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Hill Work
The schedule on Tuesdays calls for hill workouts, which are designed to
build muscular and cardiovascular strength in preparation for the faster
training you'll do later on the track. This phase of hill runs lasts for
six weeks. Ideally, the hill you choose for this workout should have about
a 4 to 6 percent grade and take about 90 seconds to run. It's a good idea
to find a hill that takes a bit longer than 90 seconds to run at first,
since you'll get faster as you gain fitness.
For the first workout, warm up 20 minutes (20 wup/wdn) and then run uphill
for 90 seconds at about the same effort as your tempo run pace. You should
be breathless by the time you hit 90 seconds. When you've run for 90
seconds, notice where you are and jog back to where you started. Turn
around and repeat the uphill run five times. If you started out at a
reasonable effort, you should be able to get to the same spot or farther
in 90 seconds on all six uphill runs. If you can't, start slower the next
time you run hills. Follow the hill runs with a 20-minute warmdown (20 wup/wdn).
Later in the schedule, the warm-up and warm-down times increase slightly.
If you live in a flat area of the country, don't despair. Improvise by
running up a bridge, up a ramp to a multistory parking lot or on sand--any
surface that takes extra effort and leaves you a little breathless after
about 90 seconds. You can also run on a treadmill that has an adjustable
incline feature. Kim Jones does nearly all of her hill workouts on her
treadmill to eliminate the stress of running downhills.
Credits:
Text copyright © 1996 by
Benji Durden
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