Shaping the Specifics

You have gone through each of the previous phases and developed your speed and endurance. You have created a monster ready to chew up the miles. Not just yet! We need to take into account that we are not all running the same event. If you don’t shape that fitness to the task at hand you are doing yourself an injustice.

Every event has a specific set of demands on the body – elevation or flat, technical or non-technical, altitude, heat or cold, self-supported or not, navigation, mandatory kit lists, and that’s just for starters. If we don’t prepare for these factors then its likely we’ll fall foul to something other than ‘being fit enough’. Ultrarunning is more than just fitness, its being prepared in every possible way and that’s part of it’s allure.

Here, we’ll run through some of the more common ‘specifics’ and how to approach them but I encourage you to sit down and think about the challenges that your race presents and determine how you’re going to prepare for them.

How long is this phase of training?

I like to dedicate 4-6wks to the specific phase of training.

What does a week look like in this phase of training?

We don’t stray too far from the proven formula thus far – easy running forming the backbone of training, a sprinkling of faster running and a long run. But each of these components provides the opportunity to experience something from race day. Here are some exam[ples of how I might be looking at each of them.

Easy running: If you’re gearing up for a 100mile event then easy running probably closely reflects the effort you’ll put in on race day. That makes it specific. So now lets take that onto terrain that is similar to race day, wear the mandatory race kit, aim to run a portion of it at the same time of day as when you’ll be racing. Suddenly you can feel that you are simulating race conditions and how this is going to be beneficial.

Workout: This depends on the length and terrain of your race. If you are running something shorter, a trail half marathon to 50k, or you are planning on being at the pointy end of a longer race (particularly if it includes significant elevation) then lactate threshold sessions will be your mainstay. In other words, if you think you’re going to be working at an effort as high as your lactate threshold, then continue to develop it in this phase of training. If you are running something flatter or you plan to be out for 10hrs+ then target the aerobic threshold (4-6/10) instead.

I’d also think about the terrain I’m completing these sessions on. If you’ll be racing with significant elevation gain or on particularly steep gradients (10%+) then try to include those in these sessions. The same goes for the technicality of the trail. We don’t want to risk twisting an ankle but developing your trail running skills at higher efforts will make the technical running feel easy come race day.

Long run: This is much the same story as with the previous points – simulate the race in terms of kit, time of day, nutrition, terrain. You can also include some race effort, for example complete the last 3m (5k) at race effort. This gives you the experience of bumping the effort up in the latter stages of a race. If you are running something longer then the easy effort in a long run may already reflect ‘race effort’, job done!

These elements don’t need to be included in every run during the specific phase. If you suddenly start including 5,000ft of vert a week it’s a huge additional stress on the body. The same goes for if you have to drive to the trails to complete your long run. Focus on it when it makes sense to focus on it.

What about training the gut?

Now’s the time to cement your yourself amongst the eating legends. That guy who ate 110 hotdogs in 10minutes is going to pale in comparison! I tend to recommend that athletes fuel anything over an hour with the same carbs/hr that they are aiming for come race day. This will help recovery and help train the stomach to handle it better on the day.

I don’t do well in the heat and its forecast to be roasting. What shall I do?

Heat training has become a bit of a hot topic (pun most definitely intended!) in the last few years. It’s well recognised that if your core temperature rises then your performance will decrease. If your body has acclimated to it then it is better at shedding excess heat and you stay cool for longer. So, if you know there’s a chance you’ll be competing in the heat then it’s worth taking the time to acclimatise prior to race day. Of course, few of us have the time to travel to sunnier climates to achieve this in the lead up to a race so there are ‘hacks’ you can manage in your own post code. You can use saunas or hot baths to achieve the same physiological outcomes. The best bit? If it turns out to be a cool day but you’ve prepared for the heat then the heat training could improve your performance. It works in a similar way to altitude to potentially improve the oxygen carrying capacity of your body. Think Lance Armstrong but without the controversy.

Is there anything else I need to think about?

Planning. This is the time to start thinking about what the logistics of the race are going to look like. That means thinking about how you will carry and restock what you need to get you from A to B. As you’ll see with the next few points, you need to know this in order to practise and make adjustments. For example, you cannot carry enough carbs to fuel a 100mile - are you going to have crew or use checkpoints? If it’s the latter then it’s imperative you know what the checkpoints stock and how far apart they so you can practise on your runs.

The further your kit deviates from a road 5k i.e. nothing, the more important it is you practise with it in the lead up to race day. Carrying anything other than your will to race is going to affect your running posture and so needs to be practised to a) build the necessary strength and b) identify any potential issues e.g. chafing, access to items. The best times to be doing this is in the race-specific long runs and on your easy runs, particularly when they are less recovery focused.

We were not born with the innate ability to use poles efficiently so get them out of your quiver and practise with them intensely. There are some good videos online that describe the different polling techniques. The biggest mistake I see is people putting them out in front of themselves and leaning on them almost like a walking stick. Instead we should be putting them into the ground beside our feet and then using them to drive ourselves forwards otherwise you are putting the brakes on.

How can I train for the mountains when I don’t have any hills?

Racing in the mountains does not require you to live in the mountains. It just means that, if you want to get the best out of yourself, you need to get creative with training. The ways I suggest athletes approach this is to use continuous hills workouts

- Find a hill that is about one minute long

- Run up and down that hill repeatedly for 6-10min

- A continuous effort of 7/10 up and down for the full duration of the interval

- Repeat for 2-4 intervals

Strength training is another great way to prepare your body for the mountains. Besides the potential running form and injury resilience benefits, strength training will help your body a) propel itself up hills and b) withstand the brutality of running downhill. These don’t have to be intense, protein-slurping gym sessions, you can do a lot at home with a couple of kettlebells. (Note - this is not the time to be starting a new strength routine as the additional fatigue and potential soreness will likely impact what should be the key weeks of training)

This can be such a fun phase of training, try to get creative and really simulate your goal race in training. Whether than means looking slightly bonkers running up and down the same baby hill or taking a poop in the bushes, it doesn’t matter. Get your mind and body ready!