Training for 100k ultra

Triathlon Forum
1

So I’ve signed up for my first ultra, 100km in 3 months. It’s mostly a trail run with 2000m of elevation gain.

Advice from a friend who has done a couple of ultra’s was

  • time on feet is best training
  • do lots of hills and stairs
  • get the right gear and be comfortable in it

My background is a couple of marathons last year (sub 3:20 pace) and running on average 45km a week thru 2011 with a few weeks at 90-100km and a few weeks off after the marathons. Not much experience on trails.

any tips, advice on training or criticism welcome!

2

3 months is a pretty short time frame for an ultra!!

lots of hills and trails - find some steep ones and hike them - you need to get your legs used to being out that long. Depending on the terrain this could be 8hrs+ just get used to being on your feet that long.

dont really need speed training so you need to considerably up the km per week. The difference between a marathon and a 100k is a lot

I found that the jump from marathon to 70k is harder than 70-100 if you get what i mean

Get used to running with a pack on and get some decent shoes and get your nutrition nailed as you could be out there a while

3

Depending on the type of trail that can be a big factor. Soft flat trails will make it seem easy, loose rooty rocky will be a nightmare. Find out what type of trail and run on something similar. You’ll also likely have to carry liquid with you, even for 3:10 runner for most ultras you will be over an hour between aid, which is too long to go without liquid and food so have a plan.

4

There is plenty of training advice on the ultra websites. But in short you need to do something like 20-15-10 miler weekend blocks. Friday run a 20 miler then 15 on Saturday and 10 on Sunday. You will want to run a semi long midweek run of 15 or so miles. The rest of the week throw in some junk miles and then you will be ready to run 100k.

Three months gives you no real time to get ready unless you have a solid base already. You will want to walk the hills and use a run walk plan in your training.

Good luck.

5

So I’ve signed up for my first ultra, 100km in 3 months. It’s mostly a trail run with 2000m of elevation gain.

Advice from a friend who has done a couple of ultra’s was

  • time on feet is best training
  • do lots of hills and stairs
  • get the right gear and be comfortable in it

My background is a couple of marathons last year (sub 3:20 pace) and running on average 45km a week thru 2011 with a few weeks at 90-100km and a few weeks off after the marathons. Not much experience on trails.

any tips, advice on training or criticism welcome!

For that distance, you should exclusively run trails, rather than road.
Follow the other poster’s about hills, stairs, and TOF “time on feet” is crucial- so spend time power walking hills in preparation.

6

Let me be the first to say that this sounds like a bad idea. Based on the information you’ve provided, the curve to reaching 100k is dangerously steep. That is not to say that it can’t be done. You may be one of those lucky individuals (say 1 in 1000) that can pile on volume without injury, and 3 months of relatively high volume will give you a sufficient base to finish. However, the odds are stacked well against you at this point.

If you wish to proceed, then you should get out on surfaces and terrain that match the race course. Steep hills will require power hiking strength, and being a novice it will do you a lot of good to establish a run:walk ratio in some of your longer training. You **will not **run the entire race, so the sooner you can work around that idea the better off you’ll be. You also need to be quite comfortable with nutrition and gear management over long stretches. The beauty of training for and running ultras is that you have ample opportunity to try out a wide variety of strategies, and it’s a constant learning process. Good luck!

7

You’ll be fine, unless you’re trying to win.

a couple of tips:

  • get used to running while fatigued. go for a long, slow run starting at midnight.
  • KNOW your nutrition and make sure your crew has lots of options for you.
  • eat whatever you can/feel like eating at your stops, getting in any calories you can is important
  • make sure your shoes are correctly sized. some bring two pair, one that sized up so that if/when their feet swell they can change shoes
  • remember an ultra IS NOT a marathon or a tri. it is not all out. pacing is vital to finishing
  • it is ok to walk. it is ok to slowly jog. do not assume you will run the whole thing.
  • run with others during the race, it helps with moral.
  • make sure you have gear for every weather scenario: rain, wind, spike in heat, unusually cold weather. look at the weather history and plan for record highs and lows just in case. every advantage you can give yourself mentally will help.

Guys I know that have done very well at say Grindstone, Hellgate and the Barkley, don’t do insane amounts of volume. They run hills, and run about as much/little as a marathon trainee would. But, they have minds of steel once they are out there. When you get to mile 40, and it has been between 6-8 hours of running, you’ll realize you still have to run a marathon. At that moment, how you respond will be the deciding factor of how your entire race goes.

8

Start S-L-O-W! Whatever pace you are starting at it is too fast.

Learn to carry at least a hand bottle, unless aid stations are less than 4 miles apart. If over 6 miles apart you need 2 bottles or a hydration pack.

100K is a hell of a start. I did a number of 50Ks before my first 50M.

During these 3 months you should be in the 80-100K/week range. I prefer 2-a-days vs. one long run.

I like toe socks and shoes 1/2 size larger than normal.

A test 50K on a similar course 5 weeks or more out might be a good idea.

9

During 2011, I took on my first ultra, which was only a 50k. I’ve done over 30 road marathons, and have run short trail races before, so I figured upping the marathon distance by 6 miles wasn’t a huge deal. Boy was I mistaken! This ultra took me 6:45. Two weeks after the ultra I ran the Atlanta Marathon in 3:17 and took first in my AG. So why in the heck did it take me so long to finish the 50k? Because it was BRUTAL.

It was the North Face 50k down at Pine Mtn, GA, with tons of elevation gain and loss, rocks everywhere, and never a flat section on the course.

My advice for you:

-Find a 50k race between now and your 100k, at least three weeks out from your 100k, and try that distance first! 31 miles was a beast, and 62 miles is crazy. But from 50k to 100k is all mental (so people tell me).
-Understand what type of course you will be running. 2,000 m of elevation gain isn’t much, but does the course have tons of climbs, poor footing, roots and rocks, sections where you are on your hands and knees scaling boulders, etc. Train on trails like the ones in your race.
-Get trail shoes for the course conditions: rock plate or no-rock plate, lighter versus more protection, gaiters or not. Does trail have water crossing?
-Run long on trails 2 x a week focusing on time not distance. I’d suggest 2+ hours once a week, and 3-5 hours a few times as well.
-Practice nutrition during training and use same nutrition on the course. Packing water for 6 miles can be difficult and heavy on the back, waist or hands.
-Make sure your socks are badass, and your feet feel great in the shoes. If you have any room in the shoe, or they are too tight, going up and down the hills will slam your foot around like crazy and cause blisters and toe-nail issues. Treat the feet before the race to avoid issues during the race. Blister shield is great.
-Run on the treadmill frequently. I’d suggest 45 minutes on 2 or 3% grade, and then jack it up to 15% and walk for 15 minutes and repeat. Get used to walking up huge hills. Power walking can save your legs, and your race. Everybody does it, so don’t go in with an ego that says you are going to run every step of the 100k. You won’t.
-Make sure you pace the first two or three hours of the race properly. Start much slower than you expect. If you feel good over the last hour or two you can gain a ton of time on people who are walking excessively. Going out too fast is a death wish.

I love trail running, and recently had a friend who did three 50ks last fall, then a 50 miler, and then a 100 miler under 24 hours. He trained like a muther, but was able to make the jumps in distances because he has a high pain threshold and is mentally strong as an ox. The will to keep going must be strong, because you are going to have bad patches and you must work through those.

Good luck!

10

Pine mountain was pretty much why I posted about rocks. (I did a 40 miler there in the Fall one year. Leaves completely covering big loose rocks almost the whole way. Fell a few times and both ankles were swollen like balloons. I guess with practice you get better at that stuff, but i don’t really see how.

11

I’m with you on Pine Mountain. My buddy did 50 miler as part of NF races and finished strong, but I was beat up after the 50k and couldn’t imagine another 19 miles out there. Good for you on the 40 miler. After NF I swore I’d never head back to Pine Mtn for a race again, but I suspect I’ll go back and do the 50k again this year now that I know more about the course and what to expect. NF really put on a good race series. Plus, in October the leaves weren’t horrible, but I’m sure the 40 miler was covered.

12

All the advice here is awesome.

This may be redundant and you already know it… but best thing is to keep prep simple. It’s just running for a long time… so simple is best.

Do big weekends: IE: a 6-hour Saturday followed by a 4-hour Sunday. You need to adapt to running, hiking and walking while fatigued. Time on feet (hiking and walking are okay)… Need the time on the feet. Track your time out there on trail… miles aren’t so much as important as time out there.
Form is critical. Efficiency.
Shoes, socks, hydration gear. Get those down to perfect.
All trail running for training, if possible.
Hills for sure. I noticed during ultras that I’ve raced… after many hours out there, people can’t run down a hill when they are fatigued. Quads get fried.

Good luck!

13

So I’ve signed up for my first ultra, 100km in 3 months. It’s mostly a trail run with 2000m of elevation gain.

Is it 2000m per lap, or 2000m for the entire course? If for the whole course, that’s pretty flat, unless it is all at one time or something.

14

What race is it?

15

There is plenty of training advice on the ultra websites.

What are the good ultra websites?

16

For more info I’d check out the the podcasts by Lucho at www.enduranceplanet.com or on itunes. Lots of of great ultrarunning advice.

17

I was watching a trail running video with tips by some of the best in the business. They said the key is not trying to run all the hills/mountains. Like others said, learn where to walk / power hike up the hills.

18

Solid advice in this thread.

Do your homework

http://www.ultramarathonrunning.com/training/index.html

I’m training for a 50, third week of April. Did it last year for my first. Short build for me too since I only really started specific training three weeks ago (rehabbing a post tib). But if you got the base, plenty of time. But keep the build going, up to two weeks out, then taper.

Did B2Bs last year for the key runs. The final B2B get as close to race distance as possible. Last year hit 46.

Remember it is not a race, but an adventure. We race tris, but these events are merely to be conquered.

Because of my rehab, am incorporating much more power walking. In the end, plan to walk probably 40%. Yesterday and today did a B2B. 25 yesterday and 6 today.
Averaged exactly 12:00 pace yesterday and 11:04 today. Yesterday was probably at that 60/40 ratio and today probably 80/20. As others pointed out, being trained to walk at pace for extended periods is crucial. Read once, when training for a 100, if you are not trained to walk 50, you won’t make it. Decided to scale that down to my event. 12:00/mile pace is 5.0 mph. Hopefully I can do the 50 at 4.8 mph. And also. It is not needed to do B2Bs every week. Every other week, yes. And try to pick two decent days of weather. Out here in the west, a February heat wave. Near 70 the past two days.

When running, no matter how slow, check your cadence occassionally. Try to keep it up around 90.

I believe once a week, do throw in some tempo mile intervals during the medium distance mid-week run. That is your “speed work”. For me anyway, it feels good to open it up once in awhile.

Cross training is good. On the off days from running, ride. Once a week, intervals. And swim as much as possible. Very therapeutic. In other words, stay in Olympic distance tri shape for the swim and bike. Perhaps you won’t be in A plus razor shape but you won’t be an embarrasment to yourself either. After the ultra, after a few weeks recovery, you will be surprised how quick the run comes back after hitting the track.

Again an Ultra is an adventure. And in the end, you will become hard. And then when you race tri, hard to beat.

19

I’ve done three 50 milers and I don’t think you have much to worry about.

I did the JFK 50 for a few years in a row, which is a late November race. For training, I trained normally for the Marine Corps marathon
(yadda, yadda - long runs , building up to 20-22 miles) which is end of October. I rested up from MCM for a good two weeks of nothing
much, and did a few 10 milers leading up to race day.

A couple of pieces of advice and two rules
Rule 1: Walk all the hillsRule 2: You can call anything a hill
I was a 3:45-4:00 marathoner in that time - and when friends talked me into the 50 I figured I’d be lucky to finish because I knew what I felt like
at mile 22 - but when you back off the pact 20% mile 25 became just another mile marker. I went through mile 25 in a little under 5 hours and just
kept chugging. I finished between 10-and 10:30 all three years.

Almost everybody you see (at least after the FOP) uses a Run / Walk strategy. I used to run for 15 minutes and walk for 2,. At mile 30 I switched
to 12/2.

Hopefully you can have a support crew meet you through the race with fresh shirts and socks, jackets, caps… That is a little bit of heaven after 6-8 hours. If not, consider
a trail pack of some sort with at least a fresh shirt. JFK transitions from a trail run (on the very rugged Appalachian Trail) to a tow path - many people changed
shoes at the end of the AT.

BodyGlide…

You’ll do great - Ultras are fun because they are still serious, but not deadly serious. Nobody in a TNT short will be able to walk to the end, but nobody
will elbow you out of the way at the first corner.

.

20

great advice, all tips taken on board, will keep doing some more research and start hitting the trails! thanks again!