Hills, hills, everywhere are hills...

For those who have read the RR manual, these are all repeats. But I found this all nice and typed out on a RR forum, so I thought I'd post it and save us all a lot of work.

- The hill should be anywhere from 250 metres to 600 metres in length, and should have an incline of 8-10%.
- Always start at the top of the hill. Walk or slow run to the bottom of the hill.
- Try and maintain the same stride frequency as you would on flat ground and shorten it as you adjust to the grade.
- Use your arms, when your leg turnover starts to slow near the top, pump your arms a little faster and your legs will be sure to follow.
- keep your posture erect, rather than leaning too far forward. Try and look parallel to the surface of the hill. In doing this the hill appears to flatten and is not visually as tough as if you looked up with your eyes while keeping your head down.
- Concentrate on good form and increase the rhythm of your arms slightly as you near the crest of the hill. Push over the crest.
- Keep your chest up and out. Keep your breathing relaxed.
- maintain the same effort as you go up the hill. Your speed will slow slightly and increase again as you reach the crest of the hill. Keep the same effort at the crest and run past the top before turning around.
- Never stop once you have reached the top. Continue a slow jog or a walk. This hill training is pretty intense. By continuing to keep moving, you will enhance your recovery and be ready sooner for your next repeat.
- For those using their target heart rate, intensity is 70-80% of maximum heart rate. Always rest for at least as long as it takes to run up the hill or until your heart rate is below 120 BPM. Rest is part of your training.
- Remember, hill training is not a race but a quality individual workout. Run to the hill and do the warm-up with the group, but the hill is yours alone to conquer and at your own speed.
- Hills build your confidence level and increase your self esteem as well as prepare you mentally to be a better athlete.