Run hills to race better
The Boston Marathon's Heartbreak Hill is probably the most famous, but anyone who races in the Upper Midwest is going to encounter hilly courses. When they name a climb, such as Stink Hill in the Pictured Rocks Road Race or McKinley Hill on the Traverse City Cherry Festival 15K route, you had better be ready.
I began hill training almost by accident. One afternoon in 1977, as I was jogging over to the track to do intervals, a massive wall of black clouds appeared on the horizon and it began to rain. Rather than tempt hypothermia by doing a sprint workout in a downpour, I headed toward North Street Hill, a fairly steep incline. That day I ran a series of circuits, charging uphill, then turning and running swiftly back down while the storm raged. Since then I have run hundreds of workouts on North Street Hill. During the 27 years I was coaching Cadillac's High School cross country team, we ran workouts there most weeks. Our teams gained a reputation for being tough to beat on hilly courses.
The benefits of hill training are many. Not only does it give you confidence in your ability to compete on rolling race courses, it builds quad and hamstring muscles which are essential for sustaining speed. Hills strengthen these muscles without the heavy impact of flat speedwork. Regular doses of downhill running conditions quad muscles to withstand the pounding which can be excruciatingly painful for untrained muscles.
Good form for running hills means taking quick short strong strides, leaning forward and pumping arms. Running hills is an excellent way to improve arm swing since you can actually feel your arms help build your uphill momentum. As I get older and my legs tire more quickly, increasingly I rely on a powerful arm swing to sustain my uphill effort.
Too often the focus is on running uphill, though. Effective downhill running is part of racing as well. With downhill running, visualize leaning forward even though physics won't let that happen. Ron Daws, in his book Running Your Best, makes this observation: "Downhill speed is controlled by forward lean. Think of your body as a lever. When you want to go faster, push the lever forward (and your center of gravity). When you want to go slow, ease back on the lever."
Concentrate on trying to lengthen your stride without slamming your feet. If uncertain about balance, spread out your arms to help keep your footing. Run downhill fast, but don't exhaust yourself unless the finish line is at hand.
Although occasionally I run woodland paths, especially If I am preparing for a trail race, for the most part I believe running circuits on the same hill is the best way to maximize the value of this training. The North Street Hill climbs for about 350 yards with a 10 to 15 percent incline that tops out with 50 yards on the level. By incorporating the flat stretch at the finish, I've trained myself not to let up at the crest of the hill but instead to continue running hard. Runners often ease up at the top of a hill. To be able to continue pouring it on as you reach the peak pays dividends in races.
It helps to replicate in practice the type of terrain you will encounter in races. The Maryland Marathon, as it was laid out in the early 1980s, featured a hill that was a half-mile high. To ready myself for it I found a similar hill and trained on it. On race day I was ready and passed the previous year's race winner on that hill. Even though Cadillac's High School team did most of their hillwork on North Street, I used to have my cross country athletes do some practices where they would sprint half hills to prepare for the shorter climbs often found on high school courses. To get accustomed to dealing with tree roots, debris and uneven footing, we also ran practices on hilly woodland trails. If the race course is near where you train, driving over and running the actual race hill can better prepare you for the competition.
To measure the intensity of a workout, note the number of minutes actually spent going uphill. This is the advantage of staying with a single hill. You are either running uphill or down and can actually determine how much of the workout is devoted to climbing. Thirty years ago, I was doing 16 reps of North Street Hill, which meant about 30 minutes of uphill running. Today I complete about four reps which equals roughly 10 minutes of climbing. Age, level of fitness and motivation will help you determine the makeup of your workout.
Do the workout without stopping or slowing down and time each circuit. That is important. Circuit times should all be about the same. When one loop is significantly slower, stop running. The slowing down and increased pain means your legs are spent. To continue only tempts injury.
Initially use the downhills to recover so you will reach the bottom of the hill without being winded. As you do circuits your legs will get more fatigued. That is to be expected, but if you are still breathing hard as you turn to start the next uphill, you need to ease up on the downhills and run them more slowly. Recovery should be done on the downhills, not while running uphill. As you get stronger, run the downhills faster.
Hill running, when made part of your weekly training program, will definitely make you a stronger competitor.
Dave Foley still runs North Street Hill in his hometown of Cadillac, Michigan, occasionally, although he is sure the earth is shifting causing the hill to gradually become taller and steeper.
I began hill training almost by accident. One afternoon in 1977, as I was jogging over to the track to do intervals, a massive wall of black clouds appeared on the horizon and it began to rain. Rather than tempt hypothermia by doing a sprint workout in a downpour, I headed toward North Street Hill, a fairly steep incline. That day I ran a series of circuits, charging uphill, then turning and running swiftly back down while the storm raged. Since then I have run hundreds of workouts on North Street Hill. During the 27 years I was coaching Cadillac's High School cross country team, we ran workouts there most weeks. Our teams gained a reputation for being tough to beat on hilly courses.
The benefits of hill training are many. Not only does it give you confidence in your ability to compete on rolling race courses, it builds quad and hamstring muscles which are essential for sustaining speed. Hills strengthen these muscles without the heavy impact of flat speedwork. Regular doses of downhill running conditions quad muscles to withstand the pounding which can be excruciatingly painful for untrained muscles.
Good form for running hills means taking quick short strong strides, leaning forward and pumping arms. Running hills is an excellent way to improve arm swing since you can actually feel your arms help build your uphill momentum. As I get older and my legs tire more quickly, increasingly I rely on a powerful arm swing to sustain my uphill effort.
Too often the focus is on running uphill, though. Effective downhill running is part of racing as well. With downhill running, visualize leaning forward even though physics won't let that happen. Ron Daws, in his book Running Your Best, makes this observation: "Downhill speed is controlled by forward lean. Think of your body as a lever. When you want to go faster, push the lever forward (and your center of gravity). When you want to go slow, ease back on the lever."
Concentrate on trying to lengthen your stride without slamming your feet. If uncertain about balance, spread out your arms to help keep your footing. Run downhill fast, but don't exhaust yourself unless the finish line is at hand.
Although occasionally I run woodland paths, especially If I am preparing for a trail race, for the most part I believe running circuits on the same hill is the best way to maximize the value of this training. The North Street Hill climbs for about 350 yards with a 10 to 15 percent incline that tops out with 50 yards on the level. By incorporating the flat stretch at the finish, I've trained myself not to let up at the crest of the hill but instead to continue running hard. Runners often ease up at the top of a hill. To be able to continue pouring it on as you reach the peak pays dividends in races.
It helps to replicate in practice the type of terrain you will encounter in races. The Maryland Marathon, as it was laid out in the early 1980s, featured a hill that was a half-mile high. To ready myself for it I found a similar hill and trained on it. On race day I was ready and passed the previous year's race winner on that hill. Even though Cadillac's High School team did most of their hillwork on North Street, I used to have my cross country athletes do some practices where they would sprint half hills to prepare for the shorter climbs often found on high school courses. To get accustomed to dealing with tree roots, debris and uneven footing, we also ran practices on hilly woodland trails. If the race course is near where you train, driving over and running the actual race hill can better prepare you for the competition.
To measure the intensity of a workout, note the number of minutes actually spent going uphill. This is the advantage of staying with a single hill. You are either running uphill or down and can actually determine how much of the workout is devoted to climbing. Thirty years ago, I was doing 16 reps of North Street Hill, which meant about 30 minutes of uphill running. Today I complete about four reps which equals roughly 10 minutes of climbing. Age, level of fitness and motivation will help you determine the makeup of your workout.
Do the workout without stopping or slowing down and time each circuit. That is important. Circuit times should all be about the same. When one loop is significantly slower, stop running. The slowing down and increased pain means your legs are spent. To continue only tempts injury.
Initially use the downhills to recover so you will reach the bottom of the hill without being winded. As you do circuits your legs will get more fatigued. That is to be expected, but if you are still breathing hard as you turn to start the next uphill, you need to ease up on the downhills and run them more slowly. Recovery should be done on the downhills, not while running uphill. As you get stronger, run the downhills faster.
Hill running, when made part of your weekly training program, will definitely make you a stronger competitor.
Dave Foley still runs North Street Hill in his hometown of Cadillac, Michigan, occasionally, although he is sure the earth is shifting causing the hill to gradually become taller and steeper.