What muscles does running work?

Just got back from a run and wondering what muscles you’ve been working? As you’ll have experienced first-hand, running works muscles all over your body. Here, we take a look at specifically which ones and how running can be beneficial to your overall health.

Triathlon expert Ollie Willis explains which muscles you work and use when going out for a run, how running can tone certain muscles, and what happens to your fitness when you run.

What muscles does running tone up?

When you run, the main muscles that are doing the most work are found in and around your legs. These include your quads, hip flexors, hamstrings, glutes and calf muscles.

Running also works and tones your core muscles (these are basically the muscles of your torso, from the pelvis to the shoulder, and include the abdominal, lower back, buttock, pelvis, and hip muscles), to keep your spine aligned as you run.

Running is an effective core workout thanks to the consistent spinal rotation that occurs when your arms and legs come forward with each stride. By running on uneven surfaces, you can challenge and tone them further.

Strong core muscles also increase stability and help you maintain good form throughout, this is especially key for running on uneven ground like trails.

It’s therefore worth working on your core away from running, since a strong core can help the main running muscles work at their optimum efficiency and of course, help you to avoid injury.

Running also requires you to swing your arms, which works and tones the biceps and triceps. Endurance running helps aid the development and efficiency of slow twitch muscle fibres, so their aerobic capabilities improve and they become more resistant to fatigue.

Do you gain muscle from running?

Running can help to tone and strengthen muscles used, mainly in the legs and core, though it won’t necessarily result in hugely visible muscle bulking. It comes down to the kind of running you do, including duration, intensity, nutrition, and recovery.

The best way to build muscle is to focus on muscle synthesis with high-intensity exercises like HIIT or lifting heavy weights, coupled with consuming enough protein and fluids, along with allowing for adequate recovery time to help rebuild muscles.

There’s a reason why elite sprinters have a far more muscular build than pro long-distance runners, short yet high-intensity running workouts like interval sessions and sprints are one of the best ways to build muscle from running.

Long-distance running will tone muscles but won’t build larger muscles due to the consistent and prolonged strain it puts on the body.

To build more muscle, the body must be developing muscle at a faster rate than it’s being broken down. If you plan to include more interval sessions into your training schedule, then just be sure to take extra care when warming up to avoid injury from sharp, short efforts.

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Can I replace leg day with running?

Though running is a great workout for the leg muscles and key for improving your run and triathlon performance, if you want to work on strengthening your legs, then resistance training is the most beneficial exercise.

We don’t recommend completely replacing leg day with purely running, as working with weighted or bodyweight exercises that aim to strengthen and condition the muscles is a great way to build a more robust running body and ward off injury.

As with everything, it depends on what your running and fitness goals are as to the exercises you should do. In general, weight and resistance training is a far more efficient way to strengthen the leg muscles than purely running.

Look to incorporate weighted exercises like lunges, squats, deadlifts, and hip thrusts, along with single-leg exercises to aid running stability and agility. Combine both running and strength training in your schedule for the best results.