Does strength training make runners more durable? In Dr Michele Zanini's randomised trial, ten weeks of heavy strength and plyometric work twice a week improved running economy at the 90-minute mark and raised time to exhaustion at 95% VO2max by 35%, with no change in the control group.

Michele is a lecturer in applied exercise science at The Open University, a visiting research fellow at Loughborough University, and strength and conditioning coach and physiologist to the Italian Triathlon Federation. His PhD at Loughborough, with Richard Blagrove and Jonathan Folland, was among the first on durability in running.

In this episode he explains the difference between durability and physiological resilience, walks through what happens to VO2max, running economy and threshold speed over 90 and 120 minutes of marathon-pace running, and why fractional utilisation climbing to 91% is a warning sign rather than a strength. We cover why female trail runners held their pace over three hours while performance-matched men lost 10%, what long runs and weekly volume do to economy durability, and the type II fibre mechanism that may link high carbohydrate intake and strength training to the same outcome. Michele also shares what works, and what goes wrong, when elite triathletes lift, and what he hopes wearables and AI will answer next.

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Today's speakers:

Prof Paul Laursen: https://www.paullaursen.com/

Dr Michele Zanini:
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/michele-zanini-901011164/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/michelezanini.physiology/
X https://twitter.com/MicZanini ResearchGate https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Michele-Zanini-3

Resources:

Strength training improves running economy durability and fatigued high-intensity performance (RCT, MSSE 2025) https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000003685

The effect of 90 and 120 min of running on the determinants of endurance performance in marathon runners (SJMSS 2025) https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.70076

Regular long runs and higher training volumes are associated with better running economy durability (MSSE) https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000003840

Highly trained female runners show greater durability than performance-matched males (SJMSS 2026) https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.70299

Defining physiological resilience and durability (J Appl Physiol letter, with Andy Jones and Lars Nybo) https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00671.2025

35 years of Joyner's endurance performance model, 888 individuals (Sports Med 2026) https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-026-02439-y