I have some hills by my house, some longer than others, some steeper, etc. and I have one that I have my eye on that is long and not very steep that seems like it would be great for sprints, but here’s the problem…it has a concrete “runway”. It’s weird to explain, but picture the hills by my house setup like a half-pipe b/c they are formed by a canal. And, the one I’ve been looking at looks nice and is smooth and all, but is made of concrete on the running area. Should I avoid this hill or would it be safe to run on it 1x a week? Would it hurt too much?
I have often run on concrete hills without them injuring me. Just remnember that with hills your feet are not going to smack the ground as fast anyway, but good for recruiting slightly more fibres per stride.
1 x per weak would seem fine to me. I often think that the reason why hills are not so often prescibed by sprint coaches is becuase it’s not easy for them AND their group to meet up at some hill once per weak. Plus, not everbody has access to them.
Side note; How’s your relationship with your collage coach going at the moment?, becuase u said there were a few issues with that a while back.
Is he still messing with your prep?
400stud i would be more concerned about developing shin splits,knee problems and lower back tightness.there is absolutley no cushioning on that particular surface so the shock and forces will be travellling straight from your feet upwards.short term there should be no problems so take care
I’m considered an expert on running on asphalt and concrete in some parts, but I also have exercise induced compartment-syndrome in both my lower-legs. As long as I stretch my calves several times daily I don’t get any troubles from hard surfaces though, in fact soft artificial turf with hard ground underneath is more of a problem.
Just make sure the surface is even and woid of any slippery parts.
Most injuries are easier to prevent than to cure…
I was going to do them 1x a week for maybe 6 weeks? Is that bad? I may not even do them that often. Let’s say 10x’s MAX over the next 3 months. Is that too much?
400 get in tune with yourself and make your own decisions.you will know when to stop running on concrete.just play it safe and don’t ignore your body when it gives signals!!!
We do our hills on tarmac and never have any real problems. They are pretty fast runs too. If you think about the amount of cushioning in spikes (practically none!) onto a rubber surface compared to trainers/sneakers on a harder surface its not too bad.
Running uphill has less downward impact anyway as you arent hitting the floor from such a great height as you would be sprinting on the flat.
See how you go as you would with any other training type - monitor and assess all the time!
I did a lot of sprinting on concrete when I was younger and didnt know any better. I am convinced it contributed to my lower back problems. As said, limit it and get yourself some top quality shoes. you cant put a price on it
be careful how often you do them. pay close attention to the tendons running down the backs of ur hamtrings and knees. if these start to ache/hurt/tighten up, leave hill running for a week or two, and go get some serious massage done on them.
myself and my training partner are both victims of too much uphill work in that respect…
