Built to Run: The Role of Strength and Physiotherapy in Marathon Training

Training for a half marathon or marathon is, first and foremost, about running.

There is no substitute for gradually building the ability to spend more time on your feet, tolerate longer distances and become more efficient at the specific task you are preparing for.

But running is also highly repetitive.

Think of it as thousands of small, spring-like single-leg contacts performed one after another. Each stride is manageable, but across a long run — and then across weeks of training — the cumulative mechanical demand becomes substantial.

That does not mean running is damaging.

The body is extremely good at adapting to load. Muscles become stronger. Tendons adapt. Bone responds. Cardiovascular fitness improves.

The challenge comes when training demand increases faster than the body's ability to adapt.

That is where strength training, recovery and physiotherapy can help.

Running is still the main event

If you are preparing for a half marathon or marathon, the most important training is still running.

Easy mileage builds endurance. Long runs prepare you for sustained effort. Faster sessions develop speed and running economy.

Strength training should support that process, not compete with it.

A runner who is constantly sore from the gym or too fatigued to complete important running sessions has probably missed the point.

The goal is not to turn every runner into a powerlifter.

It is to build enough physical capacity to tolerate the demands of running.

Strength builds capacity

Every running stride requires the body to absorb force, control movement and produce force again.

The calves, quadriceps, hamstrings and gluteal muscles all contribute repeatedly, thousands of times.

Strength training gives us another way of developing that capacity without simply adding more running kilometres.

A simple programme might include:

• Calf raises — building calf and Achilles capacity
• Split squats — developing single-leg strength through the hip and knee
• Squats or step-ups — building lower-limb strength
• Romanian deadlifts — developing hamstring and posterior-chain strength
• Pogo hops or simple plyometrics — for runners ready for faster, spring-like loading

The exact exercises matter less than choosing a few movements that can be progressively loaded and performed consistently alongside running.

For many recreational runners, one or two well-planned strength sessions each week may be enough.

You do not need endless corrective exercises or complicated gym sessions.

Consistency and progression matter more than complexity.

The real challenge is cumulative load

Running problems often appear after several small changes rather than one dramatic event.

Mileage increases. The long run gets longer. Speed work is added. Hills appear. Recovery gets poorer. Life becomes busier.

Individually, none of these changes may be a problem.

Together, they can create a situation where training demand begins to exceed the runner's current capacity to recover and adapt.

That does not mean load is bad.

Load is what stimulates adaptation.

The goal is to apply enough load to become fitter and stronger while still giving the body enough opportunity to recover.

Where physiotherapy fits

Physiotherapy becomes particularly useful when there appears to be a mismatch between training demand and physical capacity.

A runner may develop Achilles pain, calf symptoms, knee pain, hamstring discomfort, hip pain or a foot problem that gradually becomes harder to ignore.

A useful assessment should therefore ask more than:

“What hurts?”

It should also ask:

“What changed?”

Has mileage increased? Has speed work been introduced? Have hills increased? Has recovery deteriorated? Has strength work disappeared as running volume increased?

The aim is to understand the problem in the context of the runner's overall training programme.

That is much more useful than simply telling someone to stop running.

Do you always need to stop running when something hurts?

No.

But continuing exactly as normal is not always sensible either.

The better question is often:

How much running can the body currently tolerate?

Sometimes mileage needs to reduce. Sometimes speed or hills need to come out temporarily. Sometimes the long run needs to shorten.

Occasionally running genuinely does need to stop for a period.

In many cases, however, the aim is to adjust training enough to keep the runner active while rebuilding capacity.

Running is modified.

Strength is maintained or progressed.

Capacity improves.

Running is gradually built back up again.

The goal is not simply to remove pain.

It is to restore enough capacity for the runner to tolerate the demands of training.

Strength should support the programme

Another common mistake is discovering strength training very late in a marathon build and deciding that everything needs to change.

Six weeks before race day is probably not the ideal moment to reinvent yourself as an Olympic weightlifter.

Earlier in the training cycle, there may be more opportunity to build strength.

As race day approaches and running becomes more demanding, gym work often shifts towards maintaining capacity while avoiding unnecessary fatigue and soreness.

The closer race day gets, the priorities become clearer:

Running comes first. Strength supports it.

Recovery is part of training

Training creates the stimulus.

Recovery allows the adaptation.

Sleep, nutrition, easier running days and genuine rest all affect how well someone responds to increasing mileage.

A runner may be capable of completing every individual session on a training plan while still struggling to recover from the total workload across the week.

That is often where niggles begin to appear — not because one session was inherently harmful, but because accumulated stress has started to outpace recovery.

A simple way to think about marathon preparation

The principles do not need to be complicated:

Running provides the stimulus.

Strength builds capacity.

Recovery allows adaptation.

Physiotherapy helps manage the gap when demand and capacity stop matching.

The human body is remarkably adaptable.

The purpose of strength training and physiotherapy is not to protect runners from running.

It is to help prepare the body for the demands the runner has chosen to place on it.

Because ultimately, the goal is not to build the perfect runner in the gym. It is to build a body capable of absorbing enough consistent running to reach the start line healthy — and the finish line strong.