By Aaron Thigpen

Downhill sprinting is basically a form of assistance or “overspeed training”. Basically forcing an athlete to move the legs faster than they could normally generate. I don’t have novice athletes run downhill. It pretty much should be reserved for elite caliber athletes who have a full mastery of their sprint mechanics.

Here are my reasons:

As the athletes gain greater than normal speed as they run down a hill you will see the following improper running mechanics:

· Landing on their heels
· Jamming the toes into the ground (braking)
· Leaning or pulling the shoulders backwards
· Getting arms & legs out of sync
· Short choppy strides or flicking the feet behind them
· Falling forward out of control.

These are all natural responses once athletes start to achieve above normal speeds. Repeated runs like this do nothing but ingrain improper movements as well as increase the risk of injury to the knees, back, and hamstrings.

If you MUST do downhill runs be very particular, use very shallow and gradual slopes around a 3-4% grade. Stay on dirt or grass surfaces, not concrete or asphalt. Do short sections first, until they can maintain PROPER mechanics, then gradually lengthen the run?s. Downhill running (overspeed training) is more nuerological. You?re attempting to retrain the firing of the muscles so a couple to a few sharp reps with full recovery are all that’s needed. Once fatigued your wasting time and risking injury. One to two sessions a week is enough. and I recommend reps should be in the 2-3 range for youngsters and 4-6 for advanced, but also factor in the distance.

Some alternative methods to downhill runs I suggest are:

1. Stick Drill: Allows you to dictate, rhythm, cadence and stride length.

2. Rubber Tubing: An o.k. option just remember good running technique.

3. Diagonals: Most football or soccer fields have a crown for drainage, run from midfield (50yd line) to the corners and you will get a downhill effect.
This can also be done on synthetic tracks that have slightly banked curves.

About the Author:

Aaron Thigpen is the founder of Gamespeed.net and a member of The CompuSports Media Exchange editorial team.

Aaron has developed a reputation as an exceptional athlete, speaker and technician in the field of speed development and athletic performance. He runs a number of clinics, camps, and writes articles on the performance enhancement field. Aaron was a member of Eleven United States National Track & Field Teams, an NCAA All American and a four-time Olympic Trials Qualifier.