Boergers Richard - Finish Strong: Resistance Training for Endurance Athletes

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First published in Great Britain 2021

Copyright Richard Boergers and Angelo Gingerelli, 2021

Illustrations Barking Dog Art, 2021

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CONTENTS

We are endurance sports athletes just like you. Between us, we have completed three IRONMANs, 15 half IRONMANs, six marathons, 20 half marathons, 10 open water swim (OWS) races, five off-road cycling events, including X-terras, and countless other shorter-distance swims, bikes, runs and multisport events. You might say weve been building our aerobic bases over the last 10 years. Just like you, we enjoy training and racing and pushing ourselves to try to achieve a better placing or a new personal best (PB). While we are not elite athletes, we certainly arent bringing up the rear at our races, typically finishing in the top 20 percent and occasionally grabbing a podium finish at some smaller events.

As a couple of self-coached athletes, one thing that keeps us motivated is that we are still seeing improvements. Both of us have actually achieved personal bests in events as recent as last year. At the end of a season, we plan our race calendars for the next year and begin setting goals and go to work on our training plans. Lather, rinse, repeat.

We also happen to be qualified healthcare, wellness and fitness professionals and have been helping athletes attain their goals for decades. Richard (RJ) Boergers obtained a BS in Health Science and Athletic Training, an MS in Human Performance (Biomechanics and Exercise Physiology) and a PhD in Human Movement Science. He is a licensed athletic trainer and is an Associate Professor in the Master of Science in Athletic Training program at Seton Hall University. Angelo Gingerelli earned a BS in Exercise Science, an MS in Education and also possesses an MBA. He is a certified strength and conditioning specialist and is a strength and conditioning coach at Seton Hall University.

Strength coaches, athletic trainers and other members of a sports performance team need to work together closely to optimize the performance of their athletes and clients. We have developed a close working relationship over the years because we both believe in the power of resistance training to improve endurance sport performance, practice it regularly in our training and preach it to anyone who will listen. Whats more, we both have the same end goals in mind for incorporating regular resistance training with our aerobic sport training improving athletic performance, injury prevention and career longevity. Sometimes, we have slightly different reasons for doing an exercise or selecting a particular training modality, but we are in total agreement that adding this resistance training program to your regimen will only help you Finish Strong.

The long (like ultramarathon-level long) list of benefits of regular resistance and mobility training includes increased muscular strength, improved balance, decreased risk of injury, better flexibility, improved functional movement patterns, more efficient mechanics and a