This week I spoke with strength and conditioning coach Chad Budyk all about why strength training is important, why lifting heavy enough is important, and about matching the demands of race day in your training.

Chad starts by introducing himself and his background, and explains to me why he specializes in OCR training. We discuss how athletes tend to stick to certain distances and races, and speculate on the possibility of having different championship races for different race distances.

He then explains how and why athletes should be focusing on strength and conditioning just as much as running, and why you should never, ever burpee out on a strength obstacle. He also explains how strength training helps you manage your heart rate on race day.

That leads us into a discussion about matching or exceeding the demands of race day in your training: what it looks like, why it’s important, and why you need to go hard on those days. Chad tells me about using consequences to replicate race day pressure, and why they’re effective.

Lastly, Chad talks about training on the trails like you would train for a track, and how it’s beneficial to your performance.


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