hills... how often?

atsteele

It depends on what you mean.

There is hill training, which is to build strength and is usually done before the base phase of a 4 phase training program. You would probably only do this once a week as it takes time to recover. This is typically the "run up, walk down" type of hill training.

Then, there is incorporating hilly routes into your regular routine. I try to do all my easy runs and long runs on routes that have hills. I know this has benefited me tremendously on race day. The only time I seek out flat areas to run is if I am doing very specific pace work.

I do this. I run hill repeats as my middle-of-the-week run (generally 6 to 10 miles) and when training for a half marathon or marathon, I make sure my long run includes hills in my route. Works wonders.