CoachingAnswer

HOW DO I TRAIN FOR A HILL CLIMB?

By Anthony WalshRoadman CyclingUpdated 26 May 2026

ANSWER

Train for a hill climb by matching your intervals to the event duration: for climbs under 5 minutes, build VO2 max power with 3–5 minute efforts at 105–120% of FTP; for longer climbs, train threshold with 2×20 minutes at 95–105%. A hill climb is a maximal, fully committed effort — you finish on the rivet, not within yourself. Pacing is the difference between a personal best and blowing up halfway.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Match the interval to the climb: VO2 max work (3–5 min, 105–120% FTP) for short climbs, threshold for long.
A hill climb is raced flat-out — pace to finish exactly empty at the top, not before.
Power-to-weight (W/kg) is the number that matters, but never under-fuel training to chase weight.
Practise the exact climb effort in training so race day isn't the first time you've gone that deep.

WHO THIS IS FOR

IS THIS YOU?

The club rider entering a hill climb event

You've signed up for a hill climb championship or club event and need to train the specific effort.

The gran fondo rider who wants to climb faster on the day

You want to improve your power on sustained ascents and understand how to pace a maximal climb.

THE ROADMAN VIEW

A hill climb is the purest test in the sport — no tactics, no drafting, no hiding. Just you, the gradient, and a number on the clock. And here's what makes it different from every other event you've trained for: you are supposed to blow up. You're supposed to cross the line unable to see straight. The skill isn't holding back, it's pacing the effort so you arrive at the top with exactly nothing left — not a watt early, not a watt spare.

Jack Burke, one of the fastest hill climbers around, talks about the brutal specificity of it. The duration dictates everything. A 90-second climb is a VO2 max and anaerobic effort that bears no resemblance to a 20-minute mountain time trial. Train the wrong system and you'll pace it wrong on the day. Andrew Feather — a four-time British national hill climb champion who's a 40-year-old amateur — proved you don't need a pro contract to win national titles at this; you need the right specific work and the willingness to hurt.

The weight conversation is unavoidable in hill climbing because it's a power-to-weight event, and the lighter rider at the same power goes faster. But Anthony has hammered this point on the podcast: chasing race weight by under-fuelling your training is how you arrive light and weak instead of light and strong. Build the watts on proper fuel first. The weight, managed sensibly, comes second.

EXPERT EVIDENCE

WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY

Jack BurkeFormer British national hill climb champion
Hill climb training has to be matched to the duration of the climb. A short climb is a maximal anaerobic and VO2 max effort; a long one is a sustained threshold effort. Training the wrong energy system leaves a rider unable to produce the right power on the day, no matter how fit they are overall.
Hear it: Secrets Of The Worlds Fastest Hill Climber - Jack Burke
Andrew FeatherFour-time British National Hill Climb Champion; amateur cyclist
Excelling at hill climbs as an amateur comes from specific, repeatable training on the right energy system combined with a willingness to commit to a fully maximal effort. The result is about producing the highest sustainable power for the exact duration of the climb, not general fitness.
Hear it: How an Amateur Beat Pogačar | Roadman Cycling Podcast

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

DO THIS WEEK

Match your intervals to the climb's duration
Under 2 minutes: anaerobic and neuromuscular work — 60–90 second efforts well above 120% FTP. 2–5 minutes: VO2 max — 3–5×4 minutes at 105–120% FTP. 8–20 minutes: threshold — 2×20 minutes at 95–105% FTP. Train the system the event actually demands.
Rehearse the full climb effort on the real gradient
In the final 4 weeks, do 2–3 timed full-effort runs on the actual climb or one with the same gradient and duration. Race day should not be the first time you've buried yourself for that exact effort. Learn where you can push and where you'll blow.
Manage weight through fuelling, not starvation
Improve power-to-weight by building watts on properly fuelled training first. If you carry excess weight, lose it gradually in the base phase by eating for the work required — never by under-fuelling hard sessions, which costs you the power that wins hill climbs.

COMMON MISTAKES

WHAT CYCLISTS GET WRONG

MISTAKETraining general fitness instead of the specific climb duration.
FIXA 90-second climb and a 15-minute climb need completely different intervals. Identify the exact duration and train that energy system specifically.
MISTAKEPacing a hill climb conservatively like a road climb.
FIXA hill climb is a maximal effort. Pace it to finish completely empty at the line — go too easy and you've left time on the road you can never get back.
MISTAKECrash-dieting in the weeks before to drop weight.
FIXUnder-fuelling cuts your power as much as your weight. Build watts on proper fuel and manage weight gradually and early — light and weak loses to strong and slightly heavier.

FAQ

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I pace a short hill climb?

For a climb under 3 minutes, start hard but not absolutely flat-out — slightly above your target average for the first 20 seconds, settle into the highest power you can sustain, then empty everything in the final third. The goal is to cross the line with nothing left.

What intervals should I do for a 10-minute climb?

Threshold and over-threshold work: 2×20 minutes at 95–100% FTP for sustainable power, plus 4–5×4 minutes at 110–115% FTP to lift the ceiling you can hold. Build both the engine and the top end the climb will demand.

Does losing weight make me faster on climbs?

Yes — power-to-weight (W/kg) determines climbing speed, so a lighter rider at the same power climbs faster. But only if the power is preserved. Lose weight gradually and early through eating for the work required, never by under-fuelling the sessions that build your watts.

Should I use a lighter bike for a hill climb?

A lighter bike helps marginally, and dedicated hill climbers strip weight aggressively. But the rider is the bigger lever. Sort your training, pacing and your own power-to-weight first — a featherweight bike under an under-prepared rider is wasted.

How should I warm up for a hill climb?

Thoroughly. A hill climb is a maximal effort from the gun, so you need to be fully primed: 15–20 minutes of easy spinning building to 3–4 sharp openers at 110–130% FTP, finishing 5–10 minutes before your start so you're primed but not cooled down.

How often should I do climbing-specific sessions?

One to two specific sessions per week in the 6–8 weeks before the event, with full recovery between them. These are very hard sessions, so they need surrounding easy riding to absorb the work. Quality over quantity — you can't go maximal every day.

RELATED EPISODES

HEAR THE CONVERSATIONS

Secrets Of The Worlds Fastest Hill Climber - Jack Burke

How an Amateur Beat Pogačar | Roadman Cycling Podcast

5 Fixable Climbing Mistakes | Roadman Cycling Podcast