My Top 3 Exercises for Runners to Add in this Off-Season

Sean Rimmer

Running Specialist Physical Therapist  at Run Potential Rehab & Performance in Colorado Springs, CO. 

Photo Credit - Scott Rokis

My Top 3 Exercises for Runners to Add in this Off-Season

It’s that time of the year again, the “off-season” in trail running is inching closer as we head into the fall and winter months. For some of us, this may mean a shift towards cross-training and resistance training in the gym with less running; and for others, this is often an opportune time to work on weak points surrounding their running for next season. 
One area of weakness I often see in runners is a fault in postural control, especially when fatigue sets in. To put this into context, postural control refers to the dynamic position of the head and trunk relative to the pelvis and lower extremities during running. If we have sound postural control during running, we tend to get better output from our hips to drive propulsion.
In this article, I’ll review 3 of my go-to postural control exercises I issue to runners which aid in improving the position of the trunk relative to the pelvis and lower extremities. I typically recommend adding any or all of these variations into your resistance training routine 1-3x a week.

​Barbell March

The barbell march consists of a slow weight shift from one leg to the other, stabilization of the stance leg into neutral extension at the hip and knee while the swing leg moves into hip flexion. Some of the keys to this exercise are to focus on an upright head and trunk relative to the pelvis, stability of the stance leg starting at the foot via engagement of the big toe remaining in contact to the ground, neutral extension of the knee and hip, and a level pelvis.

​I typically recommend pausing for 2-5 seconds in the march position before you slowly bring the swing leg down to the ground demonstrating full control in the movement. 

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A benefit of this exercise is that it is mostly an isometric (hold) movement which should cause minimal to no soreness even at heavier loads. I like to issue this exercise with a barbell to challenge the posture, as grip tends to be a limiting factor when holding a weight either over-head or in either hands with dumbbells (though those are additional options for this exercise). By using a barbell, we can typically add more load to this movement to really challenge the postural control, and this can help replicate remaining upright through the trunk as the legs fatigue.
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A typical prescription for this movement would be 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps at a moderately-heavy load as long as technique remains sound. If you’re consistently losing balance, then reduce the weight and progress heavier as technique improves.

​Mid-Stance Isometric (Hold)

This is one of my go-to exercises all year round to touch on. This exercise consists of a hold replicating the mid-stance position of running. This is the position during running where our body is under the most load, and when our leg acting as a spring is in full compression. This position consists of slight flexion under load at the following joints - The hip, knee, and ankle (dorsiflexion). The muscles engaged isometrically during this exercise consist of the trunk core muscles, glutes, hamstrings, quads, and calf muscles. I recommend doing this exercise within a smith machine to remove the stability component of this exercise to allow for heavier loading. 


If a runner can improve load capacity in this position while maintaining stability through the trunk and lower extremity, this exercise can help to improve fatigue resistance moving through this position during running.
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A typical prescription for this exercise would be 3 sets of 20-30 second holds on each leg at a heavy load (a 7-8/10 perceived intensity for the duration).

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Step-up-March-Step down combo

Step ups and step downs are both great single-leg exercises in themselves for runners. Because of that, I like to combine the movements into one exercise adding in a march pause at the top position between the step up and step down.

The initial part of the exercise including the step up to march focuses on hip drive down and slightly back into the step as the trunk and swing leg move into the march. This helps to load the body in a similar manner to the stance phase of gait. The goal is to use the posterior chain (glute/hamstrings) to push down into the step as the trunk moves up and forward into a march. Similar to the barbell march, aim to keep the trunk uptight with neutral extension of the hip and knee in the top position.

As we move into the step down, the goal is to keep the trunk mostly upright as the knee and ankle flex allowing the swing leg to tap the ground in front of the step. The step down helps to replicate downhill running through eccentric (lengthening muscle contraction) through the quads and calf muscles. Once the step down is completed, we move back into the march position, then return back to the start. What I’ve described is one full rep. 

This is a dynamic exercise that challenges the muscles/joints in the leg in a similar position to running while also adding in postural control and balance. This exercise has a lot of “bang for your buck” for runners specifically. One key point for this movement is to use a lower step height. I recommend about 6-8 inches, because if we go much higher than that, it changes the dynamic of the exercise itself.

A typical prescription for this exercise would be 2-3 sets of 6-8 reps performed slowly on each leg at a moderate load as long as technique and balance remain sound.

Closing Thoughts

As a runner, supplementing with a resistance training routine can pay dividends by improving fatigue resistance and reducing injury risk. It is often more of a challenge to remain consistent to a resistance training program during peak run training, but the off-season tends to be a nice time to shift gears and focus on some weak areas surrounding our running. For many runners, dynamic postural control tends to be a weak area, not always due to pure organic weakness, but oftentimes due to lack of coordination. By training movements under load that challenge our postural control similarly to running, we can start to gain internal feedback to reflect back into our running so we can remain in control.