You're without a doubt, in my opinion, the best person on YT that is able to articulate the science of running and put it into terms where that is understandable and easily explains why things are done. Then you take it a step further and provide real-world tips on what "we" can do in our everyday training to become better. Not to bash any particular person or channel, but pretty much all the channels I've tried to watch on YT for this type of content either knows the science and as they try to get into it, it becomes so high-level, boring, or just a lecture and no real value is gained, or there are channels of great runners that appear to help and provide information for the viewer, but really becomes a channel of look at me and watch me and listen to me and me, me, me, me, me. I look forward to all of your videos and information because I learn so much.
Wow! Thanks so much, that means a lot. I'm just trying to pass along the information I've learned from not just studying the subject, but living it as an athlete and coach.
I’m 31, father of 3 and husband. and just started running in feb 2024. I’m 5’5 and was 189lbs and now I’m 168lbs. I use to lift weights in my early 20s then stopped for a long while. Even with my little knowledge of running; all the things you’ve just said is so true. I never knew that I could run hold a 10min pace for 2hrs and sprinting once a week up a steep hill is one of my favorite exercises 😂. I rather do hill sprints than 1k intervals. I enjoy your content and love everything you’ve done. You care about the running community and I thank you, sir. Keep it up.
Now we are talking! I was thinking last night when running a hard 10k comprised of 1k intervals that what I like is training my training intensity. I enjoy going to the well, over and over. This type of attitude, which carries over into other areas of my life, has served me well.
Just had my team do 2x70 meters all out with 6 minutes rest between after an easy run and hurdle drills. 2nd week back so not much but definitely incorporating it for track season! Timing and recording them as well to see progression throughout the season hopefully
Subscribed! Looking forward to your running mechanics talk! Will you please include best drills for landing your feet under your body and how to use more glutes and less quads/TFL?
Another very useful video. I find it better to track time under high intensity load than distance covered when sprinting. Big fan of the 30 20 10 method as a way of maintaining discipline and avoiding overload injuries. Looking forward to the technique video as I am interested in biomechical differences betwee sprinting and running longer distances, if there are any.
@Steve Magness can you please make a video on how to mak 0:01 e generic plan for improving Cooper test and get to g great to elite level for ones age group? We are talking of recreational 34 years old man who is fintess enthusiast and follows you because of your health related fitness advices❤️
Another brilliant explanation of a specific element of training for endurance. I always want to know why I should do something and why/how it works. You make even the complicated stuff easy to understand and apply. Thank you. Do you have any plans to talk about training specifics for Masters (I'm 69) runners (if there are any)? Is there anything we should/shouldn't be doing other than scaling our paces and weekly mileages to take account of age. Thanks.
A universal trait of any great athlete is a fire in their belly. A competitive and optimistic spirit. Someone who is imbued with the virtue of courage. Can this be taught? Can this be trained? Is it a biological function? I think so. The mind, energy or lack there of, has so much to do with what is happening in our bodies.
I’ve never done hill sprints, but as someone with already decent top end speed (10.9 100m 22.3 200m 53 400m) would I still benefit from them as I transition into a distance runner? Thanks for another great informative video.
You definitely will! You’re more fast twitch than a good amount of distance runners, so train to your strengths! Adding in sprints and making workouts (slightly) more oriented towards faster paces/efforts and doing more strides can be more helpful for you than for other people who may be more slow twitch
Can you do a few videos on trail training where there are no level flat sections For me (even being 70 years old) if I dont over do it, hill sprints do make me feel better a few days later. But if I do them hard for two hours then I need to recover for a week or two.
Would like to see a conversation between you and Ben Bocchicchio Steve. He is into weight lifting and is always speaking about muscle fibre recruitment.
Steve - I am curious about your thoughts on the following aspect of hill sprints: I know everyone loves hill sprints… however, it seems to me that distance runners, especially, tend to “walk a fine line” with respect to their calf/Achilles complex more so than their hamstrings; that is, as a distance runner you’re more likely to incur an Achilles issue than a hamstring issue. (Obviously everyone is an individual…) Incline sprints, or any type of hard acceleration, are more stressful on the Achilles (due to the range of motion at the ankle) than is running at maximal velocity. Hill sprints are also specifically not as effective in training high-velocity running due to the longer ground contact times. As a result of these factors, I sort of question whether hill sprints are actually a “safe” and maximally-effective exercise for distance runners. Do you have any comment? My tendency is to think that the best/safest approach to sprint training for distance runners is to stay on flat ground and slowly increase speed (as you suggested also). (I also note that you did suggest using a *moderate* hill, rather than a steep hill…)
I would say that Jakob Ingebrigsten has used hill sprints (as well as every other professional middle or long distance runner that I know of), so I would assume that there is some credibility to it as a workout.
So a few things: 1. The achilles adapts to moderate incline hills load. So much so that contrary to perceived notion, it doesn't put much of a stain on the achilles itself. The achilles adapts. See study outlined here: www.runnersworld.com/health-injuries/a20849682/hill-running-poses-no-extra-risk-to-achilles/ 2. We aren't concerned about longer ground contact times. The point of sprinting for distance runners isn't to maximize power output, per se (most force in shortest amount of time). It's to maximize muscle recruitment in a specific manner. So the longer ground contact times actually makes things a bit safer, and the hill component emphasizes the push, instead of reactivity, so we get FT activation with a slightly lower injury risk. 3. I'm not opposed to flat sprint. But it takes more skill. And quite frankly, most distance runners don't have that. The beauty of sprinting up a moderate hill is it forces distance runners to be in better positions. It makes it where your foot lands closer to your center of gravity, and it emphasizes hip extension and drive. I'll put it this way. In my 25 years of coaching, I've had maybe 1 athlete get hurt as a result of hill sprints.I can't say the same for sprints or accelerations on the track. It's why they are popular among elites. From Canova to Ingebritgsen.
Cannot recommend sprint training enough. Even if you have run for distance all your life. Just do a block of specific Sprint workouts, for your 100/200m distances. Pushing for your absolute top speed does wonders for your running form, but also makes you feel superhuman. Just running as fast as you are physically able to.
I've heard any grade above 6% might impact your stride enough to create some issues so if you can set your hill sprints via something like a treadmill, a 6% hill should work pretty well.
You're without a doubt, in my opinion, the best person on YT that is able to articulate the science of running and put it into terms where that is understandable and easily explains why things are done. Then you take it a step further and provide real-world tips on what "we" can do in our everyday training to become better. Not to bash any particular person or channel, but pretty much all the channels I've tried to watch on YT for this type of content either knows the science and as they try to get into it, it becomes so high-level, boring, or just a lecture and no real value is gained, or there are channels of great runners that appear to help and provide information for the viewer, but really becomes a channel of look at me and watch me and listen to me and me, me, me, me, me. I look forward to all of your videos and information because I learn so much.
Wow! Thanks so much, that means a lot. I'm just trying to pass along the information I've learned from not just studying the subject, but living it as an athlete and coach.
Agreed!
Best youtube channel for actionable running science
Thanks so much!
I’m 31, father of 3 and husband. and just started running in feb 2024. I’m 5’5 and was 189lbs and now I’m 168lbs. I use to lift weights in my early 20s then stopped for a long while.
Even with my little knowledge of running; all the things you’ve just said is so true. I never knew that I could run hold a 10min pace for 2hrs and sprinting once a week up a steep hill is one of my favorite exercises 😂. I rather do hill sprints than 1k intervals.
I enjoy your content and love everything you’ve done. You care about the running community and I thank you, sir. Keep it up.
Now we are talking! I was thinking last night when running a hard 10k comprised of 1k intervals that what I like is training my training intensity. I enjoy going to the well, over and over. This type of attitude, which carries over into other areas of my life, has served me well.
I would challenge you to do it in even smaller increments. 100m at max, 100m recover walk then 100m max again. See if you can get to the 10k.
Steve these talks are absolute gold. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge in such a clear and actionable manner.
My pleasure!
High quality content! Thank you! Subscribed!
Awesome, thank you!
Love it! Funnel Periodization!
Just had my team do 2x70 meters all out with 6 minutes rest between after an easy run and hurdle drills. 2nd week back so not much but definitely incorporating it for track season! Timing and recording them as well to see progression throughout the season hopefully
Nice work!
Subscribed! Looking forward to your running mechanics talk! Will you please include best drills for landing your feet under your body and how to use more glutes and less quads/TFL?
I pre-ordered your new book through Audible. I really enjoyed “Do Hard Things” Great stuff.
Awesome! Thank you so much!
Another great talk and he only said influencers once,that's definitely a pb 😂
🤭
Another very useful video. I find it better to track time under high intensity load than distance covered when sprinting. Big fan of the 30 20 10 method as a way of maintaining discipline and avoiding overload injuries. Looking forward to the technique video as I am interested in biomechical differences betwee sprinting and running longer distances, if there are any.
@Steve Magness can you please make a video on how to mak 0:01 e generic plan for improving Cooper test and get to g great to elite level for ones age group?
We are talking of recreational 34 years old man who is fintess enthusiast and follows you because of your health related fitness advices❤️
Another brilliant explanation of a specific element of training for endurance. I always want to know why I should do something and why/how it works. You make even the complicated stuff easy to understand and apply. Thank you. Do you have any plans to talk about training specifics for Masters (I'm 69) runners (if there are any)? Is there anything we should/shouldn't be doing other than scaling our paces and weekly mileages to take account of age. Thanks.
thx for this video
It's my pleasure
A universal trait of any great athlete is a fire in their belly. A competitive and optimistic spirit. Someone who is imbued with the virtue of courage. Can this be taught? Can this be trained? Is it a biological function? I think so. The mind, energy or lack there of, has so much to do with what is happening in our bodies.
I’ve never done hill sprints, but as someone with already decent top end speed (10.9 100m 22.3 200m 53 400m) would I still benefit from them as I transition into a distance runner? Thanks for another great informative video.
You definitely will! You’re more fast twitch than a good amount of distance runners, so train to your strengths! Adding in sprints and making workouts (slightly) more oriented towards faster paces/efforts and doing more strides can be more helpful for you than for other people who may be more slow twitch
Can you do a few videos on trail training where there are no level flat sections
For me (even being 70 years old) if I dont over do it, hill sprints do make me feel better a few days later. But if I do them hard for two hours then I need to recover for a week or two.
Would like to see a conversation between you and Ben Bocchicchio Steve. He is into weight lifting and is always speaking about muscle fibre recruitment.
Steve - I am curious about your thoughts on the following aspect of hill sprints:
I know everyone loves hill sprints… however, it seems to me that distance runners, especially, tend to “walk a fine line” with respect to their calf/Achilles complex more so than their hamstrings; that is, as a distance runner you’re more likely to incur an Achilles issue than a hamstring issue. (Obviously everyone is an individual…) Incline sprints, or any type of hard acceleration, are more stressful on the Achilles (due to the range of motion at the ankle) than is running at maximal velocity. Hill sprints are also specifically not as effective in training high-velocity running due to the longer ground contact times. As a result of these factors, I sort of question whether hill sprints are actually a “safe” and maximally-effective exercise for distance runners. Do you have any comment?
My tendency is to think that the best/safest approach to sprint training for distance runners is to stay on flat ground and slowly increase speed (as you suggested also).
(I also note that you did suggest using a *moderate* hill, rather than a steep hill…)
I would say that Jakob Ingebrigsten has used hill sprints (as well as every other professional middle or long distance runner that I know of), so I would assume that there is some credibility to it as a workout.
So a few things:
1. The achilles adapts to moderate incline hills load. So much so that contrary to perceived notion, it doesn't put much of a stain on the achilles itself. The achilles adapts. See study outlined here: www.runnersworld.com/health-injuries/a20849682/hill-running-poses-no-extra-risk-to-achilles/
2. We aren't concerned about longer ground contact times. The point of sprinting for distance runners isn't to maximize power output, per se (most force in shortest amount of time). It's to maximize muscle recruitment in a specific manner. So the longer ground contact times actually makes things a bit safer, and the hill component emphasizes the push, instead of reactivity, so we get FT activation with a slightly lower injury risk.
3. I'm not opposed to flat sprint. But it takes more skill. And quite frankly, most distance runners don't have that. The beauty of sprinting up a moderate hill is it forces distance runners to be in better positions. It makes it where your foot lands closer to your center of gravity, and it emphasizes hip extension and drive.
I'll put it this way. In my 25 years of coaching, I've had maybe 1 athlete get hurt as a result of hill sprints.I can't say the same for sprints or accelerations on the track.
It's why they are popular among elites. From Canova to Ingebritgsen.
@@SteveMagness Thank you for the response. 👍
Cannot recommend sprint training enough. Even if you have run for distance all your life. Just do a block of specific Sprint workouts, for your 100/200m distances. Pushing for your absolute top speed does wonders for your running form, but also makes you feel superhuman. Just running as fast as you are physically able to.
The word is “oriented,” not “orientated.”
What rule of thumb would you give for a good hill how do you gauge what is too steep or too flat ?
We should feel the hill, but not so much that it feels like we are fundamentally changing how we run.
I've heard any grade above 6% might impact your stride enough to create some issues so if you can set your hill sprints via something like a treadmill, a 6% hill should work pretty well.
Thanks again, Steve. More gold!