I think we all want to become stronger and more durable athletes. One of the best ways to do this, is to run hills. That is what I did today.

My forty minute run included a couple of hills.  These hills were not steep, but were long enough to provide a bit of a challenge.  I ran easy for about 15 minutes to warm up, and a few minutes later reached the first hill.  At the bottom of the hill I increased my pace to that of a relatively quick tempo run.  I then held that pace to the top of the hill.

By the time I reached the top of the hill, my heart rate was just entering Zone 4.  I immediately backed off and used the downhill section that came next, to recover.  I did the exact same thing for the second hill, which came about five minutes later.  The second hill was a little tougher because I was also running into a strong headwind.

Running hills at tempo speed, not only builds leg strength, it has several other benefits.  It’s likely that you will run at a slightly higher cadence and tax your cardiovascular system a little more than running on flat ground. This, in turn. will help develop your running economy.

Living in Pittsburgh it is hard to not run hills; the terrain is rarely flat.  This is huge help with my daily training, and I know I am a better runner because of it.