That picture you are looking at is a large hill at a nearby park. A few months ago we went to the park just to take a nice relaxing walk and see what the park had to offer. Well, a little way into our walk I noticed this awesome hill. I just knew some day I would use it for hill sprints.
That finally happened last Saturday.
Note: I hit a small hole about half way up the hill. ; )
I typically run hill sprints on the hill that is in my yard. It’s about 60 yards long and not quite as steep. We decided to finally run the hill at the park for a change of pace and a bigger, steeper challenge.
So, this post is about . . . you guessed it: running hill sprints for fast fat loss. They are simply one of the very best methods for losing body fat at a fast rate.
Look, if you have the luxury of training at an awesome gym that has sleds, prowlers, strong man tools, tires, sledgehammers, sandbags, ropes, and other great toys that can be used very effectively for fat loss and conditioning, then that’s great and I highly recommend you take advantage of it.
However, I train at home with power rack, barbell set, and a few other odd and end toys. Hill sprints are an excellent method for fat loss and conditioning because you don’t need any equipment. And, just so you know, the reasons I recommend hill sprints as opposed to flat ground sprints are because they are safer since you can’t reach top speed, don’t require as long of a warm-up, and they are dang effective.
And another bonus about running hill sprints for fast fat loss – you get to train outside and get some sunshine and fresh air. That’s always a good thing.
So if you want to lose some fat for the summer, then hill sprints should be your best friend. Side note: you are following smart nutrition principles, right?
There are several different ways to incorporate hills sprints into your training program:
- Perform them on your non-lifting days
- Perform them after your strength training session
- Perform them 6 or more hours before your strength training session (if you strength train in the evening)
- Perform them 6 or more hours after your strength training session (if you strength train in the morning)
How many hill sprints should you run in a single session?
Well that depends on how experienced you are and how long the hill is that you are running.
If the hill is shorter, you’ll simply perform more sprints. If the hill is longer, you won’t have to run as many. Don’t over think this part. The important thing is that you perform the hill sprints.
The most common recommendation for performing hill sprints is to perform a sprint and then rest for a designated period of time before performing another sprint. That method is fine, but I prefer to do things a little different.
Instead of the typical method, I prefer to perform a certain number of hill sprints in a specific period of time. For example, last week I ran 10 hill sprints in 14 minutes and 47 seconds. I just took rest breaks as needed between sets. For the first few sprints I didn’t need as much recovery time between sprints, but towards the end I needed more.
Yesterday I ran 10 hill sprints in 14 minutes and 10 seconds. I performed the same amount of work but in less time. Another option could have been to run 11 hill sprints in the old 14:47 time period.
Do you see what I’m saying? When it comes to hill sprints I prefer to either perform the same amount of work in less time or perform more work in the same time period.
You can always use the traditional method of resting 60 to 120 seconds between sprints, but I prefer the other way. Just do what works best for you and what you enjoy the most.
How many times a week should you perform hill sprints?
If you have never done hill sprints before, I would start off with a single session per week, and then increase to two sessions. You can perform hill sprints three times per week, but I wouldn’t do more than that.
So there you have it – a great way to lose fat fast for the summer. I could say even more about hill sprints, but I think you get the point so I’ll just end things here.