I am forcing you to become part of my cross-country team by talking about what I am working on with my team.
Wednesdays are hill days, half the team has already come up with a forged doctors note that says they are allergic to running on Wednesdays but then I remind them that:
HILLS ARE SPEEDWORK IN DISQUISE!!! (information in this post from an article in Runners Times by Mario Fraioli and you can find it HERE).
After coming up a huge hill I look really happy to be alive huh, I can barely open my eyes?
Side Note: for my first marathon I caried my fuel in a zip lock bag and stuffed it in my shorts….can you see it on my left hip?
Three AWESOME HILL workouts:
1. Hill Sprints: Short and Steep! Used to improve overall power, increase efficiency and develop speed safely! 12-24 of them only 15-20 seconds in duration. Take your time on the way down….walk or jog. This article recommends using a hill with about a 10% incline for hill sprints.
2. Hill Repeats: ANAEROBIC!!! 1-2 minutes in duration on a medium grade. They recommend a 5k EFFORT! Fully recover by joggin back down the hill and if you need longer to recover you can jog around on the flat surface until you are ready again! Repeat 6-10 times and once you get stronger try going up the hill for 2-4 minutes at a 10k pace.
3. Roller Coaster Runs: These will help you finish your race STRONG! This type of hill workout is basically just a series of steady hills during a longer run.
PS I know I am a loser and kind of obsessed with my treadmill so if you don’t have areas near by that you can do hill workouts……the TREADMILL will definitely be able to simulate these workouts and kick your trash!
You can read about one of my toughest hill workouts on the treadmill HERE.
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I think I will be hiring a personal massage thereapist after EVERY single hill workout in the future BIlly…….your okay if we don’t spend money on gas/clothes/food/rent for the next few months?
They got mad at me for leaving drool on their table.
Check out ZENSAH’S awesome GIVEAWAY for their awesome racerback tank HERE!!!
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Which hill workout is your favorite kind? Least favorite kind? Sprint, Repeats or Roller-Coaster?
-My favorite is REPEATS (the sprint ones make me lose my breakfast).
Do you live in a hilly area or do you use the treadmill for hill workouts?
Would you rather do hill workouts or speed workouts?
How do you carry your fuel during a race?
Would you rather win a lifetime supply of CHOCOLATE MILK or GATORADE?
-chocolate milk!
58 comments
Nicole
Thanks for sharing the workouts! They should come in handy. Definitely repeats. I live in a hilly neighborhood and have my own “heartbreak hill” so I use a treadmill when I want to run flat! I would much rather do speed intervals than hills, but they are both critical for improving overall pace.
I carry my “fuel” in my water bottle pocket. But I don’t need to carry too much for a half.
I would like to say chocolate milk, but a recent falling out with dairy will force me to say Gatorade. But can I have it in Skittles instead?
The Kidless Kronicles
Emma (Sweet Tooth Runner)
I LOVE HILLS!! I think I’m a bit weird like that! :P Hill sprints are da BEST, although I’ve got to try your hill repeats workout!! For my sprints, there’s a huuuge hill near me that gets a pounding!
And CHOCOLATE (soy) MILK ALL THE WAY!! :D
Lauren @ What Lauren Likes
Chocolate milk fo sure! I hardly ever drink Gatorade :)
Liz @ iheartvegetables
I need to try some hill work outs. I mean, really, I need to get back into running… but this would be a fun place to start!
stephanie
way to be an awesome coach! can I join your team?
I would rather do hill repeats, but speedwork > hills, and it must be followed with chocolate milk!
Maribeth
That’s a sensible answer to a cheanlngilg question
Pam
So exciting that you’re able to coach the cross-country team. They are very lucky to have you! Your passion, kindness and knowledge will inspire them to put their best feet forward!! :)
I’ve never had a specified hill training regimen. I live around a lot of rolling hills so, I’ve learned to be friends with them. I never do hills on my treadmill. Treadmill is strictly for speed and endurance! :)
I wear a Nathan belt. I can carry my shot bloks and hydration. I wear it only for halfs and fulls. I’m not good at hydrating at the water stations. Haven’t got that down yet!
Lifetime supply of gatorade for me. Not a big fan of chocolate milk but, when you visit me I’ll make sure I have some on tap for you my friend!!
Oh and you’re going to do great in your bike race!! 100 miles…WOW that’s A LOT!!!! You go “Wonder Woman!!” xo :)
Girl In The Pink
One of my favorite quickie workouts is hill sprints! It’s one of my go to’s when I don’t have much time.
I am not a chocolate milk or gatorade fan – so neither! I’d take some chocolate almond milk tho!
Adam @TeamPomeroy
Sigh, your post actually makes me miss Utah / Happy Valley. I haven’t seen a hill since our move to CA. It’s flat as a pancake out here – I miss me some actual mountains.
Favorite hill work out: start near the cemetery in Orem (by old word perfect buildings), do the uphill mile, turn around and swing back on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, drop down into the neighborhoods above/around Lindon (or PG if you need the extra challenge), and run some roller coasters through the neighborhoods on the way back home.
Rosa - Fitness, Food, Fulfilled
Chocolate please!
Kyria
I don’t really like milk or Gatorade. So no thanks. I guess I would take the Gatorade for my friends who like it actually.
I don’t really do hill sprints. I usually do roller coaster, but not because I am training with it, just because I am running in a semi hilly area. So I have to do it. I really don’t like intervals…so I would say hills are better.
Erica
I wore a bike jersey for my half marathon this summer so i could put fuel in the back pockets. Sometimes I need sweet, sometimes I need salty, sometimes I need gum and the genius construction of the bike jersey gave them all their own compartment.
I am not brave enough to push to the lose your breakfast state. Possibly why my mile splits could be slower than your warm-up. yikes.
Lizzi
CHOCOLATE MILK 4 LYFE. end of discussion.
also hills are awesome. love them. i learned to run on mountain trails so it’s my natural environment :D plus they make me feel like a total badass.
Jenny Finnegan
Hills are so hard! I probably would choose repeats. I usually do my hill workouts on the treadmill even though there are hills around me.
I would pick speed workouts over hills though. :)
I have a FuelBelt that I carry all my stuff in, but it never seems big enough. The pockets are always bursting at the seams.
I would rather win a lifetime supply of chocolate soymilk! Yum!
Missy
Thanks for a refresher on hill workouts, I forget you don’t their is more than one way to do hill repeats. I always do the sprints, I like them best. I have used a treadmill but I am not a big fan of running on them.
I started using a SPI belt to carry my nutrition and I like it.
A life time supply of chocolate milk, definitely.
Leanne (Bride to Mrs.)
Omg lifetime supply of chocolate milk would be heavenly.
Brittany @ A Spoonful of Peanut Butter
Hills are the enemy!! You made me cringe just reading about them!! I’m a fan of sprints even if I feel like my heart is going to jump out of my throat and I’m going to fall off the treadmill onto the hard concrete floor. :P I use our treadmill for all my cardio workouts. I’m like speed workouts, instead of hills. I know hills are great for my body and all, but I just can’t bring myself to do them anymore. tsk tsk on me.
Chelsea
When I was training for a HM last spring I would divde my runs in half and park my car at the halfway point. I would run to a certain point, got to my car..chugged my fuel and then ran back out again and back. Pretty sure I looked retarded but I hate having to carry a bottle or anytype of food with me.
I would prefer doing my hills outside, although I do love the treadmill.
Hannah
i just did some hills today.
havent done them in a while so it was tough!!
chocolate milk.. then again it is always that time .. :(
Emily@RunningPerspective
SOYCHOCOLATE MILK ALL THE wAYYYYYYYYY!
and girl i cannot wait to RUN so i can try all of these speedy HILL workouts! bookmarked them under the TO DO when you body finaly HEALSSS!!! :)
ps you look GORGEOUS in your marathon picture— like girl what the heck? you were sweaty…just ran a huge hill and still looking fineeee!!! haha love you!
Stephanie @ Vegetarian Bakeaholic
SO many questions!
Love repeats…I do live in a hilly area but it’s too hot outside right now, so treadmill!
Hate speedwork more than anything. I can handle hills though, which is probably just a mental thing.
Lifetime supply of soy chocolate milk, please!!
Russ
Running down hills is okay for me. Up? Only occasionally. And I got to go for the Gatorade.
Anyways, Janae, you were partial inspiration for one of our reviews today, and I said lots of nice things about ya! Check it out…it’s about fro-yo!!!: http://www.whatsgoodattraderjoes.com/2011/08/trader-joes-non-fat-plain-frozen-yogurt.html
Ali Mc
I LOVE this post. I’ve never even done a hill workout. lol such a newbie! I have run around outside where the natural ground goes up and down but nothing crazy! and my treadmill has a bit of an incline, but I am not a gym go-er and thus am just learning how to do all this. I am excited to try some of these up north this weekend where it’s hilly! :D Thank you
Mallory @ Teach Run Repeat
I ran a killer hill today that I was anticipating would conquer me…but I rocked hit! Guess we were on the same page today about hills!
Corrie Anne
The rollercoaster workout sounds really fun!!!!!!! I want to try it!
Annette@EnjoyYourHealthyLife
I ‘carry’ my fuel in my bra or shorts! I love hill workouts–repeats are great :)
I’d say CHOC milk (instead of gatorade for sure)!
britt
I must have missed a posting…are you coaching your schools cross country team??? If you are that is AMAZING!!! Some of my greatest memories are from my high school cc days.
Janae
Yes!!!! I am so excited!! thanks so much!
Sarah
In high school, our cross country coach would have us run a “hill” workout at the local rock/sand quarry – up and down the sand hills! It was a blast running down, but up was such a crazy workout! Definitely paid off in races, and I’m sure your kiddos will benefit too!
We live in a pretty hilly area – not lots of rolling hills…just lots of singular big nasty ones!
Missy
My neighborhood is very hilly and there are 2 pretty big hills on one side, so I always have one hill at least in my runs. But it definitely helps when I am racing especially if I am not prepare for a hill, at least I was already running hills in my training.
Rene Hall
Chocolate Milk – for sure.
I did a hill workout this morning with my running group. We did hill repeats. I felt pretty awesome about the workout until I found out we ran the wrong “hill” which was not neerly as steep as it was supposed to be.
I would rather do hill workouts instead of traditional speed workouts
Jerilee E.
I definitely prefer hill repeats or the rollercoaster hills- hill sprints make me sad all day. I live in a VERY hilly area, so all of my outdoor runs are involve hills :). Hills over speedwork for sure. I used the word hill a LOT in this comment.
I pin GU to the front of my shorts and then stick lifesavers and other candy in a ziploc stuffed in the side of my shorts- just like in your picture :).
Chocolate milk- no question!!
Brittany
Great tips, thank you!! I actually really love hill workouts. I like them better than speed I think. I live in Florida so it’s totally flat, so I used my treadmill! Chocolate milk all the way :D
Hannah @PalmBeachRunner
I love hill workouts because you always get to go down! :) I use bridges for mine since there are minimal hills in Florida.
And definitely choc milk! yum
Jaeme + Randy
My parents live in a very hilly area and our old house was only hills. I really hated them sometimes but they made me so much stronger so now that we moved I kind of miss them!
Zaneta
basically all my runs are hill workouts ;) lol I live in hill country ;)
Amy N.
I never do specific hill workouts, because I live in a hilly area and almost every run includes a few.
I’d rather do speed workouts, but again, hill workouts are plentiful.
I do carry fuel during a race. I’d rather have it and not need it, than wish I had it!
Chocolate milk, hands down.
Lauren
I like roller-coaster hills, definitely. I like on-top of a monster hill so when I used to run during high school every run I would do before dinner ended with my monster hill. Also, I had the tendency to always end workouts with a hill right before my cooldown. It helped me “sprint” the hill during my half. Blessing in disguise, I guess!
Me + Speed = PAH. Yeah right.
The guy I was pacing/later found out he was pacing me in the beer line did the same thing with the ziplock! He whipped it out of nowhere while I was picking yelling beans out of my butt. Cute.
Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate Milk!!!
Ida
I’m so glad you’re sharing the CCX workouts- it’s so fun to read about! I love running hills, and would rather do them than speed work. I love hitting the trails and getting in some long, slow climbs that make me pant like a hyena!
I think I’d pick gatorade b/c there are so many flavors
Lindie
You are the BEST for sharing this post!! When it comes to hills I panic in races!! Running down is fabulous but up them is a different story! I have some tough hill legs in my upcoming Red Rock Relay and Ragnar races so I am so glad you posted this! It made my night! I will be trying all of the above hill routines!
I would rather do speed workouts for sure! I carry a water belt with my goodies in it! And I would rather win the Gatorade…. Sorry!!
Thanks for all your expert advice on hills girl!!
Nelly
Awesome! I love hills! I totally agree that hills do a ton of benefits for you. I think that might be one reason why I got injured, because I didn’t do enough hill work over the last couple months. Good luck to your runners, I hope they have a great time out there!
Khushboo
HATE hills- actually that’s a lie…it just frustrates me that the amount of effort I’m putting in doesn’t translate into miles covered (because of slower speeds..if that makes sense)! Although I suck it up and occasionally do it! Speedwork, on the other hand, I loveee and look forward to them to the most!
How can you even ask about choc milk v Gatorade???? CHOC MILK HANDS-DOWN! (Gatorade is kinda gross)
Melissa @ Green Mountain Runner
I would love to do hills over speed. HATE speed workouts. I like doing rolling hills or hill repeats and last hill sprints since it is too close to a speed workout! I live in a really hilly area and so I am never at a loss for steep inclines!
Last race I carried my gu in my hand since it kept pulling down my shorts when they were in the pocket, oops! I would love a lifetime of gatorade but am not really a big drinker of it. I just HATE chocolate milk or any type of milk with a passion. I know, you are speechless and shocked!
kari @ Running Ricig
I HATE hills, but anywhere I run around my house is a hill workout, so I’m kind of stuck unless I want to live on the treadmill (which sometimes I do).
I carry my fuel in a spibelt during races. It’s great!
Christina
I’d much rather do speed than hill workouts. But, to be fair, the only hills I have near me are overpasses!
Chocolate milk is the best! It makes getting up to run in the morning almost worth getting up at a ridiculous hour :)
Meg
I live in an area with huge hills so almost every outdoor run I do is a roller coaster run! I like that but I love short hill sprints as well!
HIll sprints are way harder but I love them because they make you feel great/dead but I do regular sprints more often!
And def chocolate milk!!!
Lizzy @ runbakerace
Chocolate milk all the way!!! I hate hills but they are necessary. I just wished all courses were totally flat or all downhills :)
misszippy
I love/hate hill workouts, but they are so valuable! I like roller coaster runs and around here, we have plenty to choose from!
Glad you are up and about again!
Allison
I like to power walk on the treadmill, upping the incline, but when I’m running hills I need to do it outside…
Hmm, a lifetime supply of chocolate milk sounds quite delectable!
Amylee
I LOVE hills!!! They are seriously my favorite. I live in a pretty hilly area and I’m constantly running a route with some sort of crazy elevation gain. My favorite route would be considered roller coster hills, and I do my best to kill ’em every time.
I’m so excited that you will be talking about what you are doing with your cross country kids!!! That way I can just do what you say and pretend I have a coach :). Done and done.
Julia @ The Bosky Blog
I lurv HILLS!!
I do repeats once a week, and my terrain is typically roller coaster anyway.
Goliath is the king of a hill, and helps me pace up a hill. I love it because I naturally speed up on a hill, and he keeps me level.
Sabrina @ Radioactive Runner
I LOVE hill workouts and there are definitely no shortage of hills in my area.
I love your running shoes!! What kind are they?
I think it’s so awesome that you’re coaching cross country… fun!!
Karla
Seriously?! WHO looks that great running??!! YOU DO!
Kate @ Run With Kate
Angela is coaching the Womens XC Team at City College here in San Diego and I am so jealous, I wish I could join the team! I ask her every day what they did and I even had her show me some drills this past Sunday. We did dynamic stretching and barefoot drills; I loved it! I hate hill workouts, I’d rather do speed any day! But I know hills are so good for you, and I am surrounded by them so they are forced into my routine.
I love that you’re a coach! It’s so cool!
Yolie @ Practising Wellness
Oooh…I’m all for rolling hills workouts…my mum and dad’s house is surrounded by hilly roads, and when i lived with them i used to frequent a 3 to 6 mile route that really kicked your butt with hills if you hadn’t done it for a while, but it was a great workout! <3 xyx
Keri @ Blue-Eyed Runner
Yayy for Speed Work Wednesdays!!!!!! (This is a segment on my blog :)
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