, especially when paired with rowing and pulling variations. The stronger your upper body, the longer you can hold good running form—especially in the final third of a race. We have a full blog post on this concept of upper body benefitting runners here.
Bottom line: none of these lifts are just for building brute strength.
They’re for building a resilient frame that doesn’t collapse under fatigue. And they give you more bang for your training time—especially when you're only running three days a week.
We don’t program the Big Three for vanity or even for ego-chasing PR-crushers. We program them to make you a more efficient, powerful, injury-resistant runner.
Unilateral Accessory Work
In addition to the big three lifts, some accessory work can be largely useful components of programming as well. Things like Single-leg RDLs, Bulgarian split squats, step-ups, and lunges all expose—and correct—imbalances. If your right leg is doing 70% of the work while your left just hangs out, that’ll show up fast in a race.
We aren’t always able to load these well, nor are they the most time-effective movements when trying to maintain a life outside of the gym, trail, and office. So though we don’t want all of our strength training to be this type of supplemental work, implementing these types of exercises into your programming can help fix the problem before it becomes pain.
Strength Training = Injury Prevention
All of that being said, over 50 percent of runners get injured every year. Why? Well, there can be plenty of factors, but much of them could be reduced or even solved by improved form and frame endurance. In short: Many runners end up injured because they do too much running and not enough lifting.
The reality is that ultrarunning is an over-use sport. Repetitive impact, poor glute engagement, weak hips, and imbalances all add up the more miles you put in.
Strength training attacks these problems directly:
Reinforces bones, tendons, and ligaments
Corrects left-right imbalances with unilateral training
Strengthens stabilizers and postural muscles for late-race form integrity
While we cannot - and will not- tell you that squatting, benching, and deadlifting are going to make you an invincible runner with no nagging pains, we can promise you that it helps, that it’s proven to reduce your risk of injury, and that you will feel better before, during, and long after race day with it.
Why Power Work (Yes, Plyometrics) Belongs in Your Plan
Adding force is one thing. Applying it fast is another.
That’s where plyometrics come in.
Think: bounding, box jumps, skater hops, pogo hops.
In short, plyos train your nervous system to fire quickly and your tissues to handle high forces. You’re not trying to jump like a basketball player—but you are trying to build:
Explosiveness in the stride
Elastic energy return in tendons
Better coordination and reactivity on uneven terrain
If your only training of these elements of fitness is happening on your run - when you’re already trying to focus on pace, fueling, breathing…and not dying. Strength training is building your form and frame; plyometrics is creating better execution and transfer of strength.
Simply put, training without plyos is just not going to cut it.
So, what does this look like in practice?
This doesn’t mean you need entire sessions fully devoted to power/plyo work like a court or field athlete does. For runners, we implement this work mainly into strength day warmups and ramping up into the workouts.
Typically, this will look like adding low volume (think 2x/week, 3-4 sets of just a couple of plyo exercises) into the end of the warmup, always emphasizing quality and control over speed or reps.
A few key notes with this:
You should not begin your warmup with plyos. We want to get your body temperature and heart rate rising first with some monostructural cardio (jogging, cycling, rowing, etc.) as well as a little bit of mobility and muscle activation. Then, we can do our plyos. This allows you not only to execute the movements better, but to do them more safely as your body is prepared for the explosive demand and landing impacts. To fully optimize your warmup, see our our RAMP Method Warmup Guide.
You also should not be doing plyos at the end of a heavy lift, long run, or in a state of high fatigue. Explosive work demands sharp neural output, and when you're running on fumes, you're basically teaching your body to jump like a flat tire—no bounce and no control. Fatigue kills landing mechanics, too, and when you're too gassed to absorb impact properly, your joints and tendons take the hit. If we push plyos to the end of a fatiguing workout, we’re passing the risk-reward threshold.
Keep it sandwiched between a good warmup and the bulk of a training session.
How to Blend Strength and Mileage
If you haven’t caught the hint yet, let us state is plainly: you don’t need 60-mile weeks to prep for a 50K. You need intentional volume and smart fatigue management.
But what does this look like in practice?
We recommend: - 3 runs per week - 2–3 full-body strength sessions per week - Strategic plyometric work once or twice weekly
That structure gives you enough volume to build endurance, but keeps you healthy and explosive. You’ll spend less time training and get more from every session.
Example Weekly Split Overview:
Monday: Strength (Lower Body + Plyos)
Tuesday: Quality Run (Tempo or Intervals)
Wednesday: Strength (Upper Body + Core)
Thursday: Easy Run
Friday: Strength (Full Body + Unilateral Focus)
Saturday: Long Trail Run
Sunday: Rest or Active recovery
Strength Day Details:
Monday - Lower Body + Plyos: Moderate-heavy lower body lifts to build strength and plyos to build power
Wednesday - Upper Body + Core: Moderate-heavy upper body lifts to build strength and core-specific exercises
Friday - Full Body + Unilateral Focus: We ideally want to hit muscle groups 2x/week, so having a lower, upper, and then full body day allows to hit the major ones twice and get in some accessory work
Run Day Details:
Tuesday – Quality Run:Intervals, tempo runs, or threshold work. Improves speed, running economy, and lactate threshold.
Thursday – Easy Run: Aerobic recovery pace. Focus on mechanics, breathing, and soft-tissue recovery.
Saturday – Long Run: Main driver of weekly mileage. Builds endurance and time-on-feet.
This setup is most definitely not the only option, nor a perfect one.
(Sidenote: there is no “perfect” weekly split - you are going to have to run on tired legs sometimes…you’re training for an ultra, so buck up buttercup.) But this split minimizes interference, maximizes recovery, and keeps you strong from week to week.
If you can build a program that does this, do that. If you can’t, use this one. Better yet, check out our 50k Prep Program.
How to Build Running Volume on 3 Days per Week
Stick with the 10% rule — and give it time.
At Dark Horse Athlete, we stand by the 10% rule because it works. Especially for beginners. This rule means never increasing running volume more than 10% weekly.
So, if you’re starting with a 5K–10K base, we recommend a 20-week training cycle to safely and gradually build volume, staying under this threshold. This gives your body time to adapt, without breaking down.
Why the 10% Rule Works:
Gives tendons, ligaments, and joints time to catch up with aerobic fitness
Prevents overuse injuries
Increases mileage progressively - for both a physical and mental build
Like the weekly split example above, here is an example of building this running volume in real life.
Example Mileage Progression:
Let’s say you start with a long run of 5 miles and a weekly total of 13 miles.
Here’s how you would build each week using the 10% rule:
Week 1: Long Run = 5.0 miles / Weekly Total = 13.0 miles
Week 2: Long Run = 5.5 miles / Weekly Total = 13.5 miles
Week 3: Long Run = 6.0 miles / Weekly Total = 14.5 miles
Week 4: Long Run = 6.5 miles / Weekly Total = 16.5 miles
Week 5: Long Run = 5.0 miles / Weekly Total = 13.0 miles (Cutback Week)
While you may feel “able” to increase it by more- especially in the first few weeks- you are more than likely shooting yourself in the foot down the road. Stick with this guideline, and if you have extra time or energy, put that into strength training or active recovery.
Final Thoughts: More Strength, Fewer Miles, Better Outcomes
Most 50K runners train with a “more is better” mindset. More miles, more soreness, more breakdown. That’s not how we do it.
The only thing you may need “more” of as an ultrarunner is FOOD and RECOVERY. We’ll touch on these topics far more in-depth in future articles, but here are some helpful performance nutrition guidelines and the biggest keys of recovery.
At Dark Horse Athlete, we train for performance and durability. You won’t be the most fragile person toeing the line — you’ll be the most prepared.
TLDR:
Fewer miles, more strength
Quality over quantity
Structure over chaos
If you want programming ready-to-go for you, check out our 20 Week 50k prep program. That’s how we build athletes who can not only run 50K — but come back wanting more.
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