3 Reasons Why Loaded Carries Improve Performance For Endurance Athletes

We carry things so often in our everyday lives, yet most people neglect loaded carry exercises in their routines.

This is also true for endurance athletes. By now, many endurance athletes have seen the value in strength training as it:

• Increases performance

• Improves efficiency

• Reduces change of injury

But there is an aspect of strength training that is overlooked by endurance athletes, and that is loaded carry exercises.

If you are unfamiliar with what loaded carries are, then let me explain.

They are exercises where you carry a weight over a certain distance. The way you carry the weight can vary.

Here are some examples of loaded carries:

• Farmer’s Walk: (or farmer carry) this consists of walking with weight in each of your hands. It builds the traps, shoulder, forearms (especially your grip), and upper back muscles that support your upper spine. It also works the core and lower body, strengthening the quads, glutes, hamstrings, and calves.

• Waiter’s Walk: (or press walk) this exercise targets muscles in the core, shoulder, and upper back that support the shoulder. You raise weight above your head, typically one arm but can do it with two arms, and walk for a certain distance.

• Cross Walk: this consists of doing a farmer’s walk with one hand and a waiter’s walk with the other.

• Offset Carry: this carry is to work your core, especially your obliques. You can either do a cross walk or a farmers walk but with different weights in each hand. For example, carry 20 pounds in one hand and 40 pounds in the other.

• Suitcase Carry. The suitcase carry is a farmer’s walk in which you carry weight in just one hand.

Now that you understand what a loaded carry is and the different types of carries, let me explain the 3 reasons why loaded carries with improve performance for endurance athletes.

• Increase core strength

• Improve whole-body stability

• Strengthen your back and legs

Loaded carries increase your core strength.

Without proper core strength, endurance athletes cannot effectively produce power over a long period of time.

Your core is where a great amount of power is generated from.

Without efficient core strength, endurance athletes will not be properly stabilize, which limits performance. Your core helps you keep your balance and stability, especially when you are fatigued.

Loaded carries target the core as they require you to maintain your upright body position while moving with weight. They also require you to not lean to one side versus the other and without your core activite, you would not be able to successfully hold the weight in the correct position as you move.

As your core strength develops, so does your whole-body stability.

Load carries improve your whole-body stability like no other exercise.

They improve your stability from your feet all the way to your shoulders. Proper stability allows endurance athletes to effectively generate the needed force to be efficient in their sport’s movement.

For instance, a runner cannot effectively generate force over a long period of time if their position and posture is not strong and stable. Loaded carries directly improve stability as they require you to maintain an upright posture as you carry weight over a distance.

If you do not maintain your upright position while carrying the weight, the weight will drop or you will fall.

Loaded carries also strengthen your back and legs.

Walking with extra weight works your quads, calves, soleus, hamstrings, and glutes which are all important muscles for most endurance sports.

Loaded carries also strengthen your back, specifically the muscles that support your spine, as you work to stay in an upright position as you walk with weight. This type of back strength is important for endurance sports as strong posture and spine stability is required to maintain proper form.

Implementation:

• Include one weighted carry exercise into each of your strength workouts.

• Start with a light weight (20-30 lbs) and gradually increase each workout.

• Do three sets, walking 20-30 feet.

Main Takeaways

Loaded carries are important for endurance athletes to include in their strength training because they:

• Increase core strength: which improves efficiency of a sport’s movement.

• Improve whole-body stability: which allows athletes to generate effective force.

• Strengthen the back and legs: which promotes proper form.