2nd February 2017.For cyclists everywhere, the sight of a hill on the horizon often inspires feelings of dread and pre-emptive exhaustion. Maybe you feel a little weakness in your legs just thinking about pumping the pedals harder and harder to get up and over that incline! If you've been going out of your way to avoid hills because of the extra effort they require, it's time to stop. Not only are hills one of the best challenges around for bike riders, but that challenge can help you further hone your physical fitness, too. Whether you want to tackle a hilly race challenge or you just want to stop tailoring your route around avoiding hills, you can improve your ability with practice. If you have a hard time going up and coming back down again on your bike, though, you might not know where to begin. Fortunately, there are many useful strategies to use for training on hills. Once you get the hang of it, you may even start to enjoy the difficulty. When cycling on flat ground again, hill training can even improve your overall speed, endurance, and power when pedalling. So where should you begin when you're trying to tackle the problem of summiting hills successfully?
Know the right way to position yourself on the bike
If you've ever tried cycling up a hill before, you know that it can be a big challenge to maintain the same posture throughout the uphill portion. It's not uncommon for even more advanced riders to struggle with maintaining good riding form as you pedal towards the top of the hill. So, what does the right form look like for both comfort and efficiency? For the most part, try to remain on your seat. Unless the hill has a very steep grade, you probably don't need to stand up to generate more powerful pedal strokes; you'll just be wasting energy and tiring yourself out faster. Instead, lean forward in the seat but keep your back straightened. This posture will allow you to continue to breathe deeply and efficiently ? something you'll need with the cardio demands that hills place on the body. You'll also want to make your pedalling more deliberate, pulling each pedal back into position with your foot at the bottom of the stroke. This method maximises your efficiency and keeps you moving along. Once you get back over the hill, ensure you make yourself as aerodynamic as possible. We'll touch more on downhill form in a moment. Overall, though, you should try to maintain a steady cadence in your normal seated position.
Find the best climbing gear for each hill you ride
The gear settings you choose when heading up a hill will also make a big difference in terms of your riding experience. If you're not a very experienced cyclist, stick to lower gears. Lower gears will enable you to climb more easily without fighting against your bike. However, as you become stronger and more adept at 
cycling, you may find that slightly higher gears will offer more advantages. While it does take more energy to pedal uphill in a higher gear, it's good practice for maintaining your regular cycling cadence. It can take some adjustment to find exactly which gear ratio works best for you on each hill. The grade of the incline again makes a big difference, as steeper hills will send even advanced cyclists into low gears at times. Overall, don't forget that there should be an element of challenge involved. Take some time practising on gentle hills to get a sense for what gear ratios allow you to perform the most efficient work while also keeping your heart rate in your target zone. As for going downhill, gear selection matters far less ? you'll be letting gravity do most of the work. At that point, steering and balance are bigger concerns than your gears.
Break up the ascent into mental milestones
We've all been there ? you're halfway up a long hill, and your brain says "I can't do any more" long before your body says the same thing. Mental fatigue is a real challenge for cyclists everywhere, but hills highlight the way that stress can impact our performance. Once you lose the will to keep trying to the top, the whole effort becomes that much harder. Don't succumb to the temptation to dismount and walk your bike the rest of the way up, though. Instead, consider that you can make the entire process simpler by breaking it down into smaller milestones. At the bottom of the hill, look up and note spots along the route. Tell yourself that you only need to go as far as that milestone. Of course, once you reach that place, it's time to think about making it to the next one. By breaking up the hill into stages like this, you can focus on just completing the task at hand before moving forward again. As it happens seamlessly on your ride, you'll soon find yourself at the top of the hill before you even recognise your achievement. Pushing past this barrier in your mind is a major key to successful hill climbing.
Use gravity to your benefit on the way back down
So, you've made it to the top, and now you're looking at the way back down. What do you do? For some cyclists, the high speeds you can achieve on a downhill run are more nerve-wracking than the uphill portion. With the right adjustments, though, you can enjoy this part of your ride as a reward for your hard work. As we mentioned, increase the aerodynamic qualities of your body and the bike by staying low and forward; keep your elbows bent and at your sides as well. Keep your pedals steady, maintain your balance, and most important of all, don't let your body become tense. Tension and anxiety will distract you and increase the risk that you might not stay upright. Instead, keep your body relaxed and the brakes in easy reach. You may need to stand up slightly from your seat, but not too much. Most downhill segments you encounter won't be very long or require serious cornering. However, should you need to use the brakes, shift your body backwards in the seat. This posture will help you maintain control. Never over-apply the brakes or brake hard while going downhill ? that could send you flying over your handlebars!
Train on and off the bike for best results
Finding some challenging local hills and practising on them over and over is your best bet for improvement, but it's not the only way. Are you finding that you just don't have the power or stamina in your legs to get up to the top? Some additional training time out of the saddle might be the best choice in that case. What you can do is head to the gym and spend some time developing a strength training regimen. Beginning with leg presses and squats is a smart idea ? that will let you develop important muscle mass in your legs. Improving endurance is necessary as well. Interval training, long distance runs or bike rides, and even time on the treadmill or spin machine can all help you develop that. Skip incline training when spinning, though. When it comes to hills, there's no substitute for the training on the real thing. When you need to dig deep into your energy reserves during a tough race segment up a hill, this is where that training becomes most useful. Combining these gym-based exercises with training your bike is the best way to clear the summit and start zooming back down to your next challenge.
Will you master the hills in your area?
Learning how to handle hills on your bicycle is a lot like learning how to do it on foot; it's all about practice and proper form! Once you learn how to overcome the mental difficulties associated with the extra effort, you'll soon find that you're enjoying the wind in your face as you speedily coast downhill. You can even put your new skills to good use in a race setting. While it takes time, effort, and training, both on and off the bike, the ability to see a hill and know you can make it over is one worth treasuring. There's no need to keep avoiding hills like you may have in the past ? you can come to conquer them! Follow @SportNessUK
