Hill Running: Why You Should Embrace The Climb
Most runners avoid hills. The runners who improve fastest seek them out. Hills are not an obstacle. They are a tool.
Dejan Koceski
Health & Performance Coach · Melbourne
Hill Running: Why You Should Embrace The Climb
Most runners avoid hills.
The runners who improve fastest seek them out. Hills are not an obstacle. They are a tool.
Why Hills Work
Hill running builds three things at once:
- Strength. Running uphill forces you to drive your legs against resistance. It is strength training disguised as running. Your glutes, hamstrings, and calves work harder than on flat ground.
- Cardiovascular fitness. Hills raise your heart rate fast. A short hill repeat produces a cardiovascular stimulus that would take much longer to reach on flat ground.
- Running form. Hills force good mechanics. You lean slightly forward, drive your knees, pump your arms, and land under your body. Bad form is punished uphill. Good form is rewarded.
There is a reason elite runners do hill repeats. They are one of the highest-return sessions you can do.
How To Start
If you are new to hills, do not start with brutal repeats. Build in:
- Include hills in your easy runs. Find a route with a few hills and run them at an easy effort. Do not attack them. Just get used to running uphill comfortably.
- Slow down on the climb. Effort stays easy, pace drops. This is not failing. This is correct.
- Add hill repeats after a few weeks. Find a moderate hill. Run up hard for 30-60 seconds. Walk or jog down to recover. Repeat 4-8 times. Build up gradually.
The Form
- Lean from the ankles, not the waist. A slight forward lean, keeping your body in a straight line.
- Shorten your stride. Do not try to take long steps. Quick, short steps are more efficient and easier on your legs.
- Drive your arms. Your arms set your leg cadence. Pump them and your legs follow.
- Look up, not at your feet. Keep your head up and your eyes forward.
The Mental Benefit
Hills teach you to be comfortable with discomfort. Every climb is a decision to keep going when it would be easier to stop. That decision, repeated, builds the mental toughness that transfers to every other part of your life.
Embrace the climb. It is making you a better runner and a stronger person.
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