Most of the big cities of Britain are not known for their mountains, and there are only so many times you can run up and down Crystal Palace hill before succumbing the omnipresent threat of QFC (Questionable Fried Chicken). So how do you get ready for the toils of a mountain race if you weren’t lucky enough to have been conceived in a snow hole on top of Mount Everest?
Alas, we Brits only have hills that go up to 1344m, but some of the races we want to do actually start higher than this. I’ve trained for the Ultra Tour du Mont Blanc – 9,800m of up and down – on the fair streets of London. It may not be ideal, but if it were easy, it would be no fun at all.
The uphill may be hard work but it is the downhill that stops many in their tracks. This is what you really need to get your body ready for, and downhills that last for an age just aren’t possible in UK city life.
The good news is, you don’t need a big hill. A 45-60 second ascent will do. My coach, Nick Anderson, is a big fan of the continuous hills workout, which involves 3 x 10 minutes of effort with you working hard up and down your wee hill for the full 10 minutes, before taking a 2-3 minute rest between sets.
Not only will this improve your cardiovascular ability, efficiency on the uphill and overall strength, it will also get your legs ready for those long downhills, improving the technical skill of downhill running as an added benefit too.
Remember, little island we live on isn’t huge either. Weekends in the hills can be easily accessible and cheap, staying in wonderful YHA hostels or Airbnb spots around the country. A couple of well planned trips to Box Hill, the Brecon Beacons, Snowdonia, the Lake District or any of the wild mountainous regions of Scotland can prepare you. The UK is a beautiful place, so explore it!
Robbie Britton is a Team GB 24hr runner. Follow him on Twitter @ultrabritton
