Ultra Runners

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Do you run by time or distance (Read 686 times)

jeffdonahue


    I am tossing around the idea of an Ultra this year as a 40th Birthday present to myself.  There is a 50 mile trail run in Ipswich, MA the first weekend of November that a friend has been trying to get me to run, so I might take him up on it.

     

    Anyway, I was just wondering, when planning out your training schedule for an Ultra, do you plan your runs by mileage or by time.  Should I be planning to do 30 miles or should I just plan to go out for a 4-5 hour trail run every weekend?

     

    Just trying to figure out some kind of training schedule/plan for the summer/Fall.

     

    Thanks in advance

     

    Jeff

      Time on feet, at least for me. 

      Your toughness is made up of equal parts persistence and experience. You don't so much outrun your opponents as outlast and outsmart them, and the toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head." - Joe Henderson

        Distance.  When I first started looking at Ultra training schedules, some of them had you running for 4-5 hours in a long run.  5 hours would take me about 35 miles.  It might only be 25 miles for someone else.  I knew about how many miles I wanted to run per week: between 80-90, and what I wanted my longest run to be: about 35 miles.  If I have a crappy day and it takes me 5+ hours to run 35 miles, so be it.  If it takes me less, great... 

         

        If you already train for marathons by distance, adjusting for this should be no big deal.  If you currently train for marathons based on time, then maybe it would make sense to stick with that...  For me it is mental, I want to know how far I need to go, not just go run as far as I can for 2 1/2 hours and then turn around. I also like to plan out new routes, and it's kind of tough to do if you don't know how far you will go...

         

        BTW, I haven't seen a lot of great ultra training schedules, so I just modified my regular schedule a bit.  I changed my midweek long run to peak at 18 miles (not there yet) and weekend run to peak at 35 miles (not there yet either).   So obviously take this with a grain of salt coming from a rookie...

        jpdeaux


           If I have a crappy day and it takes me 5+ hours to run 35 miles, so be it.  If it takes me less, great... 

           

          If you already train for marathons by distance, adjusting for this should be no big deal. 

           

          BTW, I haven't seen a lot of great ultra training schedules, so I just modified my regular schedule a bit.  I changed my midweek long run to peak at 18 miles (not there yet) and weekend run to peak at 35 miles (not there yet either).   So obviously take this with a grain of salt coming from a rookie...

          Geez, 35 miles in 5 hours would not be a crappy day for a lot of people, myself included.

           

          But I do agree about there not being a lot of training schedules. I just fatten up my marathon training, in miles, and try to get a long, long run in within a month or two of the race. But I've only done road ultras, and only time ones, not distance ones, ie 6, 12 and 24 hours.

           

          If you're stubborn you could probably do one tomorrow on marathon training if you just wanted to survive and finish.

           

          I tried to get into Stone Cat last year but was about a week late. This year hopefully not late.

            I run by mileage, I too have problems with finding good schedules but I have a tried and tested pattern that works for me and I stick to it, my mileage tends to vary by about 5% each week tending to use the plans as a guidance concentarting on my long run distance which I try to stick to as it as it is a good "mental" goal.

             

            I have found though that as my training goes by and I get more experience I tend to run at a set "ultra" pace so can vaguely guess how far I can go in a specific time. I have worked out that on a race day, if I run at X mph the overal average for the run will be (X-1) mph after walking breaks and race admin have happened

            Jerry
            A runners blog-updated daily


            Imminent Catastrophe

              Stone Cat? I've heard good things about that. This 50k October 8 might be a good tune-up, I've found that a marathon or 50k a few weeks before a longer race seems to help.

              "Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

               "To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain

              "The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.

               

              √ Javelina Jundred Jalloween 2015

              Cruel Jewel 50 mile May 2016

              Western States 100 June 2016

              jeffdonahue


                Stone Cat? I've heard good things about that. This 50k October 8 might be a good tune-up, I've found that a marathon or 50k a few weeks before a longer race seems to help.

                 

                Yeah, Stone Cat looks nice.  I have never run up there, but have heard it is a bit less technical than running the Fells near my house.  Still trying to get the okay from the wife.  Usually she is fine with whatever races i do as long as it doesnt interfere with home life, so I usually try to do my long runs early.  But in training for my marathon last Fall that meant a max of 2.5 hour runs and I was done by 8ish.  Trying to hit a 5 hour run would bring me to 10:00 if I started at 5:00 in the morning (I have run earlier but 5am is usually my limit as far as getting up) and soccer may not allow for that.  On Sundays we have church at 9:30 so I have to be done and home by 8:30.

                 

                So I am trying to figure out if training for an ultra will fit into my schedule.

                  I usually run by time.

                     

                    So I am trying to figure out if training for an ultra will fit into my schedule.

                     

                    It is not necessary, to do a 30 miler or a 4-5 hour trail run every weekend to train for an ultra.

                     

                    Just try to fit in as much running as you can.   And practice eating.Smile

                     

                     

                    And for the record, I guess I run by distance (unless on a tough trail then I go by time and effort).


                    Imminent Catastrophe

                      Yeah, Stone Cat looks nice.  I have never run up there, but have heard it is a bit less technical than running the Fells near my house.  Still trying to get the okay from the wife.  Usually she is fine with whatever races i do as long as it doesnt interfere with home life, so I usually try to do my long runs early.  But in training for my marathon last Fall that meant a max of 2.5 hour runs and I was done by 8ish.  Trying to hit a 5 hour run would bring me to 10:00 if I started at 5:00 in the morning (I have run earlier but 5am is usually my limit as far as getting up) and soccer may not allow for that.  On Sundays we have church at 9:30 so I have to be done and home by 8:30.

                       

                      So I am trying to figure out if training for an ultra will fit into my schedule.

                       

                       

                      Your priorities are seriously messed up Smile

                       

                      Now that you've mentioned it, I may look at Stone Cat.

                      "Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"

                       "To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain

                      "The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.

                       

                      √ Javelina Jundred Jalloween 2015

                      Cruel Jewel 50 mile May 2016

                      Western States 100 June 2016

                      Carl A


                        Yeah, Stone Cat looks nice.  I have never run up there, but have heard it is a bit less technical than running the Fells near my house.  Still trying to get the okay from the wife.  Usually she is fine with whatever races i do as long as it doesnt interfere with home life, so I usually try to do my long runs early.  But in training for my marathon last Fall that meant a max of 2.5 hour runs and I was done by 8ish.  Trying to hit a 5 hour run would bring me to 10:00 if I started at 5:00 in the morning (I have run earlier but 5am is usually my limit as far as getting up) and soccer may not allow for that.  On Sundays we have church at 9:30 so I have to be done and home by 8:30.

                         

                        So I am trying to figure out if training for an ultra will fit into my schedule.

                         

                        We're in similar boats as far as our running: Family, church, and all that those things mean. I'm living proof that it's possible to finish an ultra without really training for it.

                         

                        Admittedly, training better would probably make races less painful for me and more impressive to everyone else. But really, it's finishing something I've not yet done that makes me happy.

                        Speed my steps along your path, according to your will.

                          By miles.  For my first ultra, I had trained by time only.  It was a disaster.  It took me almost 9 hrs to complete the run (eh hem - i'm slow), and the longest I'd ever been on my feet was 5 hrs, and that was quite a bit of time before the ultra.  Since then, I've trained strictly by miles and things improved dramatically.

                           

                          Personal and Quite Limited Opinion - If you're going to be on your feet for 10 hrs and the longest run you had put you on your feet for 4 hrs, how are you going to know how your body will react to an additional 6 hrs.? 

                           

                          Good luck and have fun with whatever you decide to do ~

                          Leslie
                          Living and Running Behind the Redwood Curtain
                          -------------

                          Trail Runner Nation

                          Sally McCrae-Choose Strong

                          Bare Performance

                           

                          jeffdonahue


                             

                            Personal and Quite Limited Opinion - If you're going to be on your feet for 10 hrs and the longest run you had put you on your feet for 4 hrs, how are you going to know how your body will react to an additional 6 hrs.? 

                             

                             

                            But by the same logic, if you are going to run for 50 miles and the longest run you have done is 35 miles, how are you going to know how your body will react to an additional 15 miles?

                            jeffdonahue


                               

                              Just try to fit in as much running as you can.   And practice eating.Smile

                               

                               

                               

                              Seems like sound advice.  I can still plan to get a good 60+ miles per week with a long run or even back to back long runs on the weekend, and then another mid-long run during the week.

                                Seems like sound advice.  I can still plan to get a good 60+ miles per week with a long run or even back to back long runs on the weekend, and then another mid-long run during the week.

                                 +1 to the back to back long runs!

                                Your toughness is made up of equal parts persistence and experience. You don't so much outrun your opponents as outlast and outsmart them, and the toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head." - Joe Henderson

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