Is it possible to be great at Cross country, Track, and Weightlifting?

[Apollo21]

how much work would i have to put in to be good at all three?
I have the weight training ability as i am 158 pounds and can bench 270
But i wanna grow overall as a athlete. I run around 12:2 100 meter dash. and run a 39 minute 5 mile.
What can i do to excel in all 3?
My goals for each are 300 on bench. 10:5 100 meter. and 29 minute 5 mile. What workouts and routines can i do to reach or even surpass all of them?

[6thgear]

how much work would i have to put in to be good at all three?
I have the weight training ability as i am 158 pounds and can bench 270
But i wanna grow overall as a athlete. I run around 12:2 100 meter dash. and run a 39 minute 5 mile.
What can i do to excel in all 3?
My goals for each are 300 on bench. 10:5 100 meter. and 29 minute 5 mile. What workouts and routines can i do to reach or even surpass all of them?

Well, I can say from a triathlon perspective if your aiming for roughly 29 min 5 mile that puts you at under a 6min/mile pace. Which means you will need to shave roughly 2 minutes per mile off your current time. You need to boost your miles per week, doing runs into the 7 mile range at 70-85% of your "race pace"
But based on your info I picture you as shorter but built up, I think getting a stride to beat 29mins will take you time, so don't let that get you down. Not sure what your training for, but you should continue practicing sprints, and long distance to boost your endurance and recovery, and practice your starts to drop that 100 meter down. Depending on your launch ability you could be losing nearly a second. Bench your close, so I'd just keep pumping and adding 2.5 pounds a week till you make the break into the 300s.

[ktj4l]

Endurance running and sprinting will counter each other a lot. This is why most sprinters don't bother with distances much longer than 800m, if that. It's a tall order to sprint the 100m in 10.5s even if sprinting is all you train for, especially at 5'6". I would recommend you choose one goal for now when it comes to your running. Either focus on becoming the best sprinter you can possibly be or become the best endurance runner you can possibly be. Endurance running will directly impact the amount of muscle mass you will carry. For an exaggerated example: Compare an Olympic sprinter's physique to that of an elite marathon runner.

Sprinting and weight lifting can be simultaneous goals. Most sprinters, football players (they train for top speed), etc. have a good amount of muscle mass and that is usually built by lifting weights and eating enough. You don't need to get huge for a 300lbs bench press, so that goal is definitely within reach while you work on your sprinting. More important will be your squat, deadlift and Oly lift numbers though, because that's the strength that will have direct carryover to sprint speed.

Endurance running will kill most weight lifting progress just like it will kill most sprinting progress. If you choose to go after your long distance running goal, just expect for the other two to take a long time to improve.

Choosing one main goal for now would be my advice. Once you reach it, see what you want to do next. Or you can go the Crossfit route and be okay at a lot of different things. The numbers you're trying to reach probably won't happen though.

[Engineer_Guy]

When you say weightlifting do you mean actual weightlifting, competing in the clean & jerk and snatch?

[ironwill2008]

Is it possible to be great at Cross country, Track, and Weightlifting?

Great? At all three?

I guess that would depend on your definition of 'great.' For mine, you'd have to have the genetics of Bo Jackson.




It would probably be best to not even ask the question though. If you want to pursue all those goals, do it. See just how good you can be.

[PinkNgreen]

Of course you can, haven't you heard of crossfit?! It makes you elite at EVERYTHING.

[DCSpartan]

When you say you bench 270, please let it be actually touching your chest without any of your spotters with as much as a hand on it.

[NewlyImproved]

In for video of 270 pound bench.

No, you cannot be great at all 3. You will never run a 10.5 100 meter dash. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you but your genetic potential is slower than 10.5. Save the crap about "you can accomplish anything if you set your mind on it and work towards it". The most easiest of those goals is the 300 pound bench press, because you can train and eat your way up to it. The 29 minute 5 mile is going to take atleast 2 years of solid, every week distance training, which will make the 300 pound bench ridiculous. (I don't think you can do both at the same time, maybe I'm wrong but I know running as well as about anyone). I used to run 25:30 for 5 miles and I know I can't run 29 right now and I've only been out of it a year.

OP: Pick your battles. The best goal would be train a couple years for the 29:30, lose about 5-10 pounds while continuing to lift, then build towards your 300 pound bench press.

[NewlyImproved]

Here's one for you: Joe Falcon. He is one of the greatest genetic freaks ever. I have some friends that were on the track team with him. Rumor has it the Arkansas football team was making fun of the cross country guys in the weight room and he challenged them to a lift off. Turns out he was the only person able to bench twice his body weight: 255 @ 124 pounds.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Falcon_(athlete)

[DCSpartan]

Turns out he was the only person able to bench twice his body weight: 255 @ 124 pounds.

Here's one for you: Its still just a a 255 bench press. I'm certain the football players can squat weights that would break him in half if he even tried to rack them on his shoulders.

A double bodyweight benchpress is outstanding for a highschooler but doesnt classify one as a genetic freak.

[CamLeslie]

Here's one for you: Its still just a a 255 bench press. I'm certain the football players can squat weights that would break him in half if he even tried to rack them on his shoulders.

A double bodyweight benchpress is outstanding for a highschooler but doesnt classify one as a genetic freak.

To do that and run a sub 4:00 min mile is impressive though. Not my thing but I can respect that.

[TheCaptainPower]

You are doing almost the exact numbers as me. I'm only maxing around 275 now in the bench, and I just ran a 5 mile race last week in 35:00 flat.

For myself, my body needs some cardio to get cut up. For some guys its different. I used to bench 355, but I wasn't running at all and I also weighed 30lbs more.

You can definatly get stronger, but its going to be a little bit harder. I say keep running. I try to add some extra protein on days when i run long or hard.

Good luck!

[Apollo21]

When you say you bench 270, please let it be actually touching your chest without any of your spotters with as much as a hand on it.

Yes i actually touch my chest and i would post a video I actually don't have one. When i get back to school where i can lift I'll try to post it. I have a picture of me doing 265 if that will even convince you (probably not). I'm gonna guess this website has a few frauds.

[Apollo21]

In for video of 270 pound bench.

No, you cannot be great at all 3. You will never run a 10.5 100 meter dash. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you but your genetic potential is slower than 10.5. Save the crap about "you can accomplish anything if you set your mind on it and work towards it". The most easiest of those goals is the 300 pound bench press, because you can train and eat your way up to it. The 29 minute 5 mile is going to take atleast 2 years of solid, every week distance training, which will make the 300 pound bench ridiculous. (I don't think you can do both at the same time, maybe I'm wrong but I know running as well as about anyone). I used to run 25:30 for 5 miles and I know I can't run 29 right now and I've only been out of it a year.

OP: Pick your battles. The best goal would be train a couple years for the 29:30, lose about 5-10 pounds while continuing to lift, then build towards your 300 pound bench press.

I wish i had a video i really would prove it to you. Every thing takes time to improve you cant automatically be good. It takes hard work and will. If you give up to soon you will never know how close you were. I actually started running i wanna say august 22nd to Nov 3 i went from not being able to run 2 miles to running 5 in 39 minutes. It just takes work. it says you are 179 lbs. sounds kinda big for somebody that runs 15:18 5k. Genetics say you should be slower but stronger than me. Genetics isnt everything. Genetics helps though.

[Apollo21]

Well, I can say from a triathlon perspective if your aiming for roughly 29 min 5 mile that puts you at under a 6min/mile pace. Which means you will need to shave roughly 2 minutes per mile off your current time. You need to boost your miles per week, doing runs into the 7 mile range at 70-85% of your "race pace"
But based on your info I picture you as shorter but built up, I think getting a stride to beat 29mins will take you time, so don't let that get you down. Not sure what your training for, but you should continue practicing sprints, and long distance to boost your endurance and recovery, and practice your starts to drop that 100 meter down. Depending on your launch ability you could be losing nearly a second. Bench your close, so I'd just keep pumping and adding 2.5 pounds a week till you make the break into the 300s.

I want to have a 29 minute 5 mile by the time senior year in college. I have around 5 semesters to get that in. or by fall 2015. do you know any programs that will actually increase my speed? i have some isometric bands that helped a lot but im not gonna start to use them again until i have a good program going for me, because ive lost a lot of strength in my legs since starting cross country. quads thighs etc.

[NewlyImproved]

I ran 15:18 in my prime in 2010. I've since moved on to other endeavors. I ran 32 for 10,000 in 2010 as well.

DC: To be the world leader in the mile and bench twice your bodyweight makes you a genetic freak. To run 3:49, which at the time was the american record. Falcon 's body had to pump oxygen and blood to that muscle mass. Falcon also used to do 1:44 800's in practice.

The reason I say you won't run 10.5 is because 10.5 guys can still run 10.9-11.1 or so of the couch with NO training. Just by going out and racing. That kind of talent is easy to see. With 5 years of WORLD CLASS training they are lucky to be 10.4 guys.

I'd say to run 29:30 you are going to have to be training 40-50 miles a week of running depending on your talent level. So I would recommend you slowly work up to that.

[Apollo21]

I ran 15:18 in my prime in 2010. I've since moved on to other endeavors. I ran 32 for 10,000 in 2010 as well.

DC: To be the world leader in the mile and bench twice your bodyweight makes you a genetic freak. To run 3:49, which at the time was the american record. Falcon 's body had to pump oxygen and blood to that muscle mass. Falcon also used to do 1:44 800's in practice.

The reason I say you won't run 10.5 is because 10.5 guys can still run 10.9-11.1 or so of the couch with NO training. Just by going out and racing. That kind of talent is easy to see. With 5 years of WORLD CLASS training they are lucky to be 10.4 guys.

I'd say to run 29:30 you are going to have to be training 40-50 miles a week of running depending on your talent level. So I would recommend you slowly work up to that.

Thats the thing i ran that with no training. Yeah im not extremly tall to get better strides. But it's not impossible man. If you wanted to you COULD beat your times in what you call your prime. Right now if you're willing to put I'm the work and effort. If you're older it takes more work and effort than it did when you were younger. I wanna reach my goals in 3 years not 3 months patience is everything.

[NewlyImproved]

True. What I would have to do to beat my times in my prime is lose 40 pounds and run 2 hours a day to win some local road races? I've slayed the biggest dragons I could in running.

I think you should focus on the 29 5-mile and 300 pound bench. I spent 5 years doing DI track (and had a sub-par career except one cross season). I knew guys who ran 10.9 in high school. They all deadlifted 3 times their body weight, and had 40 inch verticals. They had a world class coach and access to all the perks (ice baths, A-trainers). Even some of them could never get down to 10.5. Though none of the guys I knew resorted to performance enhancement. The 10.1 guy I knew did so natty.

Best of luck on your endeavors as well. I won't project myself on you, and assume we hold the same utility over the same goals.