Heather Fell: You've got a session with tough intervals planned and you have the choice of
doing it as hill reps or on the flat. Which should you choose? How do you know which one to
prioritize? Join me for this video as I'm going to be exploring the pros and the cons of both.
[music] Heather Fell: Let's start
by taking a look at flat interval workouts. Now, these are the bread and butter for coaches and
run clubs all around the world. That's because they're brilliant at developing your fitness,
your endurance, your strength, and your V̇O₂ max. If you're training for a race of anything
from 5K up to a marathon, they're also going to be a great help when it comes to your pacing.
The intervals themselves can be from 30 seconds up to 5 minutes and beyond. How many you do and at
what intensity, completely depends on what you're training for. That will also reflect the rest
you're going to take. How much rest, but also what type of rest. You could have static where you're
just literally standing, you could be walking, or even doing an active jog. It will depend on your
fitness and what you're trying to get out of it. There are so many options and that's one of the
reasons these are so popular with running clubs. Hill reps are another popular workout. You might
have realized that they are basically interval on the flat. That's in disguise because you're
still going to be working very hard and they're great for developing your aerobic capacity,
your endurance, and your strength. You'll find that a hill naturally makes you work
harder because if you hit it still running at the same pace as you were on the flat, your
heart rate is automatically going to go up. Now, we're clear on the difference between the two,
it's time to look at a bit more of an in-depth comparison starting off with injury prevention.
[music] Heather Fell:
For example, let's say you've got some fast, short intervals planned, just a 200s or 400s
on the track, you're going to be running pretty quick and that's going to be putting a lot of
impact for your body. Take that up to the hills and you just need to take the same amount of time
and you're going to be running slower to be working at that same rate and getting your
heart rate to the same rate by automatically putting less pressure down through your
joints and less strain on the body overall. This is also the reason that a lot of athletes
will tend to go to the hills when they're returning after injuries. You're trying to
repeat and replicate that intensity of running on the flat, but you're working hard without
the impact. The same goes for maybe beginner and novice runners when they're not used to
running so fast, but they want to really work at the top end, hills are perfect.
[music] Heather Fell:
We all know that strength work is a great complement to
running. It helps with your running efficiency, your power, and it's helping you to stay away from
injuries. The gym is great for that. However, we don't necessarily have access to the gym or
time to go there. This is where hills are a perfect addition to your training,
because they do develop that strength and that power. If you think about it,
you're fighting gravity on every step. It's almost like doing plyometric exercises.
[music] Heather Fell:
On top of strength, hills can actually really help with your running form as well because they're
going to be getting your posterior chain firing. Your glutes are going to have to work really hard,
which is great for running efficiency. Also, your arm drive, you'll naturally find that you're using
your arms more when you're running uphill. Then, the position that your foot lands will actually be
[unintelligible 00:03:34]. If you think you're going uphill, you're going to really struggle to
get a heel strike. You'll naturally be moving to more of a middle, even a full-foot strike,
which carries over nicely to running on the flat. [music]
Heather Fell: We're aware that not all of you will have the benefit of hills on your doorstep,
but you could be imaginative with it. It doesn't need to be a perfect hill at a set
gradient. If you've only got a really short, sharp hill somewhere, that's great. Do some
short sprints up it. Maybe it's a more gradual hill that you can do some longer intervals. You
can even use stairs. Use a bit of imagination. It doesn't have to be a pure hill reps session.
A really nice set is to go and do, say, 8 to 10 short, sharp intervals up a relatively steep,
but short hill, and then head into your tempo run. It will just help with that running form
and really get everything firing so you get the most out of that session. As you can see,
both sides have plenty of benefits. Why not mix them into your training to keep that variety?
I personally tend to do more in the way of hill reps in the winter when I'm building that strength
and when I'm trying to tune up and find my speed. In the summer race season, I tend to do a few more
on the flat, but I still keep that mixture there. I'd love to know which you guys do or which you
prefer. Make sure you get involved in the chat. You can do that in the comments just below.
Give us a like if you've enjoyed it. Check out GTN on social media and you can follow us there
as well as following us here on YouTube. [00:04:56] [END OF AUDIO]