LISTICLE / RUNNING + STRENGTH
The best apps to combine running and strength training for beginners
Most fitness apps do one or the other. The few that genuinely combine running and strength in a sensible weekly plan are the ones that actually get beginners results.
There is a quiet truth that the fitness industry has spent years not telling you. If you only run, you will get hurt. If you only lift, you will get unfit. The people who actually look fit, feel fit, and stay fit do both. They run a few times a week and they lift a few times a week, and the two work together to build a body that is strong, mobile, and resilient.
The challenge for beginners is that almost every popular app specialises. Running apps know nothing about strength. Strength apps treat running as an inconvenience. Trying to follow two separate plans simultaneously is a recipe for overtraining, missed sessions, and eventually quitting both.
This list is for people who want both. We tested every app that claims to combine running and strength to find the ones that actually deliver, with weekly plans that balance the two intelligently rather than just pasting them together.
2x
lower injury risk for runners who also strength train
30%
improvement in running economy with regular strength work
5d
is the proven sweet spot for combined weekly training
Why combining matters more than either on its own
The research on this is now overwhelming. Runners who add two strength sessions per week run faster, get injured less often, and improve more consistently than runners who only run. Lifters who add some running improve their cardiovascular health, recover faster between sets, and look fitter than lifters who only lift.
The catch is that combining the two badly is worse than doing either alone. Lifting heavy the day before a hard run leaves your legs trashed. Running long the day after a heavy lower body session compromises both. The order, intensity and spacing of your sessions across the week matters enormously, and getting it wrong is the fast track to injury or burnout.
This is why a single app that plans both together, rather than two apps you have to coordinate yourself, is so much more effective for beginners.
The 5 best apps for combined running and strength training
NO. 01
Edge
Best overall. Edge was built specifically to solve the running plus strength problem. It is, as far as we have been able to find, the only major app on the market that designs a single weekly plan combining both, structured intelligently to make them complement rather than fight each other.
A typical Edge week for a beginner might look like this: Monday is an easy run, Tuesday is a full body strength session, Wednesday is mobility and a walk, Thursday is intervals, Friday is another strength session, Saturday is a longer run, Sunday is rest. The order is not random. Hard runs come the day after light strength work. Heavy lower body lifts are spaced from long runs. Recovery is built in, not bolted on.
This is what good coaches do for pro runners. Edge does it for beginners, in an app, automatically.
Best for: Beginners who want both running and strength in one intelligently planned week.
NO. 02
Runna + Strong (combined)
Runna is one of the better dedicated running apps in the UK, and Strong is one of the better dedicated strength loggers. Used together, they cover both bases reasonably well, but you will be doing the integration yourself.
The downside is exactly that. You will need to read your Runna plan, plan your strength sessions around it, and constantly judge whether to push or back off when both apps tell you to train hard. For experienced trainers this is fine. For beginners it is the recipe for burnout we mentioned earlier.
Best for: Experienced trainers who know how to balance two specialist apps.
NO. 03
Garmin Connect (with a watch)
If you own a Garmin watch, the connected Garmin Connect app does a decent job of stitching running and strength together, particularly with the recent additions to its training readiness features.
The catch is the hardware requirement. You need a recent Garmin watch to get the most from it, and even then the strength side feels secondary to the running. Better as a metrics layer than a coaching layer.
Best for: Garmin watch owners who want to add some structure on top of their device.
NO. 04
Centr
Centr offers a wide library of both cardio and strength workouts, and lets you mix and match across the week. The variety is high, the production is polished, and the celebrity gloss has its fans.
What it does not do is build you a coherent week with sensible spacing of running and strength. You pick what you want to do each day, which puts the planning burden back on you. Fine if you know what you are doing, less ideal for beginners.
Best for: Beginners who want a library of workouts and prefer choosing day to day.
NO. 05
Apple Fitness
Apple Fitness has gradually expanded its library of running and strength sessions, and the integration with Apple Watch makes tracking effortless. The Time to Run series is genuinely well produced.
Like Centr, the limitation is the lack of an integrated weekly plan. You are choosing sessions individually, not following a coordinated programme. Best as a complement to a more structured app.
Best for: Apple users who want guided sessions to slot into another plan.
Why Edge is the standout choice
The honest answer is that no other app on this list does the actual coaching job that combining running and strength requires. They are libraries, trackers, or specialist tools. Edge is the only one that says, here is your week, here is why each session is where it is, and here is how it builds toward what you want to achieve.
Combining running and strength is not about doing both. It is about doing both in the right order, at the right intensity, with the right rest.
This is what makes Edge genuinely different. It is not a running app with a strength bolt-on, or a strength app with a running module. It is a single coaching philosophy that treats both disciplines as essential parts of getting fit, and plans them as one integrated programme.
If your goal is to be a fitter version of yourself in 12 months, capable of running a 5K, lifting your bodyweight, and feeling strong and mobile in everyday life, this is the kind of plan you need.
How to balance running and strength as a beginner
A few principles to keep in mind, whether you use Edge or piece something together yourself.
Never lift heavy and run hard on the same day if you can help it. The fatigue compounds and the quality of the second session suffers badly.
Put your hardest run after your lightest strength day, and your hardest strength day after your lightest run. The pattern of high and low days is what allows you to push when it matters and recover when it does not.
Build slowly. Two strength sessions and three runs per week is plenty for a complete beginner. You can add more once your body has adapted, but most people would benefit from holding at this level for at least three months before progressing.
And listen to your body more than the plan. If you are exhausted, missed sleep, or coming off a stressful week, swap a hard session for an easy one. The plan is a guide, not a contract.
One plan that does running and strength right
Edge plans your whole week, balancing running and strength so they build on each other instead of fighting.
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