Did you have many physical problems during your 60 days? How do you judge when to push through and when to take it easy?

Ooof, that's brutal!

Was the breakfast you posted on the day after the finish your standard breakfast every day?
No. During the challenge, I ate differently than usual because I needed to eat an insane amount of energy. So during the challenge, I ate a lot of ready-made food - cookies, cakes, pizzas, a lot of different cheeses, foods containing eggs, other dairy products (such as pancakes) and croissants.There are the most calories per amount of food and is easy for the body to digest. Other times (incl during hard training periods) I do not consume such food at all. I don't eat meat or fish either. Then I always prefer a science-based approach and I eat a whole-food plant based diet. If you want to know more, then read more from these Michael Greger books "How Not to Diet" and "How Not to Die".
I really like to cook myself. I rarely eat out because I like to know exactly what my food contains. I write down the food I eat (I've been doing this for seven years, except for such challenges because it would be too time consuming and I would need several people to do it). Estonia has created a great environment for this (https://tap.nutridata.ee/en/home).


Here are an example of my breakfast today: a large bowl of porridge (containing: soy milk, maple syrup, banana, whole grain oatmeal, cinnamon, water, sea salt) with frozen berries (blueberries, strawberries, cowberry) and seeds (peeled hemp seeds, chia seeds, poppy seeds, pine nuts). A cup of coffee with vegetable cream.


Do you reach a point where you get really strong specific cravings....like bacon cheeseburgers, pizza, lasagne, licorice or pickles on the bike/run or did you stay with gels, iso and bars the whole event?
I don't remember experiencing really strong specific cravings. Maybe it's because my food selection was incredibly wide. The Playitas Resort is known, among other things, for its excellent buffet-style food menu - that was certainly one of the reasons why I organized the challenge there. Didn't have to worry about catering for me and my support team.
I only used gels and liquid food (cola and iced tea) when running - it was necessary because other food would have started to interfere with the run. On the bike, I ate normal (including a lot of solid) food. I only took some gels twice between the food points.
I ate most of my energy back after finishing, in the evening, at night and before the start.


Do you have to have great concentration to do an event like this (to stay focused even if fatigued) or can you get away with relaxed dissociative strategies?
Concentration is very important. When doing sports in open traffic, distractions can end sadly - a good example is my 14th day car accident. At the return point, I just didn't notice the oncoming car and just turned my bike in front of the car. The accident happened due to fatigue and inattention. Fortunately, it's trainable - that's why I never listen to music or other entertainment in outdoor sports (including running), I always prefer to train and do sport alone. Being focused is necessary for me to listen to my body. That's why I ran all the marathons in solitude (I didn't even talk to my teammate who sent me on the bike). The good thing is that learning to listen to the body is also trainable and learnable.

What percentage mental versus physical would you guesstimate?
Both are important. When the physique begins to break down, an insane amount of willpower is needed to continue. Therefore, the smooth functioning of the muscles makes life much easier. However, in order for the spirit to withstand 60 days, you must really love it. I don't do it for breaking records or for others to like. The desire to do it must come from within - ultrasport is my passion and my interest is to experience and learn how my body and brain work, what I am capable of, and perhaps most importantly, how fast I can do it. I always have to see progress for the better - I'm not interested in just finishing it.
The brain must know exactly (according to objectively measurable criteria) where the final finish line is. This is necessary in order to be able to persuade your brain not to give up during physically and / or mentally difficult moments. And there are many of those moments. In other words, and figuratively speaking, before each challenge, I make an agreement with myself in my head and decide where the finish line will be this time. It is necessary in difficult moments so that the brain could tell the body how much more it has to manage. It is important to know that in most cases our abilities are limited in our heads, not by the abilities of our muscles. Fatigue is a feeling created in our brains, not in our muscles. I experienced this many times - when I got a little sleep and my brain was tired, my strength seemed to be gone. But when I slept better the next night, I was immediately able to exercise so much harder. So, it is important to respect the agreement made with yourself, i.e. the principle is that the rules are not changed during the game. Since my goal was 60, that's why I didn't even consider trying to go beyond 60, even if my physical condition allowed. If you do not honor that agreement, the next goals may not be reached in the future because your brain can no longer count on you, if you understand what I mean :).


Could you have gone more days if easier climate and flatter course?
The difficulty of the track and the weather did not affect how far I could go. However, in easier circumstances, I would probably have been able to end the days much faster. I believe that I could bike easily 40 minutes faster. To illustrate the difficulty of the cycling conditions in Fuerteventura, my fastest 180 km bike net time (time without stops in the foodstation) was on the 28th day – it took 5:36:46 with an average power of 210 watts. In the summer, when I trained for the upcoming challenge in Estonia, it took 4:59:07 to do 180 km on an easy course, where the average power was 203 watts. So in Fuerteventura I probably spent 40-45 minutes more time on the bike because of the wind and mountainous landscape.
I believe that in easier circumstances, it would be possible to go under 10 hours every day. That's why I plan to test it in August 2023. Namely I have signed up for the 5-time ultra-triathlon race in Switzerland, where my goal is to finish in less than ten hours every day for five consecutive days and get the total time under 50 hours. But so far, that's just my guess. Time will tell if I am right or not :).

Hello Rait,

Huge congratulations on completing your 60 full distance triathlons in 60 days. It was wonderful and inspiring to follow you. From the outside it appeared that you and your team had mastered the "eat-sleep-tri-repeat" routine. Any influences on your performance that could be controlled were taken care of.

so my questions for you dear Rait :-)

Did you learn anything new this time around? If you ever do a similar challenge what would you change in your routine?

What was your best moment during this event?

How long do you think you'll need to recover physically/mentally from this challenge?

Take care and thanks so much for coming on here to answer our questions.

Anna

Thanks, Rait, for coming on ST and answering some questions and providing us with some insight into what it takes to achieve such impressive performances.


Are you able to provide some more detail of training? How would your 14-week training cycle be structured?

You mentioned you ran 2782 km (an average of nearly 200 km/week). What were your largest running weeks at the peak of the training cycle? How much swimming and cycling were you doing?

Going back a few years, you've run (and won) your local Haanja Jala 100km ultra several times and also run the Transgrancanaria 125 km a few times. How important has your ultra running background been to your success with ultra tri? With more races and travel opportunities now returning, do you see the occasional ultra as still useful for your ultra-tri preparations, or is your current tri training much more focused and specific?

And thanks for giving us 60 days of motivation and entertainment. It was a joy to check in each day to see how you were faring. :-)

Unbelievable achievement, and interesting approach, to have to mentally pre-set a finishline. How would you cope with backyard ultra, where the finishline is uncertain?

And a 64km run on a treadmill without music or TV, just a window, that would train the mind as well as the legs!

Hi , I would be interested in what you do outside sport and then how did you get started in endurance sport and how did you end up with 60 60 .

Aloso what would you consider the higher athletic achievement in terms of performance and not duration of cours 20 /20 marathons it the 60 /60 .

And then the last one since it was pointed out a few times , what about your swimming, is that your Achilles heel or you just dont worry much about it.
Cheers

From all the pictures I've seen, you seem to stay in the aero position most of the time. Did you ever get any back spasms from being bent over like that 5-6 hr/day for the whole 60 days???
Basically, I biked in TT position all the time, except at higher mountain climbs. In previous challenges, I have also had problems staying in the TT position for a very long time, but then I changed two things. This time I paid lots of attention to my core muscles - especially my buttocks, because if these muscles are strong, they will protect the back while running or riding a bike. Second, I exchanged the Trek bike for a Scott Plasma. For me, Scott sits perfectly and it has a handlebar that can be adjusted to suit anyone. I already realized during the preparation that this bike is ideal for me and for the conditions in Fuerteventura - namely, at the end of August I participated in a double ultra-triathlon (7.6 km swim + 360 km bike + 84.4 km run) in Austria, and there I biked 360 km and basically all this time in TT position. If in the past I still found it a bit difficult to be in a position at the end of the 10 hours bike ride, then this time there was no problem and I could have kept pedaling :). Finishing the bike ride in good condition allowed me to start running in good condition right away and secured first place in this race.


Also, are you sleeping like 12-14 hrs/night now to try to make up for all those 6-7 hr nights???
During the 40-time ultra-triathlon in 2019, I was able to sleep well and I assumed that I would not have any sleep problems during this challenge. However, everything changed with the accident, because the wounds healed very slowly (for almost a month) and at night they affected my sleep a lot. Perhaps the most difficult time to sleep was the first week after the challenge, when I traveled home to Fuerteventura. Then I could only sleep for a few hours a day and in my sleep I could see myself riding a bike or running all the time - for me, it was a sign that the brain had not yet fully understood that this challenge was over. I haven't had any trouble falling asleep in my bed at home.
At the moment I sleep 9-9.5 hours a night and if possible I also do about an hour long nap during the day. I believe it will take about a couple of weeks when I don't need that much sleep anymore.The lowest heart rate at night is also higher than usual. At the moment, the heart rate drops to 48 at night, but before the challenge it was always below 40 and often between 32 and 35 beats per minute. I believe that ultrasport itself is not harmful to the body (our bodies is designed to move), on the contrary, it ensures vitality and mobility in old age. The only unhealthy aspect is the lack of sleep, because science says that a little sleep can't be completely remedied later with plenty of sleep (read more about sleep in Matther Walker's book "Why We Sleep").


Are you swimming, biking, and/or running any at all, or just giving your body a compete rest???
I would have liked to do some sports already the next day after the challenge, but it wasn't possible because I had to pack all my stuff into the car and travel back home. Since I had been away from home for more than three months, I wanted to return home as soon as possible. Physically the most difficult part of this challenge was traveling back home :), because then I had to sit most of the time. Now I'm moving again - for example I'm planning to run in the evening. Usually I don't take full days off (only when I'm sick). Even after competitions or challenges, I start doing sports the next day .Exercise is the best way to recover.

Rait your answers are so insightful and you keep recommending books - I read somwhere you have no television, so when you're not training, working, cooking, playing with your child or sleeping, you obviously find time to research and read a lot!!

I'm going to start a list here on the books you are recommending (I expect you'll mention a few more in your next answers!!) - mainly for myself, but maybe some others will find it useful too.

1. Michael Greger books - How Not to Diet
2. Michael Greger books- How Not to Die
3. Matther Walker's - Why We Sleep
4. Jason Koop's - Training essentials for ultrarunning


Very interesting to read that you are plant-based. How long have you followed this diet and have you noticed a difference in your performance?

Rait - Thanks SO MUCH for the detailed answers to my questions!!!!!

---

"Anyone can be who they want to be IF they have the HUNGER and the DRIVE."

Hi Rait,
thanks a lot for coming on here. Truly amazing.

I was wondering how you have approached this challenge from a sponsoring/financial point of view. No need to provide any numbers, but just in general. How much time do you spend in your daily life fundraising for such projects? How are you planning to move on from this? Will there be a video documentary of some sort? I would be the first person to watch ;-)

I really wish you get the credit (both emotionally and financially) you deserve for this!!!

Thanks!!
Uli

Completely mind blowing achievement, congratulations!

Some questions:
- How does one train for such things? Anything special in terms of volume, paces etc...
- Your run is even more unbelievable (if that is possible), were you always a good runner, does it come easy to you? How much do you train running?
- On your website you mention that time goals are important to you. Have you considered finding a faster course (maybe going for x times sub10 ?)
- Swim, have you ever considered paying some attention to that? There might be some relatively easy minutes to be gained ~10 or so? Or is it just too much work or not interesting in your opinion? (there was a discussion earlier, would be nice to hear your own opinion)

Congrats again and good luck in future.[/quote]
1. How does one train for such things? Anything special in terms of volume, paces etc...
In order to give a complete and useful overview of my workouts to the others, I should write a book :) - unfortunately I don't have time to write the book right now and I still have to learn to pass it on to others - I know my body well and know what works for me, but that doesn't mean that it suits everyone. Still, I will try to pass on some of the principles I follow in my workouts.
1) I never repeat the workouts of previous years. It is not possible to reach a new level by repeating old things. I only follow the principles - for instance a 1:4 run workouts ratio (see the answer to the second question.
2) I also like to follow the principle "split the distance" - I discovered this method for myself, and that is one of the main key elements to what I've achieved so far. What does it mean? To run 84.4 km in 6.6 hours, you must run long runs as well. Under long runs I mean 60 – 70 km a day. When you run 70 km in a row, it will most likely leave a mark on your muscles for several days. It is also likely that you will not be able to maintain the same speed throughout the run. That's why I divide that distance into three or four and run it with a little pause. One example of my training – 64.1 km a day I ran as follows: I started with a 16.4 km run, then after an hour's break I ran 15.4 km. Then again, a small break and 20.3 km run. Once again, a little break and finally I ran 12 km. When recovery gets better, the less time I give to the body to rest and the longer I run at one session. For example, four days later I ran the same distance in three runs (21.7 km + 25.9 km + 16.3 km).
3) Another principle is that I do different workouts one after the other (without a break), using a change of discipline as recovery. With this, I save time and train the transition from one discipline to another. By changing disciplines, I also teach my body to recover with movement. One example of my training day: I started my day with an 11 km run. Right after the run I had a 4.4 km swim. Then right after swimming I had another run (13 km). And finally, I cycled 1,5 hours.
4) Another principle - during one training cycle (usually 2-3 weeks, but sometimes much longer) I focus on developing only two areas - usually either running and swimming (especially in winter) or cycling and swimming. Developing all three areas at once would already be comparable to the competition or the challenge itself.
I read a lot about other people's experiences and training, then I test them myself and then adjust them to suit me. For instance, as for running, I've found a lot of benefits from Jason Koop's book "Training essentials for ultrarunning". I use the sufferfest.com platform for cycling training.
5) Last but not least - I follow the principle that life must be simple and priorities in place. I have been asked a lot about where I find time to play sports besides family and other activities. It's all a matter of priorities - I don't watch TV and spend as little time on social media as possible. Minimizing these activities alone gives us a lot of free time. Secondly, I enjoy a simple and debt-free life - I have no loans and leases and my monthly living expenses are very low. All so that I can do what I like, not go to work to pay for expensive loans and leases.

2. Your run is even more unbelievable (if that is possible), were you always a good runner, does it come easy to you? How much do you train running?

Yes, running is the easiest for me and that is why it is my favorite discipline. Running was not easy at first and I was not a fast runner at all, but with years and consistent work I have developed a lot. I have been running for 21 years. In the last three years, the mileage has been particularly high: in 2019 I ran 7060 km, 8008 km in 2020 and this year until now 6856 km. From 2000 to the present day, I have covered a total of 68,196 km. Perhaps one of the most important accomplishments in my life is that I have never been injured.
Running on high volumes is not my goal. It's just a by-product - I am interested in how much hard and developing training I can do. For example, when I develop my running skills in the winter, I do 2-3 interval workouts a week, and to recover from them, I have to do 3-4 lower heart rate workouts for each hard workout. Thus, 3 developing runs mean that a total of 9-12 runs have to be done per week.

3. On your website you mention that time goals are important to you. Have you considered finding a faster course (maybe going for x times sub10 ?)
Yes, if a 5-times day-by-day ultra-triathlon takes place in Switzerland next August (it has been canceled for the last two years due to the coronavirus), I will take part in this competition. My goal is to finish in less than ten hours every day for five consecutive days and get the total time under 50 hours.

4. Swim, have you ever considered paying some attention to that? There might be some relatively easy minutes to be gained ~10 or so? Or is it just too much work or not interesting in your opinion?

Of course. And I've put a lot of emphasis on swimming, given that it only makes up 10% of ultra-triathlon. Swimming is not easy for me. I didn't come into contact with water as a child. I learned to swim as an adult and started on my own at first - so I learned technically very wrong and now it is very difficult for me to retrain this wrong technique. However, before the coronavirus, I got much better with consistent work. For example in 2018, I swam 1.9 km in the Ironman Otepää team competition with a time of 31:24. During the double ultratriathlon in 2019, I swam 7.6 km with a time of 2:14:45. During my 20-times ultratriathlon in 2018, my average time for swimming was 3.8 km 1:12:00 and during 40-times ultra-triathlon in 2019, it was 1:15:39.
There has been a clear decline in swimming since the last two years. Largely because of the coronavirus and the closures of the pools affected my swimming shape a lot. But also because I consciously increased my running volumes and the number of core training sessions in preparation for this challenge. So there was less time for swimming.
Of course I want to be a faster swimmer :) and I'm ready to work for it, because I see a great opportunity to improve my time there.

Rait - I love your principle #5, "I live a simple and debt free life..."




1. How does one train for such things? Anything special in terms of volume, paces etc...
In order to give a complete and useful overview of my workouts to the others, I should write a book :) - unfortunately I don't have time to write the book right now and I still have to learn to pass it on to others - I know my body well and know what works for me, but that doesn't mean that it suits everyone. Still, I will try to pass on some of the principles I follow in my workouts.
1) I never repeat the workouts of previous years. It is not possible to reach a new level by repeating old things. I only follow the principles - for instance a 1:4 run workouts ratio (see the answer to the second question.
2) I also like to follow the principle "split the distance" - I discovered this method for myself, and that is one of the main key elements to what I've achieved so far. What does it mean? To run 84.4 km in 6.6 hours, you must run long runs as well. Under long runs I mean 60 – 70 km a day. When you run 70 km in a row, it will most likely leave a mark on your muscles for several days. It is also likely that you will not be able to maintain the same speed throughout the run. That's why I divide that distance into three or four and run it with a little pause. One example of my training – 64.1 km a day I ran as follows: I started with a 16.4 km run, then after an hour's break I ran 15.4 km. Then again, a small break and 20.3 km run. Once again, a little break and finally I ran 12 km. When recovery gets better, the less time I give to the body to rest and the longer I run at one session. For example, four days later I ran the same distance in three runs (21.7 km + 25.9 km + 16.3 km).
3) Another principle is that I do different workouts one after the other (without a break), using a change of discipline as recovery. With this, I save time and train the transition from one discipline to another. By changing disciplines, I also teach my body to recover with movement. One example of my training day: I started my day with an 11 km run. Right after the run I had a 4.4 km swim. Then right after swimming I had another run (13 km). And finally, I cycled 1,5 hours.
4) Another principle - during one training cycle (usually 2-3 weeks, but sometimes much longer) I focus on developing only two areas - usually either running and swimming (especially in winter) or cycling and swimming. Developing all three areas at once would already be comparable to the competition or the challenge itself.
I read a lot about other people's experiences and training, then I test them myself and then adjust them to suit me. For instance, as for running, I've found a lot of benefits from Jason Koop's book "Training essentials for ultrarunning". I use the sufferfest.com platform for cycling training.
5) Last but not least - I follow the principle that life must be simple and priorities in place. I have been asked a lot about where I find time to play sports besides family and other activities. It's all a matter of priorities - I don't watch TV and spend as little time on social media as possible. Minimizing these activities alone gives us a lot of free time. Secondly, I enjoy a simple and debt-free life - I have no loans and leases and my monthly living expenses are very low. All so that I can do what I like, not go to work to pay for expensive loans and leases.

2. Your run is even more unbelievable (if that is possible), were you always a good runner, does it come easy to you? How much do you train running?

Yes, running is the easiest for me and that is why it is my favorite discipline. Running was not easy at first and I was not a fast runner at all, but with years and consistent work I have developed a lot. I have been running for 21 years. In the last three years, the mileage has been particularly high: in 2019 I ran 7060 km, 8008 km in 2020 and this year until now 6856 km. From 2000 to the present day, I have covered a total of 68,196 km. Perhaps one of the most important accomplishments in my life is that I have never been injured.
Running on high volumes is not my goal. It's just a by-product - I am interested in how much hard and developing training I can do. For example, when I develop my running skills in the winter, I do 2-3 interval workouts a week, and to recover from them, I have to do 3-4 lower heart rate workouts for each hard workout. Thus, 3 developing runs mean that a total of 9-12 runs have to be done per week.

3. On your website you mention that time goals are important to you. Have you considered finding a faster course (maybe going for x times sub10 ?)
Yes, if a 5-times day-by-day ultra-triathlon takes place in Switzerland next August (it has been canceled for the last two years due to the coronavirus), I will take part in this competition. My goal is to finish in less than ten hours every day for five consecutive days and get the total time under 50 hours.

4. Swim, have you ever considered paying some attention to that? There might be some relatively easy minutes to be gained ~10 or so? Or is it just too much work or not interesting in your opinion?

Of course. And I've put a lot of emphasis on swimming, given that it only makes up 10% of ultra-triathlon. Swimming is not easy for me. I didn't come into contact with water as a child. I learned to swim as an adult and started on my own at first - so I learned technically very wrong and now it is very difficult for me to retrain this wrong technique. However, before the coronavirus, I got much better with consistent work. For example in 2018, I swam 1.9 km in the Ironman Otepää team competition with a time of 31:24. During the double ultratriathlon in 2019, I swam 7.6 km with a time of 2:14:45. During my 20-times ultratriathlon in 2018, my average time for swimming was 3.8 km 1:12:00 and during 40-times ultra-triathlon in 2019, it was 1:15:39.
There has been a clear decline in swimming since the last two years. Largely because of the coronavirus and the closures of the pools affected my swimming shape a lot. But also because I consciously increased my running volumes and the number of core training sessions in preparation for this challenge. So there was less time for swimming.
Of course I want to be a faster swimmer :) and I'm ready to work for it, because I see a great opportunity to improve my time there.[/quote]

---

"Anyone can be who they want to be IF they have the HUNGER and the DRIVE."

Did you have many physical problems during your 60 days?

Except for the car accident, I didn't have any physical problems with my muscles, joints or ligaments. The reason I did 60-time ultra-triathlon at all was that I had a lot of muscle problems with both 20-time in 2018 and 40-time ultra-triathlon in 2019, and the last four days of both challenges were very difficult physically. So I wanted to see if with the right preparation it is possible to avoid muscle problems - it turned out that you can :).

How do you judge when to push through and when to take it easy?

This is one of the most difficult issues to date, as the line between injury and overload can easily go unnoticed. Above all, however, everything comes down to past experience and the constant listening and observation of your body. The body signals us absolutely everything, but most of the time we don't notice it because we haven't learned to do it. Fortunately, it is learnable and trainable. Experience has taught me that if I have a concern (muscle or anything else), I have to change something right away and then wait up to two days. Why two days? - because often in one day we may not notice the change. And if you rush to try a new solution too soon, it could get worse. If the problem persists or does not go away during this time, something else needs to be changed. Hopefully you got an answer to your question.

Although I know my body quite well, mistakes still occur. I didn't get away with it this time either. The first days of the challenge the weather was 35 degrees hot and the sun scorched unbearably - although I was feeling hydrated, I didn't notice a severe dehydration. As a result, by the fourth day I had complete loss of muscle strength. This means that my muscles were healthy, but I didn't have the strength to pedal while cycling. For example, on the third day, my average power on the bike was 193, but on the fourth day, it just dropped to 178. Since I had experienced the same feeling during the 10-times ultra-triathlon competition in 2016, and because I involved scientists and a research project was done during the competition, I was later told that my urine tests showed that I was severely dehydrated. So I knew it would take a few days to get my fluid balance in order. That's why I finished the challenge in 4, 5 and 6 days over 11 hours.

Thank you for sharing all the back stories, really fascinating! That car accident sounds like a massive obstacle, I'm amazed you could do so many high performance back to back ironmans at all, let alone on a borrowed bike while healing road rash

Respect! Super achievement

Did you learn anything new this time around? If you ever do a similar challenge what would you change in your routine?
During such challenges, I always learn and discover something new about how my body and mind work. The first major discovery was that the muscle problems encountered during the 20-time and 40-time ultratriathlon were actually due to the inappropriate bike position, not the running itself. Namely, after the accident, when I was forced to ride a rental bike for six days, I started to experience similar muscle tensions while running as during the 2018 and 2019 challenges. During these previous challenges, I was not able to ride the bike for a full 180 km in a TT position because my muscles became stiff. Then I thought it was normal, but today I know it's possible if the bike and its position fit perfectly. One thing is for sure, if I had to use the rental bike to the end, I wouldn't have been able to end this challenge due to muscle problems.
Another pleasant discovery was that the end of the challenge did not have to be physically difficult. The last four days of the aforementioned two challenges were physically very difficult, and I thought it might be because as the finish line approaches, the brain signals to the muscles that you don't have to endure long and therefore the muscles start to get tired and refuse to work. I was wrong about that, because this time I didn't have a hard time in the end and the muscles endured perfectly until the finish line.
I have experienced many times how the brain and body behave in a stressful and dangerous situation. For example, during such a hard challenge, the body's first priority is to provide energy to the muscles, and all other "minor functions" slow down - for example, while I usually shaved every five days, my beard growth slowed several times during the challenge compared to normal. The same goes for hair and nails - their growth also slowed down markedly.
Another interesting observation was that I remember everything but the moment the car hit me. This moment of collision and falling (2-3 seconds) is as if erased from the head. It still amazes me how I got these wounds - logically, I had to fall on the sand, but the sand could not have caused me such wounds. I believe I do not remember, because it is the way the brain protects us during such accidents.

What was your best moment during this event?
The 59th day when my husband and little son surprised me with their arrival - I knew that they were in Estonia and that this was the first time they could not be with me on the day of finishing. However, thanks to the help of one of my supporters, they decided to surprise me - you can see the suprise video here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CW_K0C4ltw8/

How long do you think you'll need to recover physically/mentally from this challenge?

Physical recovery is fast. I'm already doing sports again, but with more complex and developing workouts I have to wait another 3-4 weeks. However, the mental side recovers much longer - that's why I skipped one year after the 40-time ultratriathlon and did the 60-time ultra-triahtlon two years later. I expect my mental recovery to take a long time as well, which is why I plan to keep my next year challenges below 10 days :).

Super cool video of your wife and son surprising you on Day 59!!! Also, your experience with the rented bike vs your carefully fitted bike is a very convincing argument for getting a perfect bike fit. Previously I had kind of thought of "bike fitting" as just another money-maker for bike shops. :)

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"Anyone can be who they want to be IF they have the HUNGER and the DRIVE."

Are you able to provide some more detail of training? How would your 14-week training cycle be structured? You mentioned you ran 2782 km (an average of nearly 200 km/week). What were your largest running weeks at the peak of the training cycle? How much swimming and cycling were you doing?
Writing about the whole training cycle and making sense for others would be one insanely long piece of writing :). I will try to summarize briefly and give some examples. The training cycle was so long because the goal was to train the mind as well. In order to train the mind, I have to cause proper fatigue in the body and it takes me a very long time :). In any case, I follow the principle that the longest training cycle must exceed the length of the challenge ahead.
During this training cycle, I focused on running and cycling. I biked indoors, a total of 50 hours. The bike workouts were short (i.e., usually approx 1 hour) and the emphasis was on developing strength and speed. In addition, I also did 41 core muscle workouts (exercises without weights) - one workout lasted about 15 minutes, because I train my core muscles without any breaks. The only break was the time it took to move from one exercise to another. If I remember correctly, swimming was restricted due to the limitations of the coronavirus. Otherwise, I would have used swimming workouts as a recovery.
At the beginning of the cycle, the focus was on adapting the body to heavy loads. The 14-week running weekly mileage were: 191, 211, 225, 241, 160, 200, 301, 204, 157, 159, 171, 195, 193 and 174 km. The further a week, the more intense running training became. An example of last (14th) week's key running trainings:
*On Tuesday I had interval run - 3 x 20 minutes at the following speeds 3:30 min:sec/km (i.e. 17.1 km/h), 3:29 min:sec/km (i.e. 17.2 km/h) and 3:26 min:sec/km (i.e. 17.4 km/h). Between the intervals I run easy for 4 minutes at a speed of 14.1 km/h.
*On Wednesday I had a long run (64 km) that lasted 4 hours 25 minutes and the speed was in the range. Average heart rate was 125.
*On Friday I had another interval training: 21 splits 3.5 minutes long. First 9 splits I ran with speed 17.1 km/h and the last 12 splits with 17.6 km/h. Between the intervals I run easy for 1 to 1.5 minutes at a speed of 14.3 km/h.
In this way, I teach my body to recover quickly and also train my mental strength.

Going back a few years, you've run (and won) your local Haanja Jala 100km ultra several times and also run the Transgrancanaria 125 km a few times. How important has your ultra running background been to your success with ultra tri? With more races and travel opportunities now returning, do you see the occasional ultra as still useful for your ultra-tri preparations, or is your current tri training much more focused and specific?

Ultra run is the most difficult part of ultra-triathlon. This is the easiest place to improve your time, and often a strong run will make you competitive in competitions. Off-road and hills running is an important part of my run workouts during the winter preparation period. I always do VO2 max workouts on the uphill section (mostly on the treadmill), as this is the only way I can reach near the maximum heart rate during the 3 minute splits. With the exception of coronavirus time, the ultra run in winter or early spring has usually been part of my preparation. 2-3 months before an important competition or challenge, I run a profile similar to what I expect in a competition. This usually means running on asphalt and a simple profile.

Thank you Rait for being so open and taking the time to answer all our questions. Ordered Jason Koop's book yesterday, I've been waiting quite a while for the second edition to be released and you reminded me of it recently 😊

How would you cope with backyard ultra, where the finish line is uncertain?

In my opinion, a preset finish line is required for weeks-long challenges. Backyard ultra lasts a maximum of 3-4 days (if I'm not mistaken, the world record is 85 hours). At the same time, in preparing for the backyard ultra, I would choose the same path - i.e. I would set a goal or in other words final finish line. Otherwise, from a purely physical point of view, it is difficult to prepare - preparing for a 24-hour (161 km), 48-hour (322 km) or 72-hour (483 km) race requires a different approach.
However, this would not mean that if the competition lasts longer than my goal, I would not try to go further. Just then there is reason to be twice as happy, firstly because you were able to achieve your goal and secondly because you were still able to overcome yourself. In this case, if you have achieved your goal but it is not enough to win the competition, you will feel like the winner and probably as happy and satisfied as the actual winner of the race. The above applies if the goal is set correctly. If the goal is either too simple or unrealistic, the feeling of satisfaction will be much more modest or even disappointing (if the goal remains unattainable).

I would be interested in what you do outside sport and then how did you get started in endurance sport and how did you end up with 60 60?
Outside of sports, I work as a part-time in-house lawyer, raising a 5-year-old son, spending time with my family, listening to audiobooks, and developing and planning new challenges :).

Long story short - until I was 15, I didn't do any sports at all, then I started lifting weights in the gym and started boxing. During boxing training, I started running to improve my staminakuna. After a while, running became my favorite activity and still is. After years of running, I participated in my first ultra run. Before my first ultra-triathlon I had done six ultra runs (see here: https://www.raitratasepp.ee/results/ultraruns).
I started practicing triathlons in 2010. This year I bought my first road bike. I finished my first Ironman triathlon in 2012. Until the autumn of 2013, I worked as a lawyer in a larger and prestigious law firm. Then I made one of the most important and difficult decisions of my life - I quit my day job. Indeed, I had a really prestigious occupation and the great working conditions, as well as a really good salary. Deliberately giving it all up seemed baffling to many. But I didn’t let the opinion of others influence my decision. By now it’s been more than 8 years, and looking back I regret nothing.
To make the decision (to quit my day job) more painless, I went to live in the Canary Islands (an island called Lanzarote) for seven months. At that time I had no obligation and used all my free time to do sports. Then I heard that an Estonian is preparing for a double ultra triathlon competition. This was the first time I learned that the Ironman triathlon is not the longest and hardest format of triathlon :). Although this Estonian did not manage to finish this competition, I became interested and decided to try it myself.
My first ultra triathlon was a double in Hungary in 2014. To my great surprise, it turned out well for the first time - I managed to win this race in 22:17:56. It is often the case that if something comes out well, you will like it very much and try to do it again and better. Then I would gradually move to longer distances - soon I tried 5-time ultra-triathlon in day-by-day format and then in continuous format, then 10-time ultra-triathlon in day-by-day format and then in continuous format, then came 20-times, then 40-times and so I reached the 60 (see more here: https://www.raitratasepp.ee/...lts/ultra-triathlons).
This step-by-step approach has been the right way to go because in the case of ultrasport, previous experience is most important. If I had given up 20 and 40 times, for example, and taken 60 times right away, it would have been a great suffering and the chances of finishing would have been much lower. Moreover, doing less than 11 hours would not have been possible. In addition, it would have been difficult for me to find supporters because no one would have believed that it was possible. However, having successfully finished 20 and 40 times, it was much easier to find supporters for 60. However, since such a challenge is still so costly, I have increased the challenges by 20.

Aloso what would you consider the higher athletic achievement in terms of performance and not duration of hours 20 /20 marathons or the 60/60?
I consider the 60 full distance triathlons in 60 consecutive days the higher athletic achievement for me because my goal was to get an average time of less than 11 hours. 20 marathons in 20 consecutive days all in less than 3 hours went much easier than I expected, so I didn't have any physical difficulties and it was relatively easy on the mental side, because the average time to run one marathon was only 2:52:32. It is such a short time that difficulties do not even arise mentally. Since the 20/20 challenge went well, I had the idea to make it much more difficult. That's why in the spring of this year I took on the challenge of 20 marathons in 10 days and all in less than 3 hours. It was much more complicated than 20/20. I consider this challenge the higher athletic achievement in terms of performance than 60/60. You can read more about the challenge and its outcome here: (https://www.raitratasepp.ee/...0-days-under-3-hours). I plan to return to this challenge in the future.

And then the last one since it was pointed out a few times , what about your swimming, is that your Achilles heel or you just dont worry much about it?
I already answered this question before - see post #413 (Dec 17).

Thanks for all the engagement and the lengthy and very detailed answers Rait. It is interesting to get a glimpse into the mind of someone one can both relate and not relate to. :-)

Looking forward to read about your future challenges, you seem to have a healthy, thought out approach to picking those best suiting your needs and wishes. Great inspiration!

Thanks again Rait for taking the time to write such detailed and interesting answers.

Have a lovely evening tomorrow with your family.

Häid jõule

Anna

awesome stuff thanks

Very interesting to read that you are plant-based. How long have you followed this diet and have you noticed a difference in your performance?
I lost meat and fish from my menu in 2013 and I do not regret this decision. My experience shows that without meat and fish I feel better, recovery is faster and plant food digests much faster during exercise. If in the past I also ate a lot of dairy products and eggs, then in the last few years I have lost my egg from the menu and I consume little dairy products outside of the challenges. At the same time, I have not given up dairy products at all, because I want to avoid a situation where the body becomes intolerant of dairy products. Since then (2014), I have not consumed alcohol at all. The reason is simple, it has not been scientifically proven that alcohol is necessary for the body and without it it would cause harm to the body. In addition, I consumed so much alcohol in my youth that my appetite was met :).

I was wondering how you have approached this challenge from a sponsoring/financial point of view. No need to provide any numbers, but just in general. How much time do you spend in your daily life fundraising for such projects?
It is difficult to say exactly how many hours I have spent finding supporters on a daily basis, because I do not keep track of it, but finding supporters is an ongoing process. It is much easier to find equipment-based supporters than those who are willing to provide financial support. Finding (monetary) supporters is not easy at all. I have spent a lot of time on this – time I could have spent focused on training. In finding supporters, I have benefited from the fact that I am the only one in Estonia who practices ultra-triathlon and that I´ll do it fast. Triathlon and marathon running are very popular in Estonia and that is why people can relate to my challenges. In addition, the fact that the mileage in ultra-triathlon is so abnormal that it attracts attention a lot of people (including those who do not play sports at all). I have two types of supporters. Those who are interested in sports and triathlon and just want to support to see what is possible and how far is possible. The second type of supporters are those who are interested in collaboration and who want to advertise their product or brand, including value-based advertising. In terms of value-based advertising, I mean that well-known companies/brands want to be part of my doings because it is of interest to many. These brands are familiar to everyone and they don't need promotional advertising from me.
In addition to supporters (companies), a significant part of my budget is currently crowdfunding. That means my main challenges has been funded by my fans through my website. For instance, a whole budget of the 20-time ultra-triathlon ( 17 400 euros) and a large part of 40-time ultra-triathlon budget (25 600 euros of 35 000) was covered with the help of my fans.

How are you planning to move on from this?
I have no plans to go beyond 60 times. I am not doing this to break records, but for myself. In the case of the 60-time ultra-triathlon, I achieved all my main goals, I received confirmation that a man is physically able to exercise as long as he can justify it in his head. However, this does not mean that I no longer challenge myself. I have a lot of interesting thoughts and plans that are too early to talk about right now. I can say that I will also focus on speed for my future challenges.

Will there be a video documentary of some sort? Unfortunately not, because I just didn't have enough resources to make a decent video documentary. As with my previous challenges, I am far from having a budget together before I start. Most of the budget I have raised during the challenge and I am often forced to ask for additional support from my existing supporters.