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Strength For Trail Running

The Strength Room

Marathon, Endurance, Strength & Conditioning

Coach

Milo M Thomas

Get stronger. Stay on the trails. Run more and run faster.

A year-round strength program built for trail runners, not borrowed from bodybuilders or pulled from a list of random bodyweight exercises.

Three phases of building. One phase of racing. Every session has a reason to exist.

You Know You Should Strength Train. Nobody Told You What to Do.

Most trail runners end up in one of two places.

Option 1: The bodyweight circuit. Clamshells, glute bridges, and a plank you found on Instagram. It feels like work. It won't build the strength you need to handle 2,000 meters of descent on tired legs.

Option 2: The "just squat heavy" plan. Someone told you to lift heavy, so you load a barbell with no plan, no progression, and no idea how it fits around your running. You end up sore, flat for your long run, and unsure whether any of it is helping.

Neither option is built around you, a runner who climbs, descends, and grinds out hours on uneven ground

This program fixes that.

What Running Strong Is: Running Strong is an ongoing, annual strength program that follows the running year. It builds you up in the off-season, sharpens you before race season, and keeps you strong without wearing you out while you race It's based on the movement and biomechanics principles that best transfer to you on the trails. With an annual framework to ensure that every year we reset, tackle all structural issues, make you stronger and get you back out there faster and more durable than ever.

In plain terms, you train the right thing at the right time of year

The Annual Cycle Autumn: Structural Balance & Tissue Resilience Fixes imbalances, builds durable tendons and joints, and prepares your body to train hard

Winter: Hypertrophy & Strength Builds real, usable strength for climbs, descents, and late-race fatigue

Spring: Peaking Phase Turns our new found strength into power and faster force production for steeper climbs, long days and quicker feet

Summer: Maintenance Helps you maintain your strength with minimal fatigue so you can keep racing at your best. Plenty of prehab movements to keep everything firing as it should while the miles stack up

The cycle peaks for the warmer months, when most trail races happen. We never push so deep into any phase that you can't perform outside of summer. If you have an early-season race, you'll still be ready

$25 / mo

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How Your Weeks Look

Autumn & Winter (off-season) 3 sessions + 1 optional bonus, 45–60 min Spring & Summer (race season) 2 sessions + 1 optional 3rd, 45–60 min You do more strength work when running volume is lower and less when racing matters most. The program bends around your running, not the other way around.

What You Get

Stronger legs for climbing. Power up steep grades without your quads and calves giving out early. Durability for descents. Build the eccentric strength that keeps your legs working after hours of downhill pounding. Fewer injuries and fewer setbacks. Resilient tissue and balanced strength mean more weeks of consistent running and fewer weeks of rehab.

What You Get

More running, faster running. When you stay healthy, you can train more. When you're stronger, each stride costs less. No more guessing. Open the app and the session is there. Sets, reps, and loading are all laid out. Just show up. A plan that runs all year. Off-season and in-season phases mean your strength work actually adds up over time.

Who Trail Strong Is For

✅ Trail runners who know they need strength work but don't know where to start ✅ Ultra runners who want legs that hold up at mile 40, not just mile 4 ✅ Runners at any level, from first-time lifters to experienced gym-goers. The program is built to make you stronger from wherever you're starting. ✅ Anyone tired of piecing random workouts with no plan behind them

Who Trail Strong Is NOT For

❌ Road-only runners (a dedicated road version is on the way) ❌ Anyone who wants to bulk up or chase bodybuilding goals ❌ Runners with an active injury who need one-on-one rehab first ❌ Anyone looking for a 6-week quick fix. This is a long game, and the long game is where the results are.

Features

Access to your coaches

Direct coach access through the Team chat, checked weekly by Milo

Programming 7 days per week

The full annual training cycle: four phases, programmed and progressed for you 3-4 structured sessions a week in the off-season and 2-3 in race season

Detailed, expert instruction

Exercise notes and substitutions, so you can still train if you don't have a full gym.

Delivered through TrainHeroic

Delivered in the TrainHeroic app, so you can track your lifts, log your sessions, and see your progress throughout, year on year.

Equipment

Required

Dumbbells, Barbells, Cable Machines

Recommended

Machines (Leg Press, Leg Extensions, Leg Curls etc can be super

Sample Week

I will write fresh programming weekly. You’ll get notifications when they’re ready

Monday

Phase 3, Week 1. Knee Focus + Vertical Upper Body

Circuit

Prep/Primer: 10 Ankle Dorsiflexion Mobility, per side (banded or no band is fine, just get some movement into that ankle joint!) 8-10 Psoas March / Wall Psoas March, Per Side

Safety Squat Bar - TSR

4 x 6

Deficit Reverse Lunge - TSR

3 x 6

Reverse Grip Lat Pull Down - TSR

3 x 8

Seated Barbell Shoulder Press - TSR

4 x 5

Wednesday

Day 2: Hip Focus + Horizontal Upper Body

Circuit

Prep/Primer, 2-3 Sets of: 6-10 90/90 Hip Switches , per side. Slow and controlled 6-10 Side Plank Clamshells, per side. Pause at the top for a good 1-2 Sec per rep

Deadlift - TSR

4 x 5

Hand Supported Single Leg RDL - TSR

3 x 6

Bent Over Row - TSR

3 x 6

Bench Press - TSR

4 x 6

Friday

Day 3: Unilateral, Gait, & Foot-Ankle Stability

Circuit

Prep/Primer: 2-3 Sets of: 30-60 Sec Wall Sit with Calf Raise ISO 15-20 Tibialis Anterior Raises

DB Step Ups - TSR

3 x 6

Cossack Squat - TSR

3 x 8

Standing Calf Raise - TSR

3 x 10

Poliquin Step Up - TSR

Saturday

Arm Endurance and Hypertrophy

Y Raise - TSR

Overhand Face Pull - TSR

Cable Curls - TSR

Rope Overhead Triceps Extension - TSR

KB Farmers Carry - TSR

Coach

More from The Strength Room

Milo M Thomas

I've been coaching for more than 10 years, specialising in endurance and adventure events around the world. My athletes have completed marathons and ultras, both first-timers finishing their first big race and experienced runners setting new bests. They've taken on backyard ultras and multi-day events across the globe.

Here's the Deal

You can keep guessing with workouts and hope they help. Or you can follow a plan built for trail runners, by a coach who has spent a decade getting endurance athletes to their start lines and across their finish lines. Get stronger. Stay injury-resistant

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FAQs

"I already run a lot. Do I really need this?"

Yes, and especially if you run a lot. Running more doesn't make your body more resilient. It repeats the same stress again and again. Strength training builds the capacity to handle that stress. Stronger muscles, tendons, and joints mean you can absorb more miles, recover faster, and stay healthy.

"I've never lifted before. Is this too advanced?"

No. Trail Strong is built for any level. The Autumn phase lays the foundation with structural balance and tissue resilience before you build toward heavier strength work. You'll progress at the right pace.

"Will I get bulky?"

No. Trail Strong builds strength and power for running, not size. Gaining muscle mass takes a very different type of training, plus eating far more than most trail runners do.

"When should I start?"

Now. Wherever we are in the annual cycle, you'll jump into the current phase. If you'd like to start from the beginning, Autumn is the natural entry point because it builds the base for everything that follows.

"Will I get enough support for under £20 a month?"

This isn't 1-1 coaching, which costs hundreds a month. You get a fully programmed annual plan, built and progressed by a coach with decades of experience. You can message me through the chat. Most don't need me watching every rep. They need a plan that works and to ask when they get stuck. Welcome!

"What if I have a race outside of summer?"

You'll still be ready. The program peaks for the main race season, but no phase goes so deep that you can't perform well at other times of year.

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Strength For Trail Running

Strength For Trail Running

Strength For Trail Running

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