An Uphill Battle
The “Lindley Gauntlet”. Sherwood: 546.52 ft (166.58 m); Springwood: 762.83 ft (232.51 m); Beechwood: 1,103.70 ft (336.41 m)
What is it about training on hills, anyway? Just about every pro athlete interviewed has stories of sprinting up sand dunes over and over, or running stadium steps, or some other uphill-running training sessions. Besides the training being on hills, the other common thread in all the stories is that they all hated doing it.
It’s one of those workouts that has a lot of benefit, but really sucks when you do it.
So what are the benefits? Essentially running up a hill is adding gravity to a normal movement, which adds resistance. The more resistance, the more your muscles work and the stronger you become (over time). It also increases your VO2 max because your respiratory system has to work harder to supply oxygen.
A hill run amplifies all the benefits of a regular run for your muscles and systems in a short amount of time.
Prior to Nationals this year, I did hill runs with my 20-lb vest on to help simulate the higher altitude in Colorado and to up my overall fitness level. It paid off, as I discussed in this blog.
I usually incorporate some hill work as I ramp up for the summer ultimate season, and the neighborhood I live in is great because you can’t run very far without encountering a hill.
For me, the worst part about hill training is going back down the hill. I know, that seems a little backward. Going up, it’s just you against gravity and the hill and you can push yourself as far as you need. Going down, all of a sudden you lose control as gravity is now impelling you to go faster. The pounding on my knees as I fight to control my descent is worse than going uphill.
The Sarasota Sunset tournament is this weekend, and my training has been muted by my meniscus tear recovery. I’ve managed to get some good runs in over the past two weeks, and today I plan to run what I call the “Lindley Gauntlet”: three parallel uphill streets, each a little longer than the last. Sherwood is the shortest, but also the steepest. Springwood is just a little longer, and a consistent rise. Beechwood is the longest uphill street in the world. Especially if you run them in that order.
I like to do about a mile warmup, and then hit those streets one at a time. Depending on how I feel, I may do two passes but my knee will be the deciding factor in that.
Next week I will report back on how my fitness level felt over a weekend tournament without my usual level of pre-training. I’m very curious how maintaining general fitness translates to an ultimate tournament at my age. I used to be able to get away with it when I was younger, and I imagine it will be fine, but the weekend will tell the tale.
