t.o.f. ultramarathon training plan

When I began training for my first ultra I had a lot of questions – how far, how fast, how often, what to eat, what to wear…. I spent a lot of time on the internets researching what others were doing. Now I’m being asked those same questions. Mostly the questions are out of curiosity but they also come from runners interested in a new challenge. So, for what it’s worth, I thought I’d do a series of posts about what works for me.

“How do you train to run 100 miles?” Not surprisingly, there are many approaches to training for an ultra. Some focus heavily on speed work or hill repeats whereas others cross-train or run on a treadmill to avoid injury. This variety seems to reflect differences in personal preference and mental/physical tolerance rather than recipes for success. However, most training tips and plans share a common message –it’s all about spending time on your feet. Whether fast or slow, up hills or across the prairies, to run far you need to spend a lot of time running.

My time-on-feet ultramarathon training plan is a modification of a Runner’s World 16-week, 50-mile program. In general, I put less emphasis on speed work and I increase the length of the long runs. Here’s what a typical week looks like:

M: rest
Tu: 15 km hard
W: 10 km easy
Th: 15 km hard
Fr: rest
Sa: long
Su: long

Tuesday and Thursday are tempo runs with repeats from 20 to 60 minutes. If I’m training for a hilly race I’ll do hill repeats instead. I do speed work because I enjoy it, not because I think it’s important to finishing an ultra. If I’m tired it’s the first thing to go. I still cover the distance I just do it at an easy pace.

Wednesday is 1 to 2 minutes slower per km than Tu and Th. My primary goal is pacing, which I’m terrible at – every run would be a tempo run if I didn’t constantly slow myself down. I pick a slow pace and try to maintain it and I use a gps watch to ensure that happens.

The back-to-back weekend long runs range between 6 and 14 cumulative hours. The Saturday run is typically longer and slower than the Sunday run. The goal is to acclimate to the mental and physical challenges of running for a long time. If you can’t run the full distance then walk as fast as you can. Few people run an entire race anyway. What’s important is spending time on your feet.

This is an optimistic schedule that I regularly don’t complete. If I did I would spend all my free time running and I don’t like running that much. (I'll write about motivation in the future.) I don’t cross-train but I often replace one or both weekend runs with other things I enjoy like telemark skiing and cycling, particularly if I’m many weeks away from my next race. However, if you think I’m slacking you should come biking with me. Bring a big lunch; we’ll be out for a while.

Out of office reply

Can't blog. Skiing. Hope you're doing something fun, too.

freeheelin'

I love skiing. Last week I had the great fortune to spend four days backcountry skiing in the Asulkan Valley with my good friend and fellow telemark skier, jt. The conditions were perfect - snow on the way in followed by three days of blue skies. The trip in took longer than it should have due to my poor route-finding skills. (I should have read the route description before heading in.) No matter.

Day 2 started like day 1 ended - thick clouds and swirling snow. We slept late and ate a slow breakfast waiting to see what the weather would do. The general mood in the hut was to climb Young's Peak but no one was eager to break trail through thigh-deep snow. The clouds slowly thinned and the snow gradually slowed until two strong skiers from Alaska made the move and set a track up Young's. We followed shortly thereafter. We decided not to follow the Alaskans up the headwall; they ended up triggering a size 2 avalanche on their trip down. Instead we skied face-shot turns on the lower slopes until the sun sank below the surrounding peaks.

Day 3 was bluebird. Jt developed some bad blisters from his rental boots and decided to take a day off. I tagged along with a couple of Quebecois to make turns on the seven steps of paradise. It was paradise. We made two laps and I was done.

Day 4 was our last. We packed our bags and headed down the valley to the top of the mousetrap. We left our extra gear with Pierre, who injured his arm on the trip down, and we began the ascent to sapphire col. It was a beautiful day for a ski and the view of loop brook from sapphire col was spectacular. The trip down was also spectacular until we hit the sun crust at the bottom. That was just ugly on telemark. Thankfully it was only a couple of hundred meters. The trip out was quick and painless. Can't wait to do that again.

walk across Canada

It's National Wildlife Week in Canada and the Canadian Wildlife Federation wants you to show your support by going for a walk. Their hope is to cross the country. So get out of your chair and go do your part. Our wildlife is waiting.

win some gear

Hey trail runners, Wend magazine's monthly photo contest is aimed at you. Submit your trail running photos for a chance to win some trail gear. Details can be found here.

spring is... coming

My eggs told me this was going to be a good weekend. Turns out my eggs were right - 100 km in two days makes for a very good weekend.

They weren't a quick 100k. It's still very much winter here and the trails are very icy. It even snowed a bit.

That ice-fast boat suggests wintery conditions will be here for awhile.


The migrants have begun arriving but I can't image what they're eating. There's still a half meter of snow on the ground.

This porcupine has it figure out. It wasn't so pleased that I was so close but, judging by the way it just looked at the ground, it wasn't concerned enough to jump. It soon went back to stripping the bark from the tree.

Destructive buggers.

microspikes

Look what I got...

Look at why I got them...

Of course, the glare ice became this...

Then this...

The winter I first moved to Edmonton I crash my bike on a patch of ice while zipping downhill into the river valley. By the time I saw the ice it was too late to do anything but hold on. Without studded tires I didn't stand a chance. I've got a floating chip of bone in my elbow to remind me that ice deserves a bit more respect.

I bought my first pair of studded tires shortly after that accident and they have performed very well. I wish I could say the same for the various running traction devices I've tried - they're great out of the box but they simply don't last. The microspikes certainly appear durable. Kahtoola must think they've got something pretty special because they come with a one year satisfaction guarantee, which is good because I've got a lot of miles to log and winter isn't going anywhere anytime soon.