You Should Be Running Hills and Here's Why!

[@full6330name]

I felt like running up hill is like a cheat code when training. In a much lower time you improve a lot more. Running on flat gets easier and easier...

[@brianjames2000]

Hills are always a pain in the behind for me so I named them. There's Eileen - the Sweet and Gentle, Margaret - the Iron Lady, Grace the Unrelenting, Diana of Themiscyra and Mount Puke.

[@TheRunExperience]

This is an incredible idea and comment! Haha!

[@RunnerwaCause]

I also name my hills, and even splits on my trails. I bet Mount Puke is a blast! Hahaha! Great names.

[@brianjames2000]

@@RunnerwaCause That's not the word I would use, especially after a 7.5 mile run that includes ALL the aforementioned hills!

[@RuthRudden]

This is great! Never thought of that. Definitely going to do it. Hahaha!!

[@brianjames2000]

@@RuthRudden I also like to have small conversations with them while I'm at it. Not advisable unless it's still dark out or you don't mind if passers by give you strange looks!

[@miaschisler9465]

some days all i want to do is hills other days i want to lay on my face in the middle of the hill

[@TheeSarahWood]

Bwahaha

[@liftedrunner]

Me too

[@miaschisler9465]

@@liftedrunner ikr. it’s a love hate relationship

[@miaschisler9465]

@@TheeSarahWood 😂

[@sunmiduo]

lol it's been 2 days and i can't stop thinking about this comment idk why XD

[@JamesDunne]

Great job Holly! I definitely have a love-hate relationship with running hills, but know deep down that they're AMAZING for my running form, speed and strength! Not sure who's quote it is, but I like to remind myself: _"Hill running is speed work in disguise"_

[@jorgeenrique6699]

Man, I've searched a lot of running videos for advice and yours by far is the best! Your explanation of form and everything is great. Thanks!

[@BIIIIIGMAN]

You taught me a valuable lesson in uphill running...push your hips forward! Makes a HUGE difference! Thank you

[@michaelgrammer2781]

I live in Cincinnati, its all hills. To make it even worse, I live at the top of a hill. No matter what direction I choose, I'm running hills. In fact, I am so used to it that I find running all flats more difficult.

[@Richie_Likes_Running]

Ran up Snowdon in North Wales earlier in the year and it actually fixed my knee 🏃💪🌱👍

[@JJ-ks3mo]

Nice

[@dirtymike3329]

Hills are magical. I can’t even explain it. Crazy PRs

[@michele1283]

And here I was all this time wondering why my back hurt after some time when hiking! Thank you so much for this, I'll keep my hips forward and glutei engaged from now on!

[@Randimal762]

At first I resented my neighborhood terrain and it's rolling hills, but over time I've come to be grateful for them because I believe they've made me a stronger runner and also may have prevented over-use injuries that may have been caused by running too much on the flats... Running up and down hills allow your muscles and joints to experience different loads and ranges of motion vs. only running on the flats where your body would only experience the same repetitive motions... Over time, running only on flats would probably make you more vulnerable to injury. If you run a lot of hills like me, just make sure you're running downhill with good form ;)

[@Lockhart2000]

Love hills. Every second run I do lately is a 10k that is 80 percent uphill (450m elevation gain). Then I take the bus back home like some sort of reverse ski lift because running downhill is bad for my knees and doesn't add any fitness benefits.

[@kimberly8509]

Thank you for teaching me how to go up hills. Paid attention to my feet in cadence yesterday. It was great. I didn't stop. Thank you for teaching me. I am now empowered .

[@RunnerwaCause]

I do not mind going up hills at all. I find them a great challenge that always make me feel stronger. I just hate the top before the down hill. Everything just seems so off after hitting that up hill power. Great video coach! Good luck tomorrow, enjoy the experience. You got this!

[@TheRunExperience]

Thank you!!

[@hankvinson5967]

I've been doing a two mile warmup, followed by 1 mile of hill repeats in the middle of the week. Love it! Good video!

[@TheRunExperience]

That is awesome! Thank you :)

[@TheJessRamone]

@coachholly I ran for years, mostly trails. Was super strong. Then turned ill, and had to battle illness for 10yrs, am now back to running (plus MTB/yoga/walking/core-strength). It was as if I had to refind my right run form. I've struggled for over a year with this... After this advice my new mantra whilst running is: "tuck bum under, push hips forward, smile" My runs already are less draining and I absolutely love it. I combined this with your advice to use calmer music during your run with a few sprinkles of up tempo in the Bose sponsored vid. Works wonders. Thank you so much Holly. 🤗💚🏃🏻‍♀️

[@TheRunExperience]

So happy to help you!

[@prs7100]

Coach Holly. You are a professional and you are a motivator. Thank you....

[@jeanlee28]

Thanks so much , coach Holly! YES!! As you and other coaches of Run Experience have always advised, trying to push hips forward while running and increasing cadence kept lower back pain in bay!!!!! I guess I need more hill training though. ^^

[@chasedavies6890]

Great talking point, I struggle with cadence (minimizing time on the ground) because the high knee cue seems to fatigue me. Hills definitely need to be incorporated into my programming to help strengthen this!

[@liftedrunner]

Especially if your in the bay area, so many great trails with beautiful hills. They are so green right now

[@lordabstract82]

Excellent video Holly! I live in hill country Texas and my whole neighborhood is chock full of them. Today I broke into the low 9 min for my first mile, which contains three very large hills. I did 3 miles, the second I came in 9:48 and the third I managed at 10:48. This activity and habit is really giving my legs more strength then they have had previously when I was a flat ground only runner. I am going to put a few of your techniques to use, but honestly I’m doing much of this already, it was a learned form that only came with taking the hills on and learning as I went. Keep killing it.

[@gokiwi2642]

Excellent video coach Holly, I’ve been running my usual Circuit with mostly rolling hills since 2014 really enjoy the hills, got to the stage the hills feel easier than running on the flat, found mixing in some flat running, helps with running form, found just running the hills all the time running form turns to custard 👊🏼

[@andreas.charalambides]

I tried it today thanks for the tips. Well I managed to keep my breaths and was remembering the tip for the correct posture, especially when I was feeling tired. Thanks a lot!

[@iliketosteal]

I found that I benefited from 400m intervals on a hill more than any other training aspect (new runner... < 1 year)

[@BradfordHills]

How many do you do?

[@iliketosteal]

@@BradfordHills Varies from week to week. 8-10 on average

[@raeg1229]

What perceived effort are you running at? Top speed or just making it up the hill??

[@BradfordHills]

I've been doing Hill sprints - 3 sets of 20 second all out blasts up the California incline in Santa Monica.

[@iliketosteal]

@@raeg1229 8/10... just enough to save some in the tank to make sure I finish. Next day, I’m 2-5 seconds per km faster

[@deanbaharuddin6591]

I train hills and gain strong effects on flats time. Improves HR Training + Increase Pace Maintence + Overall Speed + Stronger Endurances.

[@ronlanter6906]

I wear a 25lb weight vest when doing 2.5- 3 miles of hilly (450+ elevation increase) trail jogging x 3 per week and 20 lbs when doing 4.5 - 5 miles of extreme hill (1,200+ elevation increase) trail jogging once per week. 50 miles per month average

[@mjaybash26]

I hate hills but DO need to practice on them. This is very informative for strength training.

[@LodvarDude]

Hill-work is part of my weekly rotation. I usually go for the the standard 10 * 1 min, which I repeat with a 4 minute break. Great workout. In the end. you'll have 10-12 km under your belt (with a decent warmup), and a great strength-session in one. As an alternative, I do the good old 4/3 - only on a hill. Even with a warmup, this is a shorter session. It's still hills, but longer in S4 and even S5. Great for stamina and mental strength.

[@josiahblair6413]

God bless you and your family and friends too.

[@miriamha970]

I totally agree that running hills make you a stronger and faster runner.

[@jedimasterlex13]

South Florida flat swamp-land runner here. I am blessed with a Florida hill (55 foot tall bridge) 1 mile from home. The fact that I must return over her haunts me on my long runs but I have had unbelievable second winds crossing at the tail end of a 20+ miler. 👍🏃‍♂️🏃‍♂️🏃‍♂️

[@TheRunExperience]

Nice! Will take any hills we can get :)

[@1Tomrider]

Right you are! Hills really aren't anyone's idea of a great time, but you'll really improve. I got my two best 10K times after doing hills, with nothing else being different.

[@Lockhart2000]

Same here.

[@johngardner1898]

Coach Holly ran 100 miles on her own under 24 hours. When she talks about fitness, running, and mental toughness, I pay attention. Messages here: keep hips forward, maintain cadence when going uphill, and schedule hills for training effect. Also, get back into the gym and/or pick up the kettle bell until I get stronger legs like Coach Holly.

[@TheRunExperience]

Thanks John! This means a lot :) keep up the good work!

[@Bweyg]

I learned that running up a hill is way better for you then running on a flat area, running bear foot, or even running in the forest, when I saw a video called "I tried Jakob Ingebrigtsen's hardest workout" where you do a 20 minute warm up 4k, then do 10 200m 40s (depending on your shape though, for me I figured that 160m is more of my shape) with recovery jogs in between, then 5 minute rest, then 10 more 200m except this time at 35 second pace, and then 20 minute cool down, 3k. And of course there all on a up hill. It's an incredible way to not only build endurance, but it actually gets you up with speed. Going for 40-50 minute runs might get you in better shape, but it will do very little to actually make you run faster.

[@alexdenton9176]

Just trained hill sprints at the park today. I usually run up steeper gradients of 13% and 16% but I reckon this slope was about 8%... did three sprints over what was probably 160 - 180 m. The biggest impact on my joints is that lately I ordered the regular RAW skins from ebay instead of the long ones by mistake.

[@pullupparker6110]

I have been avoiding hills, always been my weakness since high school xc. Gotta face my weakness now

[@randystebbins5733]

Hills have always been my weakness too, especially as I get older. But I coach kids and hill workouts are a staple because they make you stronger and faster.

[@aurangzaib3442]

Coach holly demonstration ever 😍

[@antigravity19]

I need to work on my plantar pain before I can start putting them back into the rotation. Started trying to integrate more than just a single hill last summer and blew up my foot.

[@dmc7783]

Thanks for a great video, your suggestions on form is correct. All of my runs are on technical Mtn trails, in order to survive these runs, a person needs to have good posture ,form and be a little bat shit crazy. Thanks

[@dtaylortf]

Ran some rolling hill yesterday - was brutal but always worth it.

[@liverpoolhw]

Coach Holly you are awesome and real

[@Peter-ri9ie]

Looking at this to get inspiration for my first hill repeats after contracting covid-19 about a year ago. It takes time getting back on track... Great video! 👣☀️

[@theunknownpassenger552]

I do a 2 mile up Hill just Jerry Rice did. Right coach them hills get them hips in.

[@OmarAbdulMalikDHEdMPASPACPAPro]

I'm a new subscriber and advid distance runner (❤trails 🏞🏃🏽‍♂️)! Thanks for covering this. I learned some new terminology! I live in Washington, D.C. We don't have much elevation. However, some decent hills in Rock Creek Park. It's a good place to train.

[@XHollisWood]

Excellent Tutorial Holly ❣️Fabulous tech points, 🥵 Shoutout to the “Q Tee” that inspires me. 🎃 xoxo Jesse 🚒

[@josiahblair6413]

I hope everyone has a great day today.

[@abdelkorchi]

Nice vidéo thank you

[@lfkw2484]

But what if, and hear me out, I really don't like running hills?

[@TheRunExperience]

Ha! Fair. But who said you got stronger by only doing things you liked :)

[@sucbadive]

L W .... one thing I’ve learned is you need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable......mike

[@reynalopez5728]

Thank you Coach Holly! You always give information with such clarity👌🏼😊will defenitely put more hills in my training for my LA Marathon in March 2021👍🏼

[@jeffhoffmann4234]

I am so impressed by how you explain this. Ty

[@motoedd2437]

Thanks Holly, spot on.. 👍

[@bca-biciclindcuaxel7527]

I love running uphills . I am 2 meter tall and over 100 kg and running uphill is like no stress on my knees .

[@Kelly_Ben]

Great tips, thanks! My favorite runs are rolling mountain trails, so any tips to improve form and power on them are helpful!

[@Dave-kq9cv]

Great explanation Holly.

[@JerryEgge]

Great tips on running form , cadence and hill training! Thanks

[@jamessmith8144]

Hey coach Holly, thanks for your video. I miss your genuine demeanor as seen from your old videos. Maybe it's because you smiled more. I don't know but something is off. Anyway, still good video and will grudgingly practice running hills.

[@SouthwestMG]

This was dope! Thanks for the tips!

[@TheRunExperience]

You are welcome! :)

[@liftedrunner]

Was that lake chabot with the the lady in black with the dog? I miss lake chabot, redwood regional and chabot so much 😥,😞, too many people on the skinny trails.

[@davidquibell272]

Inspiring as always - thank you Coach Holly for making me a better runner 🏃‍♀️

[@jesurunblends]

TY FOR THIS VIDEO I LOVE RUNNING UP TRAILS TOO

[@ronlanter6906]

I wear a 25lb weight vest when doing 2.5- 3 miles of hilly (450+ elevation increase) trail jogging x 3 per week and 20 lbs when doing 4.5 - 5 miles of extreme hill (1,200+ elevation increase) trail jogging once per week. 50 miles per month average

[@TheRunExperience]

Well done!

[@shermagustave837]

Good teacher thanks

[@jmajors8958]

I hate to love hills thank u

[@MrBrianRoberts]

Brilliant video, you are so good at explaining, thank you

[@TheRunExperience]

You're very welcome!

[@MrBrianRoberts]

@@TheRunExperience thank you x 😊

[@madambruja]

Really good video

[@markbubb9902]

Coach Holly’s bad form is probably how I look running from the candy dish

[@kevinabate6056]

I hate running on hills so much. I mean like with a passion. It's slow and painful. There's nothing you can do to run more efficiently that will make it easy and there's really no avoiding the necessity of core strength on a downslope. The best you can do is to choose between cadence or form. If you choose cadence, your step length is going to shrink and if you choose form and strides, then your cadence will suffer.

[@halojimmy7]

im a walker that loves challenging by walking I was doing 14 miles walks im target 17 miles next 😀

[@michails.maipas814]

Does it means best our future health?? e. g. I am running slow jogging 20 hours weekly in 30%sea sand 50%small stones 20%just rough flat soil, does it increasing my future health??

[@aspiringnormie9499]

Nothing but hills in my area. I'm better for it. I'm doing the mt Washington road race this year so I'm putting the hill work to good use!

[@TheRunExperience]

Love it!

[@AccFinEco]

Awesome vid Holly!!

[@angelmartinez8009]

Can this be done everyday? Is it safe on our leg muscles to run incline aka hills everyday?

[@liftedrunner]

I been teaching from home and quarantined since march. Just had our first child and have not been on my trail since August due to all the fires out here in the bay area. I have put in hundreds of hours/miles on my favorite trails, but now scared to start over again. It feels like August was sinking ago and I have just been eating and putting in weight. How do I get back into the swing of things. I'm excited for winter/rainy really runs, but not sure how to get started again.

[@TheRunExperience]

I’d start with our app! Not a sell just a true suggestion. We’ve got some great programs and single workouts to help you get back into things without feeling overwhelmed. You’ll be back way faster than you think.

[@agsmith001]

thanks Holly, i would love to see virtual races that include vert!

[@s0lidmind713]

Very informative.

[@anthonylloyd4248]

A new sub from me Hollie, thanks from England X

[@TheRunExperience]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@AugherAndy]

I love hills ❤️

[@matthewclarke5008]

You're brilliant! I'm just wondering why my lower back feels aweful after 3 weeks of 15% incline walking?

[@grandchampionchichi]

Awesome

[@davinrsmith]

How do you approach the downhill parts - do you jog/walk down the hills as part of intervals?

[@jean-pierosgriccia4520]

how about incorporating stairs as well. I do Hill intervals once a week, before that i do a bit of stair climbs as well

[@TheRunExperience]

Love stairs! Can get super great strength and skill from stairs. I’d say even more from an agility standpoint.

[@Meushell]

Good idea if you are coordinated enough. I’m not, unfortunately. I’d fall on my face. 😂 That’s why I prefer hills over steps for workouts.

[@krakhour2]

Feels great surging up the hills my lungs are so good i can do a bunch at top speed. But the next day my gluts are so sore i cant seat down which is a problem cause i gotta drive 8 hours to do my job at a portable x ray company

[@TheRunExperience]

Ah yes the glutes take a beating during hills! But the more you do them, the more your body will adapt and hopefully the less intense the soreness will feel. Maybe try working in some strength exercises (lunges/squats/etc) to help support your hill work.

[@jickiebecker2525]

Wow! Great info and beautiful location. Where was this? Kinda reminds me of Colorado or Idaho.

[@Ab-qp2yu]

No hills where I live, i must move to LA now !!

[@peaoat3608]

Break down, build back better, break down, build back better...

[@jasonhanson6563]

Yo Coach Holly! Good luck today! See you on the other side of the 100 mile club!

[@TheRunExperience]

Thank you!! I did it :) and so pumped to join the club.

[@jasonhanson6563]

@@TheRunExperience congrats!

[@wunderlichdrive]

This video is extremely helpful. But, I have a particular question. I have such a hard time doing strength exercises. So, I wonder if hill work could provide the strength work that I need as someone training for a marathon. For some reason, I find it easier to make time to do some extra hill work at the end of my run.

[@Boost00130]

not all hills are created equally. On my daily run I have several very steep hills that I just can't keep such good running form. What sort of incline would you recommend for hill training?

[@TheRunExperience]

Depends on the workout! I’d say something between 5-8% grade to start then build from there.

[@Boost00130]

@@TheRunExperience so 13-18% is too much then :) Time to find some smaller hills

[@ATOMiiCChicken]

I have to run 193m uphill for my 10k very good trianing

[@metatronblack]

How fast can i run by standing still?

[@Hala-ataa]

Do hills have the same payoff when I’m riding in a vehicle?

[@ladysunshine988]

Thank you Coach Holly, I always struggle with my knees after hill repeats and wondered if I should drop the pace to below a sprint. Do you have a view on how fast hill repeats should be? Thanks x

[@TheRunExperience]

Hey there! Yes when in doubt drop the pace until you’ve got your form figured out. Regular pain may indicate poor form or just really tight areas that you’re not taking care of with mobility and regular stretching.

[@applesandoranges8079]

I Hate Hills...but I Love them!!!

[@danneh8777]

Can I do normal easy run on hills or do I have to do hill reps to get the benefits

[@eliduran4182]

Someone said to me "if you run from here to that point you'll run 5k, I put my face in disgust and said but t's totally flat, no hills involved...he replied: why on earth do you want hills ( now his face was in disgust)... silent awkward moment 😂😂🤣🤣

[@StealthyGamerGirl2020]

I can't do gyms. Too expensive and I get bored. I find normal exercise very boring to be honest

[@liftedrunner]

Trails and hills if you get bored. I can't work out inside or run on the road...too boring. I love not knowing what's around that corner or over that hill. Hate being able to see the distance in front of me in a flat road

[@Kelly_Ben]

Try Vlad Ixel's strength for runners videos. They're short runner- based exercises that go beyond boring squats and lunges. I get bored super easy, so I love the variety.

[@tonymoore566]

Does an inclined treadmill work as well and if so how much of an incline

[@TheRunExperience]

Yes and stay tuned for a specific hill workout I give you guys next week :) can be done on treadmill!

[@TheRunExperience]

And I’d say 5-8% to start and then build from there.

[@runningonplantsleerp2121]

Doing speed work down hills is also great

[@liftedrunner]

I can run up hills for days, but the downhill kills me!

[@runningonplantsleerp2121]

@@liftedrunner I usually do 400m repeats in 2:45pace or 1k repeats in 3min pace down hills . However I’m only 64kg and very light on my feet ! I’m guessing it wouldn’t suit everyone’s body shape

[@liftedrunner]

@@runningonplantsleerp2121 thanks for the info. I put so much time in uphill work and never put much focus on my downhill form. I will try this out!

[@RuthRudden]

It’s my downhill that hurts. Just like lifted runner. Just started doing more trails to help with that.

[@krakhour2]

Beats your legs up for no good reason.I disagree un less you have a race on the roads that you have to do a bunch of down hills. The double pounding on your legs going down caused my only injury

[@Mylovejanedoe]

Every time I see a hill running, I push it at a crazy pace then after the hill I feel like an elite boxer just pieced up my chest.

[@TheRunExperience]

Ha sounds about right.

[@stevestarr9769]

Tom Fleming, the late great American marathoner, used to say that hills are speedwork in disguise. He was right.

[@mahanbravo]

i have been running constantly uphill for one month since i live in hilly areas. still no weight loss 😭😭

[@TheRunExperience]

Mix in some other workouts and it’ll happen!

[@slyfoxfan0799]

I have 3 tunnels with "decline in and uphill out" I go through So I'm usually tired at the 3rd tunnel which is the longest hills xD The first tunnel tho has the steepest hill :y