Exercise scientist Heikki Rusko, one of the world's leading researchers of running performance, was in trouble. Just weeks from the Finnish National Masters Championships, the professor at the University of Jyväskylä, in Finland, had spent his winter working in a lab, not training, and he was sorely out of shape.
It's a cold-weather conundrum most athletes solve by either A) withdrawing from the event (and saving face), or B) overtraining (and risking injury). But Rusko, 64, is not most athletes. "I knew that I would have to boost my aerobic capacity quickly to have any chance in the competition," he says. "So I took to the hills." Rusko's decision was well founded. Research carried out at the Karolinska Institute, in Stockholm, Sweden, shows that several weeks of hill training can boost running economy, a key predictor of running performance, by 3 percent. Non-runners, meanwhile, can jump-start their aerobic capacity, leg strength, and fatigue resistance. But hill training alone won't deliver a total spring makeover. Athletes must also work in interval training (every ten days or so), strength drills, and a weekly rest day for a speedy transformation. How speedy? Rusko won bronze at the championships. To see what you can accomplish, try the workouts below.
Speed Workouts: Hills
Find an incline and, after a good warm-up, run as far uphill as you can in three minutes. Return to the bottom of the slope and surge up to the same point at a near sprint—with a perceived effort of at least 9 (on a scale of 1 to 10). Jog back down easily and repeat. Start with just two reps two times a week, gradually working up to five reps. No hill? Try a treadmill and set the incline to 5 percent or higher. |
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Speed Workouts: Intervals
Run as fast as you can on a track for six minutes and measure your distance covered. Divide this distance by six to obtain your interval length. For each interval, cover this distance in one minute (recover with a one-minute jog and repeat). Example: If you run 1,500 meters (1,640 yards) in six minutes, your interval distance (1,500 [1,640] divided by 6) is 250 meters (273 yards). Start with seven of these intervals every ten days and work your way up to 15.
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Strength Drills: Lunges
With a relaxed, upright posture and hands at your waist, take a big step forward with your left foot, landing heel-first with your left knee in line with your left foot. Drop down into a lunge squat, then contract your glutes as you push back up into an upright body position. Alternate legs until you've done eight lunges on each side. Work up to two sets of 12 reps per leg; hold dumbbells for extra resistance. |
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Strength Drills: Backward Dip Squats
Stand on your left foot on a four-to eight-inch-high (10-to-20-inch-high) curb, bench, or step. With your torso upright, step back with your right leg. Keep your weight on your left leg and lightly touch the toes of your right foot to the ground and squat down—knees bent at 90 degrees, back foot flexed up toward the shin. Return to the one-leg starting position, pause, and repeat. Start with eight reps on each leg and gradually increase to two sets of 12 reps. |
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