Online strength training programs have grown like crazy in the last few years. Which means it’s more important than ever to find one that fits your needs, what you have access to and your goals!
Strength training for runners is increasingly part of most standard running plans (at least for all our athletes). It’s no longer an after thought, which is why I’ve been sharing more strength training at home ideas on Instagram.
There are a few things which matter most to me when it comes to online strength training:
- Qualified person providing the movement, so I know that it’s safe.
- Workouts that fit in to a distance running schedule (i.e. not so taxing you can’t run again).
- Movements that engage the core as often as possible.
Best Online Strength Training Programs
While I have started going to the gym more frequently for my strength training sessions this last year, the previous decade nearly all my strength happened at home with dumbbells!
Thus many of the people I’ve gravitated too aren’t creating workouts that require crazy equipment, but instead things we have at home or utilizing body weight.
I’ve decided to include a few different kinds of options, so you can opt for the place where you prefer to find content.
With Instagram, I love that I can use the save feature or know that many of these people will be publishing something new every single week. On the other hand, an actual platform where you can search by a certain body part or type of workout (yoga, upper body, mobility, etc) are some of the online tools that I also lean on!
Remember that to actually build muscle or get stronger you need progressive overload. So following a plan is the best way to make that happen.
Having them in my feed not only gives me ideas, but reminds me to stay consistent with showing up for my strength workouts…even if I’d rather be running.
1. Danielle Pascente – HIIT Training
At first I was freaked out by her workouts because she is a BEAST who loves HIIT. But of course those things we may dislike doing are the best for us, right??
Lucky for me, she’s become a great friend and that inspires me to keep pushing boundaries.
Weekly she shares a full workout or tips in her feed, but she also has a number of fantastic ebooks and challenges so that you can buy and go get your sweat on.
Those programs have a crazy loyal following which means that you can easily find community and connection with others doing these sweatastic moves.
She loves a good burpee, but honestly reminds me quite often in her content the key to getting that fit fierce runners body is picking up weights. Also she gets all the credit for me trying to add box jumps in each week (even if they’re still real small).
- Workouts include weights to help you increase strength
- Programs include a great community and tips on mental shifts
- Most workouts include some plyo – she provides a lot of modifications as well
As a certified trainer, she’s constantly brushing up on her knowledge to provide smart training.
2. Run To The Finish – Strength Training for Runners
When it comes to strength training for runners, you don’t necessarily need a different workout. BUT personally, I’ve found that I get in enough cardio, so I want my strength sessions to largely be weights based and not HIIT style.
I want to provide the strength you need to remain injury free, run faster and lose some fat if that’s the goal…while still getting in all of your runs!
After over a decade as a running coach, I require all our athletes to strength train! And with a team of 10 coaches, we have been able to create a wide variety of programs based upon where each runner is at.
- 30 Day Core -10 minutes of abs, hips and glutes
- Beginner Strength Training – 2 days of full body with dumbbells
- Intermediate Strength Training – Upper, Lower and full body dumbbell days
- Heavy Lifting for Runners – 12 week intense program to build strength
3. Mr and Mrs Muscle – Video Modifications
This is a Instagram account I discovered last year and fell in love quickly. They put the entire workout on their feed and with every move show you what muscle is being worked (or more accurately what muscle you should be working to help you do the moves right).
Beyond the TONS of free workouts they share in feed, they also have an app for $9.99/month.
The app will allow you to better follow a full program, which is key to getting results.
Often times I’ll pull two or three moves from one of their workouts to add to an existing routine of mine. That way I know I’m hitting muscles differently and challenging myself.
- Great timers and modifications
- Variety of strength and HIIT workouts
- Good tips on form
4. FitOnApp – Free App
When the aforementioned Danielle began creating workouts for this app I was intrigued and then they made the whole dang thing free!
Here again, you’ll have access to a whole variety of workouts and intensities, plus you can participate in monthly challenges if those excite you or connect with friends or sign up for a class at the same time as others.
I don’t love that I have to rate every class when I finish to get to anything else, so um I just close the app. And I find it really weird they have “toning” and “strength” as separate workouts…it’s the same thing.
- Easy to select from different lengths of workouts
- Yoga, mobility, stretching
- Strength in a variety of formats
If you want a progressive program to really follow for progress, you will need to pay for the Pro version.
5. Melissa Kendter – Hybrid Training
Melissa is one of the trainers on the Evolve You App. I found her as always via Instagram and have saved a number of her workouts already!
I like that she shows how to use heavy weights and also talks about running, basically my jam. She calls it hybrid training.
- Workouts can be done at home or gym
- Variety from heavy lifting to low impact
- Great form and technique
Jump on her Instagram to get a TON of free workouts and then you’ll be ready to dive in to the app for a structured program.
6. Beachbody On Demand – Wide Variety of Heavy to Light Strength
Can strength training be done without weights? Absolutely!!
That’s definitely a benefit you find with a platform like Beachbody where there’s a huge variety of workout options to fit whatever mood you might be in for the day. I’ve actually done a full Beachbody workout program comparison before, so check that out and see if something might be right for you.
And if you belong to Amazon Prime, you get a lot of the Beachbody workouts free…which is news to me, so I’m about to add even more of these to my routine. I was still using some OLD SCHOOL DVDs.
BONUS: They have sections dedicated to pregnancy and postnatal workouts!!
Checkout my complete Beachbody vs Peloton review to see which is best.
7. Peloton Classes – Live Workouts for Motivation
No online strength training article would be complete without mentioning the juggernaut that has inspired so many companies to improve their online workout programs!
I’d say 1 out of every 8 athletes who comes to us for run coaching is currently using Peloton for some of their strength training. And I’m totally fine with that!
- Easy to select the length of workout
- Great energy and full follow along videos
- Monthly price includes workouts for your bike or treadmill
- Not ideal for heavy lifting or really muscle building
- Doesn’t have a good system for following a long term plan to build to a goal
8.Streetparking – At Home CrossFit
If you’ve found past success with workouts like CrossFit then this program is going to appeal to you. While you will need to build up your at home gym equipment over time for the maximum benefit, you can get started with just dumbbells.
Most workouts are 20-25 minutes of heavy lifting and plyo movements.
I do appreciate that they have a specific postpartum program!
They’ve also become well known for having a great online community. And I get it…misery loves company. It’s why runners share our workouts on social media too!
9. The Run Experience
Not only will you find workouts on their YouTube channel, but you’ll likely get sucked in to some of the other tips on form and injury prevention.
Let’s just say if I didn’t love RunToTheFinish so much, I wish I’d been part of this site as they ramped up because I believe in what they’re doing.
10. Les Mills On Demand Review
Let’s start by saying if you use the link above you can try it free for 21 days.
Not like try a little, but get access to everything, which I took full advantage of to try out a slew of things from ab workouts to yoga to combat dance. It reminded me just how much I love kickboxing and the way those workouts really get my abs engaged!
- High and low impact classes
- Yoga for recovery or yoga for athletes
- Fun dance or kickboxing classes to mix things up
- LOTS of strength training options
- Great ab workouts and core workouts
- Seriously…they have every workout under the sun
One of the athletes on my team still uses it consistently as part of her half marathon training and loves the variety it provides to her cross training. 
Sometimes a little switch up is what you need to put the FUN back in training. And doing other forms of cardio can indeed make you a much better runner.
Looking for more training tips?
- Beginner running tips
- Sprint Benefits – Key for Fat Loss
- HIIT Running Workouts
- Treadmill Training Guide
Other ways to connect with Amanda
Instagram Daily Fun: RunToTheFinish
Facebook Community Chatter: RunToTheFinish
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The Only Pre-Run Stretches You Need
