Take To The Hills

For most runners, hills are the enemy. They are obstacles, standing in the way of PBs, a burden to be endured, a muscle sapping, lung-bursting exercise in pain. Of course, hills break your rhythm, they are tough and challenging, forcing you to step outside your comfort zone. But in as little as six weeks of regular uphill and downhill training you can expect significant improvement in your muscle power, speed and endurance.

Benefits of Hill Running

Improves leg muscle strength
Quickens your stride
Expands your stride
Develops your cardiovascular system
Enhances running economy and can even protect your leg muscles against sorness

The Science

Combining strength work with running is crucial to improving overall performance. Most runners tend to do the strength work in a gym. While exercises such as lungs and squats do increase strength and muscular power, they do it in isolation of running, focussing on individual joints and small sets of muscles. Hill training, in contrast, forces the muscles in your hips, legs, ankles and feet to contract in a coordinated fashion while supporting your full body weight, allowing your body to train and mimic the exact motion of normal running. Scientific research carried out in Sweden concluded that those who train on hills have a higher concentration of aerobic enzymes. These chemicals allow your muscles to function at higher intensity for longer periods without fatigue. Runners who train on hills have also been shown to be less likely to lose fitness when they take time off from training.

Uphill Running Technique

Running hills is all about rhythm; if you let the hill break up your rhythm, your speed will decrease dramatically. But if you make the proper adjustments and maintain your cadence, you blitz those hills

On approach begin to shorten your stride. Don’t try to maintain the pace you were running on the flat
You are aiming for the same effort going up as well as down. NOT the same pace.
Lift your knees higher than you would on the flat and lean forward slightly, but keep a straight spine. Your head, shoulders and back should form a straight line over your feet.
If breathing rate starts to increase dramatically it means that you’re either going too fast over-striding or bounding too far off the ground as you run.
Your arms generate power and help keep momentum going uphill. Pump them higher and more vigorously, like a sprinter, but make sure that pumping action is backwards and forwards and not across your body. Crossing arms and twisting your torso wastes energy

Downhill Running Technique

Lean forward from the hips, not the shoulders. Gravity naturally pulls you downhill
Avoid leaning back and concentrate on keeping your body perpendicular to the ground. As speed increases, move your centre of gravity forward with you
It’s crucial that you engage your core. Think of the abs, gluteus and back as the support base that your limbs work around.
Use your arms for balance. When running downhill, you don’t necessarily need the same forward-back arm movement for power as on flats and uphills
Because you don’t need as much power from the knee drive, keep your feet under your body and don’t over-stride.
Look down the hill, not at your feet. It will cause neck-forward flexion and facilitate your flexor muscles; as a result you will turn off the muscles (gluteus, hamstrings, quadriceps) which keep you upright and neutral. The lack of activation from these muscles will increase your risk of failing forward

Hill Training Sessions

Uphill Session

Start with 4-5 reps of 30-60m (5-10 seconds) up a steep hill, than build up over a few sessions to 8-12 reps. For recovery, slowly jog or walk back down the hill and wait until 2 minutes have passes. Repeat

Downhill Session

Start with 4-5 reps of 60-100m on a moderately steep grade. Run at 85% of your maximum pace and allow 2 minutes for recovery between reps. Build up to 6-8 reps at 90 to 95% effort. Where possible, complete this workout on grass or trails to lessen impact on joints and muscles.