How strong is strong enough?

There's a lot of exciting things going on around here.

     First of all, I'm officially launching Ascend/Descend coaching services. If you are preparing for an event or adventure or just need to take your training to the next level I can help you improve any aspect of your fitness. Click on the Coaching tab at the top for details.

     Secondly, I'll be pacing my friend Geoff at the Wasatch 100 this weekend. I get to run the section from Lambs Canyon to Brighton. I'm excited to run this particular section and I'm pumped to watch Geoff succeed. This guy is FAST, but I think after 50 miles he'll slow down enough for me.

     Last, but not least, I mailed off my application for the 2012 Hardrock 100. This is my dream race. I've wanted to do this longer than I have actually been running. I love the mountains, and there's something about altitude that really excites me. Forty eight hours to finish 100 miles of running with over 67,000 feet of elevation change. I'll find out if I made it in sometime in December. If this doesn't pan out, I've got some adventures up my sleeve for next summer. We'll see! Check out the race website: Hardrock 100.

     And with that I'd like to turn my attention to the cooler nights and earlier sunsets. The cold, cold winter is soon to arrive and after a solid Spring and Summer spent running and racing, my attention has turned to strength and speed. It's a fact that running long makes you weak. Running long and weak are relative terms, of course. My long runs aren't that long for ultra running standards and my definition of weak may seem normal or even strong to many people, especially ultra runners. For the last couple years, I've been fascinated with developing relative strength. Relative strength is the maximum force exerted in relation to body weight. Instead of shooting for some standard number on each lift, like a 400lb back squat, shooting for some standard based on your body weight makes more sense to me. Mountain Athlete (a great gym, with damn good programming) has a list of relative strength standards that I find pretty spot on. I omit a couple things from their list and add some of my own. The following are the strength standards that I will be working towards and the standards that I think any endurance athlete would benefit from obtaining. 

                                MEN         WOMEN

Dead lift                   2 x BW      1.5 x BW

Back squat            1.5 x BW    1.25 x BW

Front squat          1.25 x BW         1 x BW

Power clean         1.25 x BW         1 x BW

Bench press         1.25 x BW         1 x BW

Press                        1 x BW      .75 x BW

Pull up                   +.5 x BW    +.25 x BW

*All standards are 1 rep maxes. BW = body weight.   

     From a powerlifting standpoint, these standards are laughable, and from an endurance standpoint they may seem unreasonable. I included upper body movements for my own benefit, and if you are an endurance athlete you could live without working on these, but I think a strong upper body can benefit every athlete. Besides, don't you want to be capable of battling a bear on your next trail run? You could at least try to make it a fight. At the very least, you should be able to take a box from the floor and put it on a shelf when you're old.