Hill Training

Proper Hill Form

When you are warm and ready to start, this is what to do. Always start at the top of the hill and walk down easily. Think of this as part of your warm up or recovery from the previous hill. When you get to the bottom, don’t stop and rest. Resting just gives you time to think about the task at hand and will often get you thinking negatively.

• Begin your journey up. Try to maintain the same stride frequency as you would on flat ground and shorten it as you adjust to the grade.
• Don’t forget to swing your arms. Although your arms don’t actually propel you up the hill, they help maintain proper form and leg speed. When your leg turnover slows near the top, pump your arms a little faster and your legs will follow.
• As you run, keep your posture erect rather than leaning too far forward. Look parallel to the surface of the hill—this makes the hill appear less steep.
• Concentrate on good form and increase the rhythm of your arms slightly as you near the crest of the hill. Push over the crest.
• Keep your chest up and out. Keep your breathing relaxed.
• Think of the power coming from your legs; they are strong and efficient. Maintain the same effort as you go up the hill. Your speed will slow slightly and increase again as you reach the crest. Keep the same effort at the top and walk past the crest before turning around.
• Never stop once you have reached the top. Continue a slow jog or walk to enhance recovery and prepare for your next repeat.
• Beginner and intermediate programs generally start with three hill repeats and increase by one each week, up to 6–8 repeats. Advanced programs may include up to 10 repeats. Allow at least two days of recovery before another quality workout.

Downhill Running

A good number of runners make running downhill difficult and risk injury by leaning back and putting on the brakes as they run down the hill. Here is a tip to improve your running times and reduce the risk of injury. Gravity is your training buddy. With a slight lean down the hill, gravity will pick up your pace with no additional effort. Many runners lean back into the hill, but this takes more effort and is slower. Open your stride slightly, lean forward and away you go with your new training buddy. Come race day, the experience of the hill sessions pays big dividends as you pass runners not only on the uphills, but at the crest and on the downhills as well.

Intensity

For those using their target heart rate, intensity is 85–95 percent of maximum heart rate. If you are not using heart rate as your gauge of intensity, then pace yourself so that you are running up the hill as fast as you can without having to stop and rest. Always rest for at least as long as it takes to run up the hill or until your heart rate is below 120 BPM. Rest is part of your training.

Be careful if you are doing the hill session with a group. Remember, it is not a race but a quality individual workout. Run to the hill and do the warm-up with the group, but the hill is yours alone to conquer at your own speed. Hills are magic stuff if treated with respect and some common sense.

Another ingredient that hills add is character. As you do the hill repeats, mentally, or if it helps, verbally, repeat the words “character, character.” On race day when you discover a hill on the course think back to the hill sessions and the word “character.” No race course will have twelve repeats in it. Hills build your confidence level and increase your self-esteem as well as prepare you mentally to be a better athlete.

A once-a-week investment in the “visually flat” hill session shall make you a better athlete both mentally and physically.