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Thread: Hill reps question

  1. #1
    Member daisy's Avatar
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    Hill reps question

    I'm doing a hill-reps session once a week, as most of the training programmes out there seem to suggest BUT can't believe that doing 10x10 sec sprints up a hill with 2/3 mins recovery between each is really going to do me any good. Until I read about it I was doing my own idea which was 20 secs sprint, 20 secs recovery for about 1.5 miles - this left me well and truly paggard but seemed hard enough to qualify as a 'proper' session.

    What do you real proper fell-runners do if you're doing reps? And if you do take the time to answer this query can you spell it out really slow and simple - cos I'm pretty slow and simple too!!

  2. #2
    Master shaunaneto's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    what do you want to gain from the reps?

    For example, my hill rep session is about building endurance for long days on the hill and these sessions involve 3-5 reps of 1100ft of ascent in approx 1 mile up, 1 mile down

    There are many different hill rep sessions you could do, probably best to identify what you want from the session. And also where you can do the hill reps will affect what you can do.

    I'm sure some clever folk will be along shortly to offer better advice than I can give, but the above will help get you started.
    pies

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    Re: Hill reps question

    Quote Originally Posted by daisy View Post
    I'm doing a hill-reps session once a week, as most of the training programmes out there seem to suggest BUT can't believe that doing 10x10 sec sprints up a hill with 2/3 mins recovery between each is really going to do me any good. Until I read about it I was doing my own idea which was 20 secs sprint, 20 secs recovery for about 1.5 miles - this left me well and truly paggard but seemed hard enough to qualify as a 'proper' session.

    What do you real proper fell-runners do if you're doing reps? And if you do take the time to answer this query can you spell it out really slow and simple - cos I'm pretty slow and simple too!!
    I do a mix of hill reps.

    one session might be 3 hours of fast bg pace up big hills(1000ft+) in the peak or bigger hills in lakes or Wales to build long distance strength and stamina

    But I also do short interval sessions for power during short fell races(CL et al I'm not after a discussion on what constitutes strenght/power etc )

    On these I have a steep hill which I run flat out as hard as I can until my lungs burst then I traverse the slope and gentle run down in a loop before repeating. I aim to do negative splits where possible, ie each run is faster than the last. i usually manage about 5 of these before my timings start getting slower.

    We also do a wagon train run up a steep one mile road running at a steady pace in a line, the front runner controls a comfortable pace, the back marker sprints to the front and slows down to control the pace and the new back marker sprints to the front. this is harder than it sounds but because you are in a group there's lots of encourage ment from the others to keep going. on our way down the lead runner will shout out a number1-2-3, we then turn round and sprint that many lamposts back up the hill, competition usually means every one "dips at the line" as they pass the lamp post

    Bt the time you have done 3 hill reps we have probably run up the hill about 5 times. it's a killer but boy does it work

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    Member daisy's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    What do I want from the rep sessions? Erm.. s'pose its an increase in leg power (don't tell me to do strength stuff in a gym please. If it ain't running based I probably won't do it...) and explosive speed as well as pushing my lactate tolerance up. The longer hill stuff I think I'm getting done on my longer tempo/sustained runs anyway. But it's early learning for me in this area of running... thanks for these thoughts, guys.

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    Senior Member simgreen78's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    I do fairly short 25 second reps on a moderate hill at 90% of full sprint pace on the up with a canter back down, no stops. At full fitness I'd knock out about 25 of these in a shade over half an hour and it sent my overall speed and stamina soaring. It was also probably part of the reason I got so stupidly injured as as a session I was hitting it at least twice a week. Good fun y'see.

    So, as I make my way back to full fitness, I'm building back up again. A fortnight ago I could only manage 8 in a session, but I got up to 15 last week and intend to do the same tonight. Don't think I'll do it more than once a week from here on in though. I tend not to do long hill reps of the sort that Ian describes, preferring instead to just do a varied and hilly three hour route of around 4000ft climb on an average Saturday morning, but he's a wise (old) bird so I wouldn't discount it as an option Daisy if you're looking at hill repping.
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    Re: Hill reps question

    I think it depends what you want to achieve. The purpose of fast, short reps is to work the leg muscles . You may not feel Knackered but it still does you good. You can run faster and further by not getting too out of breath, the point is to stop and rest when you start to struggle.

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    Member daisy's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    Ok - putting this all together I've come up with this: Ian is just too flipping hardcore for words! Simon, I like the sound of the slightly longer sprints with shorter recovery so thanks for that, and Deadlegs has made me feel much better about what I've been doing so far.
    Brilliant! :thumbup: thanks guys.

    I'll let you know how I get on...

  8. #8
    Senior Member simgreen78's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    Quote Originally Posted by daisy View Post
    Ok - putting this all together I've come up with this: Ian is just too flipping hardcore for words! Simon, I like the sound of the slightly longer sprints with shorter recovery so thanks for that, and Deadlegs has made me feel much better about what I've been doing so far.
    Brilliant! :thumbup: thanks guys.

    I'll let you know how I get on...
    To quote a mantra from a couple of years ago on this forum, "IanDarkpeak is a machine!"
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  9. #9
    Grandmaster IanDarkpeak's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    Quote Originally Posted by simgreen78 View Post
    To quote a mantra from a couple of years ago on this forum, "IanDarkpeak is a machine!"
    if only I could run that fast...

    Can I add don't over do it. I did and was injured for quite a while, Daisy can I also add that I don't do all those every week, I mix it up and also get some hill work from races so don't need to do hill reps all the time.

    Long stuff is great for BG etc at the cost of speed.

  10. #10
    Member daisy's Avatar
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    Re: Hill reps question

    Not over-doing it is one of my guiding principles at the moment - sometimes a bit frustrating but am learning the value of what the grownups call 'moderation'.... still, it's good to know that not even the machines on here do it everyday!

    It's normal to hurt, right? a day or two after a hill session?
    Does it ever get to a point where it stops hurting or do you just build up your pain threshold?

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