Why should we run hills?

Want to go run some hills?

But why Fiona, whyyyyyy?
Hill running encourages good form, improves our cadence, builds power, compliments strength and conditioning and is fantastic for mental resilience and toughness.

What are some classic hill-running sessions?
Three I really like:
1. Kenyans: Warm up then 10 reps of 1min hard uphill, hard back downhill. Standing 45secs at the bottom.
2. Hill Sprint Cut Downs: Warm up then 10 x 1min uphill hard, easy jog back down. 2 mins standing recovery. 8 x 45sec uphill hard, easy jog back down. 1 min standing recovery. 6 x 30sec uphill hard, easy jog back down. 30sec standing recovery. 4 x 15sec uphill hard, easy jog back down. Cool down well
3. Undulating easy/steady. Swap a steady run in your week for an undulating route. I really like running uphill to my local parkrun (4km uphill there) to then run steady effort round with friends (hilly course) then, after a coffee, jog back home downhill.

How should you incorporate it into your week?
Don’t add hills in as extra sessions! They are quality sessions and can instead replace their equivalents:
E.g. swap your tempo for Kenyans. Swap your track for Hill Sprints. Swap your long run for an undulating route.


Want to dig in to this topic a bit deeper? Check out the Runner's World podcast where Rick Pearson and I chat about all things hill training: 




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