Why does hill running hurt so much? In part, because it takes more work. You have to recruit more muscle fibres to get yourself up the hill, which causes those muscles to fatigue faster. Plus, when you’re running on an incline, there’s a shorter distance for your foot to fall before it hits the ground. That translates into less of an energy boost from the tendons, which you normally get when running on a flat surface.
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THE MYTH:
EXERCISE IN THE FAT-BURNING ZONE
THE TRUTH:
The “fat-burning zone” lies between 50 and 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. When you exercise at this low intensity, your body draws energy from fat. As your heart rate goes up, more energy comes from carbs. So it seems logical that to lose fat you should keep your heart rate low, says Jason Karp, Ph.D., owner of Runcoachjason.com. But that’s not the case.
“Running at higher intensities causes you to burn a lower percentage of fat calories in favor of carbs,” says Karp, “but you use more total calories.” And that’s the key to slimming down. Plus, since you torch more total calories, the absolute amount of fat burned actually increases, too. So it pays to pick up the pace.
Of course, lower intensity exercise still has its place. Long, slow runs build aerobic fitness and endurance. But to kickstart a pokey metabolism, you need intensity. Karp suggests interval training (condensed runs that mix in intense efforts with recovery) because studies have found these workouts burn more calories during and after exercise (see “Torch Calories” below for Karp’s interval workout). “It also cuts down on boredom,” he says, “which makes it more likely you’ll stick with your program.”
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MIX UP YOUR RUNNING FOR GREATER RESULTS
Runner’s of all levels, experience and capabilities should never become complacent with their program. Always work towards goals and when you achieve your goals set a new target higher – raise the bar!
Depending on what your running goal is, for the running for fitness, look great, keep weight down etc etc types, you should change your running program every 6 weeks.
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progressionfitness
Progression Fitness 