Runs4Sanity
Do you love them, hate them, know you need them? Do you try and find hills on every running route, or some of the time... or by accident? A lot of articles I read state that hill runs once a week are good enough, but wouldn't it help you tremendously more during races if all or most of your runs were on hilly courses? Now that I run in the mornings, I run out in the specs of neighborhoods around my house, and there are a lot of hilly streets. Sometimes I'll aim for them, sometimes I won't if I am just wanting an easy recovery run, but after this weekend's 5k I think I am going to start aiming for them more often again because I know they helped me alot at the St. Louis Half in April and I also know they helped me cut my 5k time by 5 minutes. Sometimes I hate them, but every time I get to the top I love them.
*Do It For Yourself, Do It Because They Said It Was Impossible, Do It Because They Said You Were Incapable*
PRs
5k - 24:15 (7:49 min/mile pace)
10k - 51:47 (8:16 min/mile pace)
15k -1:18:09 (8:24 min/mile pace)
13.1 - 1:53:12 (8:39 min/mile pace)
26:2 - 4:14:55 (9:44 min/mile)
Hills should have some place in most training plans. What place probably depends on what you're training for. If you're training for a flat marathon, they're a lot less important than if you're training for, say, a mountain race.
I train mainly in the park near my house, which has what I would describe as rolling hills, so I'm running hills (though not a hill workout) around 4 days a week.
I like hill repeats at the beginning of a training cycle (a la Brad Hudson/Matt Fitzgerald) to build leg strength/power. According to Hudson they help prevent injuries, though I don't know from personal experience one way or the other. I do know that after ~6 weeks of a weekly hill repeat workout, I nailed a recent short (1.7 mile) race. There are always lots of factors but my legs felt strong, and as the race ended on an uphill I didn't feel like the hill had wrecked me, and I was running about 30 sec/mile faster than a pretty recent (though also hilly) 5K.
we don't have any hills here but causeways 30 minutes away. So I don't do them more often than once every other week.
Damaris
As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.
Fundraising Page
I can't get away from hills. If I try really, really hard, I can get to 200' change per mile.
These are the hills out my side door
These are the hills out my back door
These are the hills down the street
My go to road hill repeats are a little 1/4 mile stretch that gains 150'
My go to trail repeats? 550' in 0.46 miles.
My favorite hill workout is a trail run that climbs 3000' over 5.5 miles
I run hilly courses as often as I can, simply by default.
Trail and Ultra Running User Group
Hip Redux
Bird - those are friggin mountains, not hills. lol
I have hills on most all my routes. Sometimes I drive to a flat route though!
I love them, once or twice a week. And by love, I mean I really do enjoy them. I enjoy how they leave me breathless. But on my speedwork days, I avoid them at all cost.
PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013
Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013
18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010
I don't live in the mountains, but this part of PA is hilly, so if I run outside, I have hills. I appreciate the fact that they make me stronger, but I hate the fact that I am not strong enough yet to do them easily. Since most of the longer races around here include some steep climbs, getting good at hills is necessary if I'm going to race.
No more marathons
Hate 'em. But live in western North Carolina - can't avoid them either. Sigh!
Boston 2014 - a 33 year journey
Lordy, I hope there are tapes.
He's a leaker!
Squidward Bike Rider
Where I live, there's hills on top of hills, but I do also have my choice of flatter routes. I am a firm believer in doing hill repeats every 10 days as part of a training plan also.
I ran 11 miles of mostly hills along the Boston Marathon course tonight, and try to do them in general at least once a week. All my long runs include those particular hills. I'm training for a hilly August marathon which will hopefully be helped by these runs. Those are hills I really like running on.
Are we there, yet?
Tracks don't have hills....or at least they aren't supposed to. Now does that make racing on the track a little more attractive?
2024 Races:
03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles
05/11 - D3 50K 05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour
06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.
Will run for scenery.
Hills ! Yay !
Stupid feet!
Stupid elbow!
uʍop ǝpᴉsdn sǝʇᴉɹʍ ʇI
Nice! Looks like SW Utah.
I can't get away from hills. If I try really, really hard, I can get to 200' change per mile. These are the hills out my side door These are the hills out my back door These are the hills down the street My go to road hill repeats are a little 1/4 mile stretch that gains 150' My go to trail repeats? 550' in 0.46 miles. My favorite hill workout is a trail run that climbs 3000' over 5.5 miles I run hilly courses as often as I can, simply by default.
I don't "like" hills, but I have learned to tolerate them. While I don't necessarily like running them, I know it will help in the grand scheme of things.
I might sound crazy, but jealous. Wouldn't want to have those for all my runs, but damn they are gorgeous.