You’ll love to hate these spicy (but doable) running workouts, from hill sprints to track repeats.
I once took a yoga class where the instructor encouraged me to try wheel pose, a backbend that requires you to contort into a U shape. My body was not making that shape that day, but her words stuck with me. “Wheel is an incredible energy booster,” she said. “Once you get this, you’ll never need an afternoon coffee again.”
While some might question how a yoga pose or movement could give you more energy, I understood completely. In my running life, I have fun running workouts that feel like a turbocharge for both body and mind. I’m now limber enough to get into something resembling wheel pose, and I’ll twist into it when I need a 2 P.M. energy lift. But when I’m stuck in a weeks-long funk, I rely on an arsenal of fun running workouts.
It’s normal to get into a rut, whether that’s in running or life. The three workouts I’ve shared below are the routines I turn to when this happens to me. I also use them when I’m coming off of time off and need a gentle re-entry to the sport but want something a bit more spicy than the normal run-walk program. These fun running workouts are also perfect for beginners looking for a change-up in their routines.
Whenever I do one of these runs, I feel completely renewed. So if you’re feeling rundown, I encourage you to give one of them a try.
Hill Sprints
Duration: 30 minutes
Difficulty level: Moderate
Hill sprints are like the ultimate catharsis. The huffing and puffing, blood pumping, heart-racing misery of the climb is equal parts grueling and exhilarating. Then you get to the top, turn around, and float back down only to turn around and push yourself to the top again. If there’s one workout that has the capacity to make you feel like a total badass, this is it.
Aside from being one of the most fun running workouts ever, hill sprints help you build leg strength and cardiovascular power. Plus, I think they’re super fun. And when I coached rec league cross-country I found that a bunch of elementary-aged children agreed. Any time I said, “Hills!” they raced up like maniacs, shrieking for some unknown reason, then rolled back down. If you want to roll, be my guest, but maybe choose a grass hill.
How To:
- Find a hill. You’ll hear coaches say that a moderate hill grade is four to eight percent. If you’re like me and that makes no sense, find a short hill, no more than 100 meters, that looks steep enough to burn your glutes and quads but not so steep that you’ll have to crawl up. Judgment is key here.
- Run at an easy pace for 5-10 minutes.
- Complete two rounds of a dynamic warmup with the following moves for 30 seconds: high knees, shoulder circles, butt kicks, leg swings, lunges, and inchworms.
- Go to your chosen hill.
- Sprint uphill for 10–20 seconds at 80–90 percent effort. Focus on powerful, short strides, driving your knees, and pumping your arms. Ideally, you’ll be at the top when the time is up.
- Walk or jog slowly back down the hill for recovery (take 1–2 minutes to recover fully so that your breath returns to normal).
- Repeat 6-8 times.
Red Light, Yellow Light, Green Light 800s
Total distance: 4 miles
Difficulty level: Tough
Half-mile repeats? Bring it on. Of course, in this workout, you’re never really running 800 meters all out, just increasing and decreasing speeds to get your heart moving in and out of the aerobic and anaerobic territory. You’ll run a slow “red light” 800 that should feel easy breezy (you can easily hold a conversation.) then a moderate-paced “yellow light” 800 that should be a bit quicker than your regular easy pace and leave you slightly out of breath, then a quick “green light” pace that should get your heart pumping and your breath ragged by the end. (If you find your hard training pace tough to gauge, try matching your breath to your steps in a 2-1 pattern, meaning breath in for two steps, out for one.)
You could do a Fartlek session (e.g. run fast to this mailbox then slow down until you reach the tree then speed up again at the fire hydrant) and get the same effect as this workout, but the recovering middle-distance runner in me feels like a more structured plan is more rewarding.
How to:
Ideally, this workout is done on a track. But you can also do it on a flat road in a pinch. You should complete this continuously, meaning don’t stop running—including after the warmup and before the cool-down 800s.
- Complete an 800 walking or jogging warmup.
- Run your first 800 at “red light” or slow pace.
- The second 800 should be at a moderate or “yellow light” pace.
- The third 800 green light should be a fast or “green light” pace.
- Repeat the sequence.
- Finish with an 800 of walking or jogging.
Easy Does It 400s With Strides
Total distance: 3 miles
Difficulty level: Chill
Sometimes I feel so out of shape that I’m convinced I need a special workout just to get back into working out. Maybe you’ve felt like that before—your legs feel like cinder blocks, your arms like spaghetti noodles. When this happens, I break out this super chill but really fun run as a prerequisite to training. It’s a run-walk with manageable running segments and a few short strides to wake up your legs and remind your body how to run.
If you’re unfamiliar with these short bursts of speed, strides are controlled sprints where you focus on and exaggerate good running form. To do them, you gradually accelerate to about 85–90 percent of your maximum effort by the midpoint of the allotted time. During this portion of the workout, I like to cue myself to keep my shoulders back, eyes ahead, core engaged, arms relaxed, and legs smooth. Pick a word or phrase that makes you feel like a well-oiled running machine. For me, that word is flow.
How to:
- Head to a flat road or track.
- Complete a 10-minute walking warmup.
- Start running at an easy pace. I’m talking slow and steady, a pace where you can hold a conversation. Here’s where the name of this special workout comes into play; I typically whisper “Easy does it” on repeat as I move along. Run like this for 400 meters (a quarter mile).
- After the 400, do a 10-second stride.
- After the 10 seconds are up, decelerate into a brisk walk and finish the remainder of your next quarter mile.
- Then break out into your next easy 400 and repeat the sequence until you hit 2 miles.
