Hill Sprint

The movement itself — 8 to 15 seconds of maximum effort up a steep gradient, walked down, fully recovered. The rep inside a hill sprint session.

· 2 min read

running · hill · power · neuromuscular · plyometric

The lesson

  1. 1

    Find the right hill

    8 to 12% gradient on firm ground — grass or asphalt, not loose gravel. You only need 40 to 60 metres; the rep ends well before the hill does.

  2. 2

    Arrive warm

    10 to 15 minutes of easy running, then 3 or 4 strides on the flat. Don't touch the hill until your legs feel springy.

  3. 3

    Drive up for 8 to 15 seconds

    Standing or rolling start, maximum effort. The gradient caps your speed for you — that's what makes an all-out effort safe here.

  4. 4

    Lean from the ankles

    Forward lean from the ankles rather than folding at the waist. Aggressive arms, high knees, push all the way through each stride.

  5. 5

    Walk the whole way down

    90 seconds to 2 minutes, every rep. There's no heart-rate target and no cardiovascular goal — this isn't interval training.

  6. 6

    The test

    Every rep should feel sharp and powerful. If you're still breathing hard when the next one starts, you haven't recovered — wait longer.

  7. 7

    Stop early rather than late

    4 to 8 reps. End the session the moment a rep feels slower or sloppier than the one before, and stop immediately for anything sharp.

Hill Sprint

How to do it

Find a hill at roughly 8 to 12% with a firm surface — grass or asphalt, not loose gravel. You need 40 to 60 metres of it, no more.

Warm up properly first: 10 to 15 minutes of easy running followed by 3 or 4 build-up strides on the flat. From a standing or rolling start, drive hard up the hill for 8 to 15 seconds at maximum effort. Lean forward from the ankles, drive the arms aggressively, lift the knees, and push all the way through each stride.

Then walk all the way back down and take 90 seconds to 2 minutes before the next one. Four to eight reps is a session.

Why it's good for runners

In those few seconds you produce forces nothing else in a training week produces: peak fibre recruitment, maximum tendon loading, explosive power. The gradient limits your top speed to roughly 60 to 70% of flat sprinting while the muscular effort is equal or greater, which is why this is the safest way to train at maximum intensity.

Common mistakes

Going again before you've recovered. There is no cardiovascular target here — if you're winded at the start of a rep, the rep is wasted. Running for 20 seconds or more, which makes it a hill repeat rather than a hill sprint. Folding forward at the waist instead of leaning from the ankles. And pushing through a strain or a tweak — maximum effort demands a healthy, warm body, so stop at anything sharp.

Related

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Hill Sprints: Maximum Power, Minimum Risk

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