As an amateur athlete with a limited amount of time for practice (I train for mostly OLY and get about 3-4 workouts in every discipline/week for a total of maybe 12-18 hours/week) in the past I have incorporated a hill run/hill repeats into one of my 3-4 runs/week. I got nowhere (neither on the bike or on the run). IMPORTANT: I am familiar with the concepts of structured training and had my training plans checked and approved by some reputable coaches in the past.

I recently started running only flat and more often right off the bike. I substituted the hill run with another hilly bike. I discovered that my running has improved (even off the bike) and that I feel fresher on my bike workouts. This translates to more efficient training both on the bike and for the run. In retrospect I believe that the hill runs always left me quite drained (even with max possible recovery) and consequently I could not focus that well on bike or running technique (stroke, turnover, speed etc.).

This observation makes me question the suitability and benefits of hill runs/repeats for a MOP of even FOP triathlete on limited training time.

Any takers/coaches who want to comment on my observation?

I know, I am a sample of one.

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adrialin

(BOMK, racing drug and supplement free since 1985)