How To Master Hill Sprints: Get Better At Running Hills

Have you tried including hill sprints in your training schedule yet? A hill sprint workout is a highly challenging - but highly effective - way of improving your running fitness and form. As a kind of interval training, hill sprints help to improve your strength, resilience and fitness in a way that wouldn’t be possible with regular distance running on flat ground.

As the name suggests, a hill sprints workout involves running at speed up an incline for a specific distance or duration, before pausing, returning to the bottom of the slope and repeating. There are a few different variations of hill sprint training which we’ll explore later in this guide.

There are multiple hill sprinting benefits. They can improve your fitness, they add variation to training, increase strength and resilience and can improve your overall running speed (which is obviously important if you’re looking to race faster).

In this guide, you’ll learn more about the benefits of hill sprints, techniques to improve your hill sprinting, ideas about how to hill sprint when you don’t have a suitable slope, and we also look at the best running shoes for hill sprints too.

The benefits of hill sprints

If you’re looking to get better at running, then including a hill sprints workout into your training is a great option. Hill sprints are valuable to any kind of runner - whether you’re an experienced racer trying to improve your marathon times, if you want to go faster in 5k events, or are just looking to improve your overall fitness.

Many sports scientists have studied the effects of hill sprinting on runners’ performance, and there’s strong evidence to suggest that this kind of training can help runners in all manner of ways. For example, one study looked at runners’ 5k race times after they spent six weeks doing hill sprint training - the mean improvement in racing time was 2%. Other studies have found hill sprinting benefits for factors like:

• Improved anaerobic capacity
• Strength and coordination
• Leg speed and stride
• Technique
• Endurance

Here are five of the most significant benefits of hill sprints:

1. Increased strength: Running uphill is a form of strength training for running. It activates fast-twitch muscle fibres in your legs, while also using more muscle groups than running on flat ground. By repeatedly engaging these muscles during hill sprints, you ‘tell’ your body to increase the mass and size of these muscles. That in turn means you can use them longer and benefit from more explosive output when you need to pick up the pace (giving you more power in sprints).
2. Leads to better aerobic capacity: Aerobic capacity is about how efficient your body is at using oxygen and energy - someone with higher aerobic capacity should be able to run further and faster. Hill sprinting is a great way to improve it - one study found that athletes who do hill runs have significantly higher aerobic capacity than those who don’t.
3. Can improve your race times: As noted above, researchers have found that runners who include hill sprints in their training improve their average time in races. There are several reasons this might be - from having stronger, more powerful muscles, to increased endurance, higher VO2 max, or even resistance to pain.
4. Improves your form: An interesting ‘side effect’ of hill sprints is that they make you run with good form. To sprint up a hill, you need to lift your knees, take short, rapid steps, and swing your arms. These same movements are generally considered good form for distance running on the flat too. So, by doing hill sprints, you’ll improve your general running technique too.
5. Makes running more fun: A final benefit of running hill sprints is that they make your training sessions more fun. Of course, they can be very tiring too. But there’s no doubt that hill sprints introduce variation and a new challenge to your training sessions, which can make them more exciting. And while hill sprints are hard, they’re also usually quite short - so the pain won’t last too long.

Related: What are the health benefits of running?

Common mistakes when hill running

If you’re new to running hill sprints, it’s worth taking a little time to read up on good practice. Although hill sprints are generally safe, there are a few common errors you should try to avoid. These include:

• Failing to warm up: While a short warm up is a good idea before any kind of run, this is especially true for hill sprints. Running at speed up a hill is extremely tiring and will activate muscle groups that you probably use less often. So, failing to warm up before doing hill sprints increases your risk of muscle soreness or even injury. At a minimum, you should do a short, gentle jog (for at least 10-15 minutes) before beginning your hill sprint session. Ideally, you would also perform some simple leg exercises to get your body fired up for hill sprints - things like lunges, squats, star jumps, high knees and butt kicks.
• Overstriding: When sprinting uphill, overstriding (when your front foot lands too far ahead of you) can be a problem since it means your leg muscles take unnecessary strain and you could lose balance. Aim instead to increase your cadence, so you perform shorter, faster steps forward. Not only does this reduce the risk of injury, it should also make hill sprints less exhausting as you’ll be making smaller movements.
• Leaning forward: As you run up a slope, you may feel the urge to lean into it. Although a slight lean forward is fine, bending too far over can actually reduce your lung capacity. There’s also a greater risk of losing your balance, especially if you’re running on a slippery surface. Rather than leaning forward, try to keep your core engaged and your body as upright as possible.

How to get better at hill running

So, where should you begin when doing hill sprint workouts? Here are some simple considerations for starting running hill sprints.

Finding a suitable hill

This is, of course, the most important factor when doing hill runs. There is no hard and fast rule about the gradient of the slope required, and the hill you choose will ultimately depend on what’s accessible near your home and what you feel comfortable running on. That said, there are a few factors to bear in mind:

• The incline should feel challenging - a gentle slope won’t pose enough of a challenge.
• The hill should be easy for you to get to, so that you can repeat your runs consistently on the same gradient (and measure your improvement over time).
• You need a good amount of space so you can run at full speed without bumping into pedestrians or other users of the space.
• The surface should be stable, smooth and not slippery - so as to reduce your injury risk.

Hill sprint running times

Once you’ve found a suitable slope, you’ll then want to choose a time OR distance to run. This depends very much on your fitness levels, but a typical hill sprint session might look something like this:

• After a warm up, sprint up the hill for 20 seconds OR 50 metres.
• Walk, or gently jog down the hill and wait until you’ve caught your breath.
• Repeat the hill sprint a set number of times.

Keep a note of your speed or distance, and over time, try to increase your pace - or the number of sprints you do.

How many hill sprints should you do?

This mainly depends on your current level of fitness and your goals:

• Fitness: The more experienced you are, the more hill sprints you should be able to do per session. For beginners, you might just want to fit two or three short hill sprints into a run, once per week. For more experienced runners, you could do five to seven hill sprints in a dedicated weekly session.
• Goals: The kind and intensity of hill sprints you do will depend on the sort of running you’re training for. For example, if you’re trying to beat your Personal Best in an 800m race, then you might want to do several short hill sprints (10 seconds each) a couple of times per week to really notice the difference. But if you’re training for a marathon, you might want to focus more on running up hills with a lower gradient for longer distances (say, 100m repeats).

Hill running routines

There are several kinds of hill sprint routines you can build into your training. These include:

• Standard hill sprint intervals: The focus here is on consistent repetitions. Choose a distance (e.g., 50m) or a time (e.g. 10 seconds), then sprint up the hill multiple times, with a rest between as you walk down.
• Hill pyramids: Mix up the intensity with hill sprint pyramids. Start with a shorter time or distance (e.g. 20 metres), increase each sprint by 10m until you hit 50m. Then, decrease the distance by 10m until you’re back to the start.
• Hill ladders: In hill ladders, you gradually increase the time or distance of each sprint. Your first sprint might last just five seconds. The next might last seven seconds. You would gradually increase the distance until you’re running 15 or 20 seconds.

More ways to train: Have you tried HIIT for running?

Correct form when doing hill sprints

The form for performing hill sprints is much the same as form for running in general. Here are a few key pointers:

• It’s OK to lean slightly forward, but aim to hold an upright position.
• Your chest should be upright, with relaxed shoulders.
• Your arms should be pumping, driving you forward.
• You’re aiming for a rapid foot cadence, with quick, fast steps.
• You want to land on and push off the balls (front) of your feet.
• Your knees should lift up high.
• Breathe deeply through your mouth.

How to get more out of hill running

Hill running can be very tiring - your muscles will burn and you’ll definitely feel fatigued by the end of the session. Here are some tips to get the most out of your hill sprints:

• Record it all: Use a fitness app to track and analyse your hill sprint performance. By seeing how fast you can run uphill and noticing your improvement, it will really help with your motivation.
• Do it with a friend: Doing hill sprints with someone else can boost your motivation.
• Music always helps: Choose a playlist of empowering, high energy songs to get yourself into the zone for doing hill sprints.
• Mix up routines and hills: While it’s important to be consistent with the distances/times you run, you might also find it helpful to try out different routines or hills too to keep things interesting. For instance, if you mainly do short and steep hill sprints, you could occasionally run up a longer, shallower slope instead for variation.

A Step-by-Step Guide for Successful Hill Sprints

Training for hill running without hills

If you want to do hill sprint workouts but don’t have a suitable incline near where you live, then there are still several ways you can do this kind of training.

• Treadmill incline training: Most treadmills today come with incline settings where you can increase the gradient at the touch of a button. Just as with outdoor hill sprints, you might begin with a light, 15-20 minute warm up jog on the flat, before increasing the speed and incline of the machine to replicate sprints. It’s not possible to exactly replicate a hill sprint on a treadmill since you can’t go from standing to sprinting uphill instantly. But it is possible to rapidly increase speed, and get similar benefits. Of course, you should always follow safety instructions on a treadmill, and ask staff at your gym for help if you’re unsure about the settings.
• Footbridges: If there are no suitable hills near your home, some footbridges can offer steady slopes that are of a suitable distance. Of course, you need to leave space for other users.
• Stair sprints: Running up flights of stairs can also activate the same muscle groups as hill sprints. Running up stairs can be risky as there’s a risk of tripping. Stairs that are relatively shallow, with deep steps would be most suitable.
• Sled sprints: If you’re a member of a gym with a weighted sledge, you could perform sled sprints. This would activate the same sorts of leg muscle groups as a hill sprint (although your posture and arm position would, of course, be very different).

What should you wear when hill running?

Hill running is a challenging form of exercise which puts a significant amount of stress on your body. What is more, the speed at which you’re running on an incline means there’s a risk of slipping if the surface is wet or unstable. Choosing proper running footwear that is supportive and which offers plenty of grip and cushioning is therefore vital.

Hill sprints are all about running at speed, so it’s a good idea to choose a lightweight, fast running shoe. For example, our METASPEED™ range of shoes has a curved sole which helps with high speed foot turnover, and ASICSGRIP outsole rubber which offers high levels of grip on even wet surfaces.

If you’re doing your hill sprint workout on grass or gravel, then you’ll need even more grip - so consider a trail running shoe. Our FUJI LITE™ collection offers lightweight speed, combined with tough grip that will keep you stable on any surface.

Include hill sprints in your routine

Hill sprints offer a fun, effective and challenging way to improve your running abilities. With the right technique, regular practice and a suitable slope, you’ll soon start to notice the impact of hill sprints on your overall performance.