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by
Ed Eyestone
The only way to prepare for hills is
to practice on hills
Boston has Heartbreak at mile 21! Bloomsday has Cemetery and
Doomsday. The San Blas Half-Marathon has The Strangler. Apparently, just
plain running isn't tough enough. So race directors, in their infinite
wisdom, have decided we need hills. Big ones. And if they have
sadistic-sounding names, so much the better.
Many upcoming spring races will be run on hilly courses. The question is:
How should you prepare? According to the principle of training specificity,
in order to improve a certain aspect of physical fitness, you must train
specifically for it. This means one thing: If you want to turn those looming
hills into nothing more than speed bumps, you need to do some hill workouts.
Think of a hill workout as a running-specific weight workout. The
exaggerated knee lift, driving arms, and pronounced toe-off necessary to run
up hills strengthens you every bit as much as hitting the weight room. Hill
running also works the cardiovascular system as your heart tries to keep
pace with the increased energy required to fight gravity. Consequently, hill
workouts are very taxing and should be done only once or twice a week.
I recommend four basic types of hill workouts. Each has its
specific rewards:
1. Short Hills. My high school coach affectionately called these
"meat grinders." They are relatively short hills of 100 to 200 meters that
you repeat multiple times. They can be tacked on the end of an easy run or
used as a complete workout. Because these hills are short, you should run
them at a fast pace -- almost an all-out effort -- with a walk or slow jog
back down the hill as a recovery.
While you can run these types of hill repeats on asphalt, a grass or dirt
hill is less stressful to your body. Short hills are important for anyone
who wants to develop the explosive strength necessary to run a good 800
meters or finish strong in a mile or 5-K. A sample short hill workout: one
to two sets of 10 hill repeats. Walk or jog slowly down the hill after each
repeat, and do an additional 5 minutes of jogging between sets.
2. Hilly Power Run. It doesn't sound very technical (sorry), but this
workout builds strength for a strong marathon or half-marathon. Pick a route
that has rolling hills and "push" each hill. By push, I mean you should try
not to slow down as you roll over each rise. But don't attack the incline as
you do when running short hills.
I like to do this kind of run as part of a 10-mile workout. I pick a canyon
road, then work each uphill, catching my breath as I cruise on the flat and
downhill sections. This type of continuous hilly power run will be your best
weapon against monsters such as Heartbreak Hill in Boston.
3. Hilly Long Run. This workout is similar to the Hilly Power Run,
but longer and less intense. Run this at your long-run pace, but make sure
you have some rolling hills in the last half of the run. When you hit the
hills with fatigued legs, you'll be forced to work on your form. This
workout will also build the strength and confidence necessary to race well
late in a longer race, whether it has hills or not.
4. Long Hill Circuits. This is more of a traditional long-interval
workout. The key is finding a grass or dirt circuit that has a number of
uphills. The distance of the circuit can be as short as a half-mile or as
long as 2 miles. Run the downhill sections at a semi-easy (75 percent)
effort to avoid injury. Run the flat and uphill sections at 5-K race pace.
Unless you're a Sherpa, do a total of 3- to 4-miles' worth of the circuit,
with 3 to 5 minutes of jog recovery between each circuit.
Notice that I haven't said you need to run up Pikes Peak or some other
mountain precipice. The problem with that type of extremely long, steep,
hill running is that your turnover becomes so slow it's no longer specific
to the type of racing you're likely to be doing.
So, I'll see you at Boston. Look for me at the speed bump around mile 21.
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