Why Hill Training Might Be the Fastest Way to Get Faster
By Coach Nic Baxter | NBx Running Coach
If you want to run faster on flat ground, one of the best things you can do is run on hills. It sounds backwards, but it's not — hill training builds strength, power, and running economy in a way that flat, steady miles simply can't.
For those of you that train regulary with me, you will all know that I LOVE HILLS, and recently I've had a few athletes why hill repeats keep showing up in their plans. So let's break down why hills earn their spot in almost every training block I write — whether you're chasing a 5K PR or building toward a marathon.
Hills Are Strength Training in Disguise
Every time you push up an incline, you're asking your glutes, hamstrings, and calves to work harder against gravity than they would on flat ground. Do that repeatedly and you build real muscular strength and power. The kind of power that translates directly into a stronger stride on race day. Think of hill repeats as squats you do in running shoes.
They Improve Your Running Economy
Running economy is basically how efficiently your body uses oxygen at a given pace. Hill training has been shown to improve it, meaning you can hold a faster pace while using less energy. That efficiency shows up everywhere including in your easy runs, your tempo work, and especially in the closing miles of a race when everyone else is fading.
They Build Mental Toughness
There's no faking a hill. You can't hide behind good form or a fast cadence. Hills ask you to dig in and keep moving forward when your legs are burning and your breathing is ragged. Athletes who train on hills consistently tend to handle race-day discomfort better, because they've already practiced pushing through it.
They Protect You From Injury
Counterintuitively, hill work can be gentler on your joints than flat speedwork. The incline naturally shortens your stride and reduces the impact forces on your knees and hips compared to sprinting on level ground at the same effort. That makes hills a smart way to build speed and power without piling on the pounding.
How I Program It
I typically bring hill repeats into a plan in one of a few ways:
Short, sharp repeats for power and neuromuscular speed.
Longer hill intervals for strength-endurance, especially useful in marathon and half marathon blocks.
Rolling terrain long runs — simply choosing a hilly route for an easy or moderate long run to build strength without a dedicated workout.
The dose depends on where you are in your training cycle. Early in a block, I'll use hills to build a strength base. Closer to race day, if your course is flat, I'll dial back the volume and shift focus to race-pace work but if your race has hills in it, we keep training on them right up until taper.
Give It a Try
If your legs have never met a hill repeat, start small, even 6 x 30 seconds on a moderate incline once a week is enough to start seeing the benefit. You'll likely notice a difference in your flat-ground pace within a few weeks.
Hills aren't just a Morris County or trail quirk of geography. They're one of the most underused tools in a lot of runners' training. Give them a shot, and don't be surprised when your flat 5K time drops too.
Want a training plan built around your goals, your terrain, and your schedule? I'd love to help you get there — reach out for a free intro call and let's talk about what's next.
Coach Nic Baxter is an RRCA Level 2 Certified Running Coach and ACE-Certified Personal Trainer, based in Morristown, NJ. She coaches runners locally and virtually worldwide through NBx Running Coach and is currently training for 3 fall marathons.
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