Short Uphill Stride Helped Me Run My Fastest Marathon…at Age 35

The 1980 Houston-Tenneco course had several significant rolling sections, and this worried me. I had strained my hamstring eight weeks before the race and had to lay off from fast running. As the time closed in on the marathon date, I discovered that the only speed sessions I could do were full mile repeats with a shortened stride. While the injury was not fully healed, I picked up the turnover and jokingly told myself that I was the fastest “short strider” in the U.S.!

The hills resistance gave me the quality of speed play needed to run a high-performance marathon. The stride reduction released the tension on the hamstring and allowed it to continue healing. Not only did I recover while doing quality work, I passed two dozen competitors while going up hills in the race itself. They  were huffing and puffing, and I was zooming by at my normal respiration rate. I ran strong to the finish in a lifetime best of 2:16

Learn more about hill play in Jeff’s book  Jeff Galloway Training Programs. You will find the book at: available in the shop

Jeff Galloway smiling near a lake with city skyline in the distance.
Jeff Galloway

Jeff Galloway, US Olympian and creator of the Run-Walk-Run method, has helped over 350,000 runners achieve their goals through his innovative training programs. As Runner's World's monthly columnist and author of North America's best-selling running book, Jeff has spent over 50 years sharing his expertise and continues to conduct running seminars worldwide as runDisney's Official Training Consultant.

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