Training & Nutrition - Gymless Weight Training ?

I am trying to understand the importance of weight training in developing a solid program. I'm interested in building endurance & have no intention of building a lot af muscle mass. My primary motivation is to participate/compete in duathlons. I wanted to start a thread that I can ask questions I can't get answered using the search function. I hope to get into a nutrionalist next week to get my diet squared away, but would like to do enough research so that I can ask her informed questions.

My first questions for you guys are, do I really need weight training at this point? I run at least 3 miles a day, sometimes 6. I spend at least an hour on a fluid trainer or ride 20-30 miles daily as well. I've been doing this a little over a week & feel like my body is adapting, the soreness is getting better & I'm feeling stronger. At this point I haven't taken a day off & yesterday I was dragging a bit because of the added 2 hours of yard work. Do I need to take a day off once a week to allow my body to recover? I feel a lot stonger today after my morning run & plan a 30 mile ride this afternnoon.

If & when I do need weight training, is there a way to acomplish this without going to a gym? My time is limited (4 year old son) but I could get some dumbells. If so, is there a website or a book I can look up for guidance? Thanks

You can do probably about 80% of all gym exercises at home with a good set of free weights such as Power Blocks. I started with a book called "Body for Life" and followed up with "Strength Training Anatomy".

Dumbbells & barbells

resistance bands

body weight exercises like push-ups, etc.

When are the du's you want to do? If they are this year don't bother with “gym style” strength training now. In-season strength work should be sport specific, so run and bike up some hills and do some over geared standing work on the bike.

Next winter a couple dumbbells are all you need. Squat, step-up and bent over row is a good start.

Thanks, I may join a gym this fall after my son starts preK. Late summer I hope to participate in a couple of road events using my MTB I'm preparing for the street. I just want to get a feel for the events. Next year I plan to get a good roadbike & convert my MTB back to offroad to compete in both off & on road duathlons.

I rolled my ankle running this evening from stepping on a rock. It appears that I'll have to take at least a 24 hour break. I'll try the trainer again tomorrow night & hopefully can start running again within a couple of days. In the meantime, I'll be icing it every 20 minutes. The worst part is that I ground a hole in the side of my brand new Adidas Megabounce+. I'm hoping to get a Polar S150 by next weekend when I will go on my first 50 mile ride.

Google beast skills for some fun body weight exercise to do at home.

I am trying to understand the importance of weight training in developing a solid program. I'm interested in building endurance & have no intention of building a lot af muscle mass. My primary motivation is to participate/compete in duathlons. I wanted to start a thread that I can ask questions I can't get answered using the search function. I hope to get into a nutrionalist next week to get my diet squared away, but would like to do enough research so that I can ask her informed questions.

My first questions for you guys are, do I really need weight training at this point? I run at least 3 miles a day, sometimes 6. I spend at least an hour on a fluid trainer or ride 20-30 miles daily as well. I've been doing this a little over a week & feel like my body is adapting, the soreness is getting better & I'm feeling stronger. At this point I haven't taken a day off & yesterday I was dragging a bit because of the added 2 hours of yard work. Do I need to take a day off once a week to allow my body to recover? I feel a lot stonger today after my morning run & plan a 30 mile ride this afternnoon.

If & when I do need weight training, is there a way to acomplish this without going to a gym? My time is limited (4 year old son) but I could get some dumbells. If so, is there a website or a book I can look up for guidance? Thanks

In my opinion, you are working out too many days per week and adding in too much intensity at once. You will initially see good adaptation, but it won't continue.

You should think about quality of training rather than quantity of training. Once you have a good base built up, you can get a lot of benefit from intensity training - if you are rested and recovered enough to benefit from it.

ericgu, I agree completely. I had 1 session with a pesonal trainer once, he told me that you should only exercise your entire body for one hour a day, and that is enough (this is for weightlifting, cardio you can do more). Also, you must take frequent breaks during the week to give your body some rest. Sounds to me like you're absolutly trashing your body right now, of course I don't know how you feel after these runs and bikes, maybe you're incredibly athletic. I for one know that I would not be able to run 3 miles and bike 20-30 miles daily (aside from time constraints), simply sounds overwhelming. Give your body some rest, if you don't you're just tearing muscle repeatedly and not giving it enough time to recover, so in fact you could be doing quite the opposite of what you are trying to accomplish. Everything must be done in moderation m8.
Ciao

Thanks, things are coming together. I got an appointment for early next week with the nutritionalist & she's into duathlons to boot! I picked up a new Garmin 305 Forerunner for a good price off ebay this morning & should have it within a week. My rolled ankle is feeling much better after giving it 24 hours rest, I rode the trainer for an hour last night & ran 2 miles this morning. I plan on a hilly 20 mile ride this afternoon. I'm not sure the effectiveness of my sessions other than I build up a good sweat doing each, but the Garmin should help. It sounds like I need to lay down a solid base through the summer & then consult a trainer for strength training to help build some speed. I hope to get all the kinks worked out of my training over the next 2 weeks so that my exercise & diet are as effective as possible & I'm not being counter productive. Thanks again.

Buy a keg from a local liquor store. Buy 2 or 3. Empty, they weigh 30lbs, full of water it's 160lbs. Any weight in between provides progressive resistance and an unstable weight. Unstable weight works the core and stabilizer muscles very effectively.

there is a book called never gymless by a guy named ross enamait.check it out at rosstraining.com

there is a book called never gymless by a guy named ross enamait.check it out at rosstraining.com

Also Combat Conditioning, Pushing Yourself to Power and good ol' Charles Atlas and all his imitators.

I recently read Pushing Yourself to Power and thought it had a lot of great information on training without weights & gym equipment, although also said some stuff I don't buy.

Google beast skills for some fun body weight exercise to do at home.

I will check that out, thanks. I have been looking for more 'weightless' weight training. Pushups get old...

low weight, high reps, minimal rest in between sets.

Do Pushups, pull ups, dips, squats, jump-rope, lateral jumps over a box, step or jump onto a large step and then off again.

Tie excersises together into dynamic body movements like a deep squat and blast up jumping as far forward as you can, land back into a deep squat, or lay prone, go to one pushup, from there jump your legs to your hands and blast up into a jump, land and back down to squat then put hands down into pushup agian. 3 sets of 10 and you'll feel it.

I second the Body for Life program, it is very good. Although I found the diet a little lacking in carbs for cycling. But it is good for wieght loss. Also take a look at exrx.net it an excellent fitness and training site.

Thanks for the replies, I got so fed up with the rain today that I joined the YMCA. This is the second time this week that I've had a long ride cancelled because of rain. I can't run right now because of a strain in my lower leg. I'm going to spend an hour tonight swimming & another on one of the machines I can't pronounce let alone spell. If I can learn some swimming, that will open me up for more events other than duathlons. Well now I'm off to hang out in the Tri forums.

Don't use machines. Learn the proper form of the Squat, Deadlift, and Shoulder or Bench Press.