Running hills is an acquired skill, and a little practice and single speeders can gain the ability do some damage in races and turn the dreaded incline into their advantage. At the very least a consistent regimen of ball busting hill workouts goes far to build leg strength. Who among us could not benefit from more leg strength?
However running hills makes you better at… running hills… not riding your bike. You will not see benefits on the flats. The muscle groups you use to overcome hills are not applied in the same innervations pattern required for pedalling a bike. Hill work enhances your speed running up hills, it will building strength for running up hills, but if you are slow on a bike… you will still be slow on your bike. However, the more efficient you are on the hills, the less energy you use, and the more you will have for hammering. Running and single speeding go hand in hand. Oh ya… hill training also strengthens the muscles around your knees (i.e., Hams, adductors, quads), helping to reduce knee injuries. All single speeders will benefit from that!
Note: Begins slowly and be overly cautious about hill training. Do not run hills if you have a lower leg injury. Maintain an appropriate level of joint flexibility (knees, ankles, hips). Do not forget to warm-up completely and stretch AFTER your workout.
Birch is probably not the best place to start your hill training regime, only because you are either going up or down – there is very little that is flat. A rolling course with 4-6 smaller shallow incline is best to begin with.
Remember in a bike race that the idea of running hills is it is more efficient then mashing your monster gear, and faster then the multi speed bike grinding it out at 2 cm a year. Keep the rhythm up but do not sprint. Think steady tempo. If you do this just right your heart rate comes back down on the run – even when your are passing the geared bikes crawling along in their 22-34. Concentrate on keeping your upper body super relaxed, with your handle bars tucked right into your gut. DO NOT layout flat like death with your arms stretched out over your head. Stand like you are running (you are) and let your legs do the work.
On gradual inclines ride up as far as is efficient, dismount smoothly, and try to run a quicker than you had been running on the steep hills. On steeper inclines, concentrate on lifting your knees, digging in your toe spikes, and pushing off hard with every step. Keep your head up (body follows the head) and watch where you are going. Steep hills = high knees = very sore hipflexsors = you must work your hipflexsors in the gym all winter. Even for very long hills (a mile or longer), try to maintain the exaggerated knee lifts.
As you crest the hill, focus on picking up your speed, running 10 meters or so over the top to the flats, then cyclocross style back on to your bike. Maintain as much momentum as possible.
If you are running down the hills during your training, chill out! Remember: The damage you feel after running a gut busting session of hills is from the pounding you receive going downhill’s. That eccentric loading is tearing you up! Leave the overspeed training for the runners. You will be riding down those nasty descents. Think specificity.
Bottom Line:
You will likely find that hill running sucks the big one at first. If you stick with them, make them part of you winter training schedule, and do the resistance work you know you need… you are sure to whoop some ass even on the hills with your single speed.
Own your pain!
Coach Dave
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