If the Last 3 Miles of Your Long Run Feel Sloppy: The Strength Circuit Marathoners Need in Base Training
- Marie Whitt
- 3 hours ago
- 5 min read
There's always going to be that ONE run that feels like it's straight from the depths of Hell.
And there's no way to save it.
But if you're finding this happens EVERY long run, especially while you're base building in preparation for upcoming marathon training...
this is NOT normal.
However, it is entirely fixable.
It's not about how "fit" you are.
How many years you've been running.
Or what your "furthest distance run" is.
The pieces you're missing are:
hamstring strength
core control and stability
and posterior chain endurance.
In other words, you're missing the strength "to go the distance" and not fall apart on the way there.
A mistake I see a lot of runners make, and a mistake I've made countless times in the past, is assuming that while my running-fitness improves as my mileage climbs, the rest of my body will automatically catch up.
Nope. No further training.
No extra work.
Just by running hours and hours, my hamstrings, core, upper back-running form muscles will magically grow stronger.
I can't begin to tell you how wrong I've been.
Did I survive in those cases? Definitely.
Could I have run stronger, gained even more fittness, and actually enjoyed my long runs had I been smart enough to strength train? Absolutely.
Don't believe me?
Take it from Tori, a runner I worked with in the past, who was surprised at how much 20-25 minutes of strength training could do for her half training:
"I feel stronger on runs. I notice this in feeling less fatigued after long runs, less frequent soreness after runs, and faster paces feel easier efforts than they have in the past!"
So what do you say to a short, 4 exercise circuit specifically designed for the base building marathon whose looking forward to a future PR but right now, is struggling with the last 3 miles of their 15 mile long run feeling sloppy, loosey-goosey, and sometimes living in survival mode?
Let's get you out of surviving and into thriving.
How to Build Long-Run Endurance Before Marathon Training Starts
Circuit:
3 sets each // medium-heavy weights
Super Set 1:*
1/2 Kneeling Halo
R leg up: 6 reps clockwise // 6 reps counter clockwise
L leg up: 6 reps clockwise // 6 reps counter clockwise
Bear Crawl Stutter
Forwards/backwards = 1 rep
5 reps total
**feel like this is too much? cut all reps in half.
Super Set 2:
Deadlift
8 Reps @ RPE 7
Cross Body Row with Staggard Stance
8 reps each arm @ RPE 8
Base Phase Strength for Marathon Runners: Prevent Long-Run Fatigue Before It Starts
SUPER SET 1: Halos + Bear Crawl Stutters
This is actually a really COOL combo and I have to tell you why...
While you're doing the 1/2 kneeling halos, can you feel how one side is a little easier, or more stable, than the other, especially once you switch directions (i.e. clock wise to counter clockwise)? Can you feel how your core has to stabilize your entire body while you pull the weight around your head?
We switch from this over-head pulling + core exercise and immediately engage in the opposite action of pushing when we do the bear crawl stutters. Now our upper body has to push the ground away to keep us from face planting, with the engagement of our core of course.
WHY THIS MATTERS TO RUNNERS: we use a "push" and a "pull" with our arm swing with every stride we take, so both of these exercise are incredibly relevant to improving long run endurance specifically concerning running posture and form. But in addition to that, did you notice how the 1/2 kneeling halo looks like running (but on your knees) and the bear crawl stutter begins to resemble that single-leg stride position as you slowly move back and forward? If we want our bodies to be able to go the distance, we have to train them in positions that look like running while also building anti-rotation strength and oblique-sling strength so we don't fall apart during our last 3 miles.
SUPER SET 2: Deadlifts + Cross Body Row
Please don't be scared of deadlifts. And here's why...
PRO TIP: I know I'm demonstrating with a barbell in these videos; that's what's currently easier on my body and the equipment I can get my hands on. You can ALWAYS do these with heavy dumbbells or kettlebells. And yes, while single leg deadlifts are "good for runners because they work on balance", sometimes ONLY doing single RDLs can actually prevent you from getting stronger. Because facts: you'll always be stronger with 2 legs. So if you find you're fading on your longs, especially if yours has rolling hills in it, hamstring strength can be what saves you.
But let me tell you about this cross body row. It can be hard to tell in the video, but one foot is further behind the other one. Once I tried this, I feel in love with this adaptation for runners because you can feel this oblique or diagonal tension or "line of pull" traveling through your core. It's the same tension you feel when you're digging deep during a speed workout...and it's same "sloppiness" you feel starting to creep in towards the end of your long run. The staggard stance helps us "runner-ify" it, biasing it towards single leg and the row itself help continue build long run endurance.
WRAPPING UP
Base building isn’t just about stacking miles.
It’s about preparing your body to handle the upcoming demands of marathon training before Day 1 shows up.
If your hamstrings fatigue early, if your trunk starts to flop around, if your arms start looking like a t-rex, and your stride shortens...
Remember: your aerobic engine isn’t the issue.
Your "muscular engine" is.
The good news? We can train that.
When you build:
Hamstring strength
Posterior chain endurance
Anti-rotation core control
Cross-body upper body strength
You no longer “survive” long runs.
You finish 15 miles feeling worked, but not wrecked.
And that changes everything heading into marathon training.
Because marathon base building shouldn’t feel like digging yourself out of a fatigue hole.
It should feel like building on top of a solid foundation.
This long-run-ready-workout is a small committment: 20 to 25 minutes, a 2x times per week.
But it closes the gap between “I'm fit-ish” and “I'm marathon-ready.”
So if your last three miles have been feeling sloppy, loose, or just harder than they should…
Don’t add more miles.
Build running-specific strength.
Your future marathon self will thank you.
Dare to Train Differently,
Marie Whitt, PT, DPT //@dr.whitt.fit
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