How to improve endurance by getting stronger
Contrary to common belief, endurance is about more than your heart and lungs. In fact, your muscles play a bigger role than most people realise. Because when you think about it, every walk, run, ride, or climb is like a mini strength task - repeated over and over again. And when your muscles become stronger, the same movement demands less from them.
This is where strength training comes in. When you improve your strength, endurance gets easier - for a few reasons:
First, strength reduces the relative effort of every movement. The same stairs, hill, or bike ride becomes a smaller percentage of what your muscles are capable of.
Second, strength makes movement more economical. Stronger muscles often require less activation and energy to perform the same movement.
And third, strength helps you stay fresher for longer. Because each movement costs less and your muscles fatigue more slowly, you have more left in the tank to keep going.
The takeaway here is endurance isn't just about the size of your engine, but also the machinery that turns that engine into movement. That’s why getting your muscles stronger can make everything from running long distances to walking on holidays start to feel easier. And that means more energy for the things you enjoy most.
References
Agaard P, Andersen JL. Effects of strength training on endurance capacity in top-level endurance athletes. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2010;20(Suppl 2):39–47.
Zhang Q et al. Exploring the relationship between lower-limb strength and neuromuscular activation in running: Insights from integrated EMG. iScience. 2026.
