1. WEIGHT TRAINING FOR MARATHONERS.

I have read that weight training is beneficial to marathon training. When in the training schedule should weights be introduced? What exercises should I do? What reps and weights?
Chris Cocek, Edmonton, Alberta

STRENGTH TRAINING is beneficial to any physical activity. Strength can be improved with free weights, weight machines, or your own body weight. Use whichever of these methods is most convenient for you. You want a balanced program that improves the strength in both your upper and lower body. A program that uses your own body weight as resistance in doing push-ups, pull-ups, dips, sit-ups, and curls would be beneficial. For weighted exercise, start with low weights and proceed slowly, gradually building the reps and weights for each exercise. Recent research seems to indicate that one “set” of weight work two to four times per week is probably adequate for marathoners.

—Dr. William Roberts
is a member of the Marathon & Beyond Science Advisory Board. He specializes in sports medicine at MinnHealth SportsCare Consultants in White Bear Lake, Minnesota.

YOU CAN strengthen the arms, back, and shoulders by lifting light weights at high repetitions. Universal equipment works well as an apparatus. Doing three sets of 10 repetitions on the Universal machine every other day throughout the year will help strengthen various muscle groups. In addition, you can incorporate free bar lifting, which focuses on the triceps, shoulders, and pectoral muscles. Again, always use low weights with quick reps.

—Mark Conover
is a coach at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, in California, a running columnist for The Runner’s Schedule, and the winner of the 1988 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.

2. RUNNING TO 80—AND BEYOND.

I am currently 62 years old and hope to run into my 80s. My question has two parts: What advice can you give me so I can successfully enjoy my next 20 years of running? And do older runners have an increased incidence of arthritis?
Nester Slywka, Burnaby, British Columbia

RUNNING IN your age group (which is also mine) can be enjoyable and very beneficial to health, so it is increasingly important as time goes by for you to “listen to your body” and run within comfortable limits. If you run competitively, run against people in your age group. If you feel unwell or have unusual symptoms, stop running and consult a physician—preferably one sympathetic to older runners!

A number of studies indicate that older runners generally have fewer symptoms of arthritis than do sedentary people of the same age. However, signs and symptoms of arthritis do increase for aging runners and nonrunners. Moderate exercise has an important place in arthritis therapy. However, data on people aged 65 and over who run marathons and beyond are, understandably, quite limited.

—Dr. Peter Wood,
recently retired from Stanford University, is the veteran of dozens of marathons, and is chairman of this publication’s Science Advisory Board.

I’M WITH you, Nester! At 72 I’m still enjoying my running and plan to run into my 90s or longer. Here’s my recipe. For maximum enjoyment, run with friends. Doing so enlivens the exercise experience and keeps you from becoming bored. The miles pass quicker, and there is lots to talk about. When running on your own, have a workout planned ahead and don’t deviate, except for unforeseen circumstances. Make sure you get lots of rest, too, but not necessarily on your duff. Walking days are great rest times and much better than doing nothing. Four or five miles at a 15- to 16-minute pace will repair the stresses of harder running days. You should also race at least a couple of times a month to stay motivated and share the camaraderie of others who care about their wellness. Remind yourself often that you would rather be running and feeling good about yourself than having bypass surgery or having your arteries routed out.

Older runners generally suffer less from arthritis than do sedentary seniors. More medical professionals these days are recommending exercise to minimize the problems of arthritis. Occasional use of anti-inflammatories is okay. Keep moving, perfuse the joints with fresh, clean, fast-flowing blood, and you’ll be running well into your 80s.

—John Keston
is the oldest man in the world to run a sub-3:00 marathon.

RUNNING IS an excellent exercise to help preserve both your mental and physical health, and you have every right to hope to continue to derive enjoyment from running as you age. However, you must also recognize that your running and racing pace will gradually slow down as you get older, so mentally you must face the fact that your PRs are probably long past. What you want to do is slow down the rate at which you slow down. Put another way, you want to be “all that you can be” for your age.

Although how fast you slow down depends primarily on your genetics and your training, one factor that may accelerate the rate of decline is injury. Aging appears to slow down one’s recovery from running injuries. Thus, one primary way to continue to enjoy your running is to prevent running injuries through appropriate training. For example, flexibility training and resistance training both help to prevent injuries by increasing muscle elasticity and strength. Incorporating into your weekly schedule rest or cross-training regimens such as cycling, swimming, or rowing instead of running may also help you prevent overuse injuries. Cross-training will also help you maintain cardiovascular fitness if you do become injured and help to speed up the recovery process.

Age itself is a risk factor for the development of osteoarthritis, a form of arthritis associated with the eventual wear and tear on the joint cartilage. Whether or not older runners (as compared to age-matched nonrunners) have an increased incidence of osteoarthritis due to the impact of running is still controversial, at least according to some researchers. Research suggests that older runners may be at more risk to develop osteoarthritis if they have a history of arthritis before they started running, have poor running biomechanics, had a previous injury to a running joint, or are overweight. Some studies suggest that female runners may be more prone to osteoporosis at the knee joint, possibly because of poor biomechanics attributed to the natural angulation of the bones at the knee.

However, when these risk factors are controlled by appropriate research design, most studies indicate that a lifetime of long-distance running is not associated with premature osteoporosis of the ankle, knee, hip, or lower back joints. Actually, several recent studies have reported that runners (ranging in age from 52 to 74) developed musculoskeletal disability at a lower rate over an eight-year period when compared to age-matched nonrunners. This suggests that running may exert a positive effect on musculoskeletal health.

Nevertheless, it might be a good idea to decrease any undesirable stress on the joints as we age. You can help reduce excess loading on the joints by improving the stability of your running gait, possibly through an appropriate biomechanical analysis of your running style. Using stable, well-cushioned shoes and running on soft surfaces may also help reduce joint loading, as will losing excess body fat if you are overweight.

—Mel Williams, PhD,
is the director of the Human Performance Laboratory at Old Dominion University. A runner himself, Mel trains first-time marathoners with the Leukemia Society’s “Team In Training” program.