How To Run Downhill | Downhill Running Technique Explained

In triathlon training and racing, you’ll almost certainly be faced with an incline or decline at some point on the run. Running downhill at speed is a skill and if you can carry confidence into your racing, it’s a great way to make up some time or even put in an attack on your competitors.

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Including hill reps into your running programme is common. The focus is usually on the uphill efforts, but it’s also worth spending a bit of time concentrating on improving your downhill running. Be mindful of this skill, and practise running at different speeds on different descents within a variety of sessions to master it.

The key things to think about, and then practise, when running downhill include:
- Your posture
- Your foot placement
- Your cadence and contact time with the ground
- Using your arms for balance
- Where to look ahead

When developing your skills running downhill, it is important to start slowly and build up as you become more confident in your ability.

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[hydraulichydra]

When you're going fast enough each step feels like a 5 foot drop.

[MattDion]

I despise running downhill. I would describe my downhill running experiences as beginning with existential dread, progressing as a barely controlled fall, and concluding with painful sobs and contemplations of ordering a tunnel boring machine to prep the course for next time.

[MattDion]

Can you do a video on hill swimming? That’s the part I struggle with the most. All the local pools around me are pretty flat.

[koawhitehill]

i’m here trying to figure out how moana ran down a hill while supporting belting vocals

[RandyArellano]

Cadence and foot placement vid will be a helpful vid for me, so I'm interested in the tips you guys will provide. Downhill running on smoother terrain is not a problem, but I've had my most serious ankle injuries on trail runs (and I would prefer to run on trails).

[IanLoughead]

I focus a lot on downhill running and I think it is one of the best thing one can do (unless you race only on a flat track).

[Loppy]

If you have good form, running downhill is a blast! If you have poor form, you will find yourself braking each step.

[mikeLgriebel]

Run with heel strikes, thank you for that tip, and the one about freer arm swings.

[jonathanzappala]

If your great a downhill running, it’s very effective in an XC race. Lag behind on the uphill and catch back on downhill. But only when the downhill isn’t too far away.

[marka.denham]

Well made vid.great advice.been doing this 15 years and totally agree.big thanks.

[Malaki]

I'm so horrible running down hill.
I'm a beast running uphill.
So I'm here. Down hill soo fucking hard for some reason

[jeroenvanderzee]

I would like to train my downhill, but yeah I live in the Netherlands so that's not going to happen.
On the positive side there are almost no hills in the races over here.

[joeyc]

I like downhills and have made loads of time and places before. Only thing i found was jarring knees on them at speed causes issues. Had to run a 50 miler with a dodgy knee after overloading it on a bump on a previous race. The week afterward my pt worked out how to sort it with heavy single leg squats. Clicked straight back in.

[glennmosher]

I think you need to talk about footstrike when running downhill. Should you land on your heel, midsole, or foot?

[lukewilliams]

Very helpful video, thank you for sharing

[btugrul]

Pretty cool and instructive (unlike awful amount of useless videos around), thanks a lot, thumbs up!

[TheMinderEngineer]

Keep hustling, big things incoming! 🚀

what does "engage your core" mean when running? 2:45

[andreisevela]

Thank you for video. Where it was recorded?

[dwaynemelton]

I feel natural going downhill I love it, here in eastern ct we have quite a bit of short punchy steep gradients so depending on the road ya could see 20 % gradients going down or up