If you have spent months running and running and running and all you have to show for it is the ability to breathe better, sore knees but no increase in strength ? relax. The issue isn’t that you are running wrong; it?s that running just isn’t enough to deliver strong legs.

What creates strength

Your Upper East Side personal trainer is working from a much different set of information about muscles and strength than you are. They are trained and certified, and they have to keep up with their education about the body and fitness. In recent years, science has discovered that the way legs work is quite different from what we assumed before. Running only uses muscles in one direction, like a hydraulic piston. Strong legs work their muscles in a web like manner, using smaller grouping of muscles that aren’t worked by running alone.

Why running can’t do it alone

Running can’t deliver strong legs because it only uses a small portion of the musculature in the legs. The motion of running is repetitive so the end result is that muscles that you need for strength will weaken, while longer muscles will develop. Running is more about resiliency and cardiovascular improvement, but even then it has proven to have limited benefits. The body adapts far too quickly to the stresses of running which means you may only be out there subjecting your joints to overwhelming stress and not getting any benefits at all. Unless you vary your pace and terrain, you will see a decreasing trend in caloric burn too as your body adjusts to the stress of running. This is why Midtown East personal trainers may make running an occasional part of your routine, but it will never be a foundation element.

Finding a trainer near you

Finding personal trainers in Union Square is easy. Don’t go off some flier on a wall, look for a trainer that is as professional as you are. Do a search in the Union Square area and then review the profiles. You want to talk to the trainer about your goals and find out what they imagine would be a good approach for you. If you are really seeking strong legs, let them know that ? the more you can tell them specifically about what you are seeking the better they can help you. Keep an open mind, many times a trainer may suggest a routine that doesn’t seem like what you want at first, but these are fitness professionals who can see a much bigger picture about fitness than you can. Follow their suggestions and you will be surprised at the results.