6 tips to help you train for uphill running
Endurance athlete Ashish Kasodekar lays down six points to help you train for your uphill efforts.
Ashish Kasodekar has always been looking for the next big challenge in endurance sports.
Among his many accomplishments, he most recently successfully completed his first attempt at ‘Everesting’ on the Sinhagad mountain, about 40 kilometres from Pune.
“What Everesting entails is that you have to gain the height of Everest – which is 8848 metres – [in a single attempt],” says Kasodekar, who accomplished the feat over two days in February 2020.
“You have to do this at one stroke, you can’t sleep. You can take breaks, but the amount of breaks you take, the time goes up. I did it on Sinhagad; where in one loop you gain about 555 metres, so I had to do Sinhagad 16 times,” says Ashish.
He took about 32 hours to complete his attempt, starting at 2pm on 20th February and ending at 10pm on 21st February, making it one of his many achievements of running in the mountains.
Below are Ashish’s tips on how you can train for uphill running, just as he did.
1. Have a positive attitude
Ashish Kasodekar in competition in the Himalayan mountains
© Shaival Dalal
Uphill running can be lonely, so it is important to enjoy the journey. “You spend a lot of time on your own,” says Ashish. “You have to understand yourself, understand your body. What are your strengths and weaknesses? You have to keep a positive approach, have to enjoy the activity. The moment you have a goal, you will find the energy for it. Rather than being intimidated by the finish line, think about how good you will feel when you cross it. And enjoy the beautiful journey.” Uphill running can, literally, give you a high.
2. Train your leg muscles
Uphill running is very taxing because it involves upward and forward motion together. You need a strong lower body in this fight against gravity. “When you are climbing, glutes and hamstrings play an important role,” says Ashish. “When you are coming down, your quads take a lot of load. Calves come into play on the ascent and the descent.” To train the leg muscles, stair climbs are Kasodekar’s go-to workout. “Twice a week I do step workouts,” he says. “I do half leg squat, one leg squat, lunges.”
3. Shorten your running strides
As the incline increases, your stride length should decrease. According to studies, running uphill uses the same muscles as sprinting. It helps that Kasodekar has a background in basketball, which is based around explosive, powerful movements. “I do a lot of sprint training and shuttle runs,” he says. Shorter, quicker steps will get you into the right rhythm for uphill running.
4. Make sure you warm-up and cool down
Ashish during a warm-up session
© Shaival Dalal
“Warm-up and cool down is very, very important,” stresses Kasodekar. “Usually if we have a run scheduled, we compromise on the warm up or cool down, and focus on the run itself. I’d do the opposite. If you want to do an activity for a longer period, you have to be very disciplined with warm-up and cool down. My warm-up lasts about 10-15 minutes. Every person has a different routine, but [what is important is that your warm-up] activate each and every muscle. A good warm-up should make you feel energized. You should stretch in cool down, otherwise the muscles go stiff. It won’t happen overnight, but [ignoring a cool down] is a bad habit you pick up and your muscles will lose that elasticity. 90% of the injuries happen because of muscle stiffness.”
5. Strengthen your core
A strong core is your powerhouse. Doing planks may be your best bet to strengthen the core. Kasodekar prefers bodyweight and functional exercises over weight training. “Squat jumps and box jumps are good examples,” he says. “On the stairs, one of the workouts I do is to come down like a lizard (on all fours), which may be a bit weird for others.” Ashish suggestions walking planks and bear crawls as less advanced workouts that can help you build a stronger core.
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6. Focus on hydration and nutrition
“Hydration and nutrition plays a very important role,” says Kasodekar. “Before a run, I always have dates, bananas or dried fruits, for immediate energy. When you are running solo you can’t carry a lot of things, so look for small, energy-packed snacks. I also carry energy tablets or chewies. Also Red Bull helps me to keep going in the final section of long runs. Keeping yourself hydrated one day prior helps. When I do long runs, I have water with a little bit of salt once I am done. One rule I live by: drink before you feel thirsty. Uphill running is exhausting. Don’t wait till your throat gets dry; keep sipping small amounts of water throughout.”
About Ashish Kasodekar
Ashish Kasodekar
© Shaival Dalal
Ashish Kasodekar is a 48-year-old endurance athlete from Pune.
Having always been inclined towards sports – he played basketball extensively and represented his university and state teams in national tournaments – he had to sideline his sporting passions with time.
But he returned to a life in sport in 2009 when he participated in Enduro, an annual adventure event in Pune.
“That’s where I got the hang of endurance events, of how to push yourself,” he recalls.
From then on, Ashish started to push himself further into distance running.
“I did my first run in 2013 where I ran 15k, and then with each run I kept increasing the distance. I have been going to Ladakh for the last seven years now. Been running there; did my first marathon in Leh. Started with 42k, then did 72, then 111, then 333 and then 555 in 2019.”
In 2019, Ashish became the first Indian to cross the finish line at the 555k-long ‘La Ultra’ in Ladakh. He loves competing in ultra runs because most of them take place in the mountains.
“Mountains are very close to my heart,” says Ashish.
Ashish at his 555km La Ultra attempt
© Shaival Dalal
