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Running Hills Effortlessly in Five Steps | My Running Diary

By Mandi Mellen

Posted on July 17, 2018

There was a period of time in my life when I disliked running hills. I thought they were the worst, but I focused and learned how to run hills effortlessly. Now I’m sharing five steps to conquering hills one at a time!

My Running Diary: July 17th, 2018

When I first started to run as a youth, I dreaded running hills. I didn’t like how hard they were and when I trained for field hockey, we’d sprint up hills as one of our workouts. Those days, when my coach would tell us we had to run hills, were my least favorite. But I didn’t understand that hills made me stronger. They are a great way to build up speed, strength, and endurance. Learn to love running hills by conquering them in five steps!

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I now live in an extremely hilly area of Los Angeles and no matter where I run, I have to run up hills. When I moved to this area over 7 years ago, I finally learned to fully embrace hills and just how magical they are. I let go of my dread of hills, which led me to my run them effortlessly. The steps I took are outlined below and simple to remember. Let’s go!

Step 1: Quit avoiding hills.
For a very long time I avoided hills because they were hard. I’d claim I didn’t like them, but they intimidated me. By avoiding hills I put up a big block when it came to running. My goal was to just run effortlessly and how could I do that if I consistently avoided hills? I had to learn how to run hills effortlessly to run effortlessly.

Step 2: Run Up. Walk Down.
Some people will tell you to walk up and run down hills, but do not listen to them. You want to push yourself to run up the hill and then take a breather and walk once you get to the top and go back down, if there is a down side. Soon you will not only push up those hills, but you won’t stop once you reach the top.

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Step 3: Run stairs.
Living close to Santa Monica has led me to run the Santa Monica stairs. There was a long stretch when I ran them every week. I loved them and what they did was show me how to push myself up an extreme hill. By running stairs I also learned how to pace myself, as well as how to push myself on an extreme incline. It truly strengthened my legs.

Step 4: Speed up as you run up a hill.
This one is hard to do and I still remind myself every day when I run a hill. Our natural tendency is to slow down as we run up the hill, but fight that instinct. Tell yourself to run faster and at first you won’t be running faster, but in time you will. In time you won’t slow down up a hill, but you’ll keep your pace and even run faster. This will make you forget that you used to hate running hills!

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Step 5: Give yourself time.
It will take you time to run up hills effortlessly, so enjoy the journey! Let it take the time that it will and just be cognizant of pushing yourself when you hit those hills. In time, running hills becomes second nature which makes it effortless and fun! With hills, I didn’t set a time limit and all of a sudden I realized that I no longer dreaded the hills, but looked forward to running up them.

Don’t let running hills be hard because you’re missing such an amazing part of running. It’s easier to run hills than you think. Follow our steps to effortless running! Make sure you share your progress with me!

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Mandi Mellen is Lead Editor, Staff Writer, and Featured Host at BuzzChomp. She’s also an Actress, Writer, Director and Producer. Get lost in her Youtube comedy channel PillowTalk TV. Follow her on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Instagram

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