jack of all trades...king of none (cross country and bulking)

[pectoralitous]

I love cross country. But I hate being skinny like other cross country runners. I did cross country last season and I was quite happy with the places that I have received. I never come in last. One race I came in 77 out of 180 runners. To me, that's pretty decent considering I'm the bulkiest on my team and usually against all competitors.

I currently weight 180 lb but how how can I maintain my muscle mass during cross country. Dang.

[Squirrels]

I love cross country. But I hate being skinny like other cross country runners. I did cross country last season and I was quite happy with the places that I have received. I never come in last. One race I came in 77 out of 180 runners. To me, that's pretty decent considering I'm the bulkiest on my team and usually against all competitors.

I currently weight 180 lb but how how can I maintain my muscle mass during cross country. Dang.

First of all, you mentioned that you are 180 lbs. How tall are you? Do you have a lot of excess fat, or are you pretty lean?

...As a state-ranked runner in high school, I'm gonna give it to you straight. Any excess weight (that doesn't serve a purpose) in distance running counts against you. I said ANY excess weight...which means fat AND muscle that you don't use for racing. Now, that being said, I would assume that you want to keep your muscle for aesthetic reasons, seeing as it will not improve your times. So...here's what you do....

-STOP lifting for your legs (if you haven't done so already). For one thing, if you're running miles and miles every day, what are a few squats going to do for you? NOTHING. Hill running and speed workouts are the best training your legs can get. Secondly, you don't want huge legs. The leg muscles are the heaviest and they don't add much aesthetic value unless you're a bodybuilder or a guy who likes wearing short shorts. They will only weigh you down in a race.

-DO lift for your upper body. All of it. Everything above the waist should be accounted for. Your stride in a race is driven by your upper body. Upper body strength also improves form. Leg turnover cannot happen without arm turnover. Therefore: fast arms= fast legs. Strong arms= strong legs. You get the point. The muscles in the upper body will also give you the most aesthetic value if you're looking for a more "muscular" look than the average cross country runner.

-DON'T eat too much. You will get fat and your times will get slow. You're not going to "lose mass" from running. I don't care what some 16-year-old meathead football player says, that is complete and utter bull****. I'm working on a degree in exercise science so I think I would know. You can still achieve your goals while eating normally (or even slightly less than normal if you're carrying around some excess fat). Just make sure you get enough protein, and take it easy on the carbs.



...so basically what I'm saying is...Do your running workouts, lift for your upper body, and keep a healthy diet. That's essentially what sprinters do (except running workouts are slightly different, however, they still run a lot) and they don't seem to have a problem with losing muscle mass. The reason lots of xc kids are so skinny is because they don't lift. Because to be honest, for distance runners, the benefits of lifting sometimes don't measure up to how much hard work it takes. But if it's something you like to do, it can definitely be fit into cross country training.