I don’t think too many people would deny the benefits of weightlifting for contact sports, or sports involving power -but what about sports like running, biking, rowing, etc?<\/p>\n
Here is a good discussion in the health section of the NY Times.<\/strong> While the general opinion seems to be "yes it does", it’s not unanimous. <\/p>\n Does Weight Lifting Make a Better Athlete? – New York Times<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Researchers who study weight lifting, or resistance training as it often is called, are adamant. It definitely helps, they say. But other experts in the field are not so sure.<\/p>\n Gary R. Hunter, a professor of exercise physiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham<\/span><\/a>, is a believer. He cites, for example, a recent study involving middle-distance runners. Three months of resistance training, he said, improved their leg strength and running efficiency, a measure of how much effort it took to run. <\/p>\n And, he said, it is not just runners who become more efficient.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no doubt that an appropriate weight-training program would improve efficiency in pretty much any athlete,\u201d Dr. Hunter said. <\/p>\n William J. Kraemer, a kinesiology professor at the University of Connecticut<\/span><\/a> in Storrs, said lifting weights also can increase endurance and reduce the risk of injury, especially to connective tissue.<\/p>\n And don\u2019t worry about becoming too muscular, Dr. Kraemer said. <\/p>\n \u201cThe fear of getting really big is not plausible for most people,\u201d he said. Competitive distance runners and cyclists, who are naturally slender and light, \u201cdon\u2019t have the muscle fiber number to get really big,\u201d Dr. Kraemer said. \u201cI can train them until the cows come home and they are not going to have big muscles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n