Are you considering running your first ultramarathon in 2024? Or are you already registered and having buyer’s remorse, thinking…what now? Ultramarathons, or any distance longer than the standard marathon distance (26.2 miles), are some of the greatest physical undertakings by athletes of any sport. Classic “ultra” distances such as 50 kilometer, 50 Mile, 100 mile, or even the increasingly popular 200 mile races all require months or even years of consistent training, proper fueling, and strong mental attitudes to make the most of your race day performances and improve your odds of arriving at the finish — as well as reduce post-race soreness!
Although the majority of trail races around the world are shorter than ultramarathons, these longer races have attracted a dedicated crowd of participants and established themselves as a central subset of the trail running community. Runners now spend years attempting to win entries into race lotteries of the most iconic trail ultramarathons, such as the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run. Many view the opportunity to race these events as an experience of a lifetime.
Should you have caught the “ultra bug,” as “superhero mom” Dreama Walton says about the sport, this article will help bring you to your first ultramarathon finish. (catch up on Walton’s incredible running journey here. Listed below are my top five tips for first-time ultrarunners or those moving up in distance to longer ultras (ex, moving up from your first 50K to 50 miles, 100 to 200 miles, etc.). It’s important to remember that running longer doesn’t mean training harder; it means training smarter.
Test your gear
Do you already know what you’re going to wear/bring with you on race day? If not, make a plan to do so right now! It’s never too early to start planning what gear you’re going to use on race day. Many runners often overlook the cumulative negative effects of inadequate gear preparation over the course of an ultramarathon.
Wearing garments that cause chafing, shoes and socks that cause blisters, and nutrition products that cause stomach aches are all easily avoidable problems that the majority of trail runners would rarely face if they sufficiently tested their gear beforehand. “Never try anything new on race day” is a sage old piece of running advice that is ignored by the vast majority of runners (elites included) more than we’d like to admit.
The temptations of marketing agendas that convince us to wear new shoes that will supposedly make us faster, try new nutrition supplements endorsed by famous athletes, or try radical experiments such as enhancing caffeine intake on race morning to gain competitive edges, are all common practices that can lead to serious consequences if you haven’t tested how these products affect you already in your training. Everything you wear, ingest, or bring with you should be regularly used in your training.
Don’t fall for flashy. Stick to what you know and what you can trust works every time. I’d wear a beat-up pair of broken-in trainers that I’ve tested on countless long runs before I’d show up to a race with bouncy new kicks I’ve never thoroughly tested.
Miles don’t matter as much as you think
Moving up in the distance or running farther might seem to require more training logically, but to some extent, it actually doesn’t. If you’re already a well-trained athlete, you may not need to increase your training volume at all.
Although a base amount of training per week is important for physical development and teaches your body to handle your race pace, the extreme distance, and the long hours spent on your feet, it is not necessary to run as much as many first-time ultrarunners assume they need to do. One common misconception is that you need to run your goal race distance in training before actually running the race. Doing so, more often than not, leads to a heavy state of fatigue that jeopardizes training blocks and can lead to injury.
Four-time International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) Ultrarunner of the Year, Camille Herron (and the world record holder in 12, 24, and 48 hours among several other world records!) credits much of her success in ultramarathoning to consistent running every week, sometimes twice a day, and avoiding running over two hours at a time. In fact, Herron’s longest training run in preparation for setting the course record of 22 hours and 35 minutes at the 153-mile Spartathlon race in Greece was only two hours. Consistent stress, but not too much stress at once, followed by short bouts of recovery, has been shown as the ideal method to increase bone and tendon strength in a way that is conducive to ultramarathon success.
Increase your variability
Preparing for an ultramarathon involves a wide variety of challenges. These include managing technical downhills, building muscular durability, increasing leg power on climbs, and improving overall fitness to maintain low-aerobic stress over long durations of time.
With so many factors contributing to race day success, it’s important as an ultrarunner to develop a wide range of physical endurance and strength. More specifically, training for ultramarathons should include all types of runs, from short hill sprints, long runs (but not too long!), race pace efforts, time spent in the gym, and potential cross-training activities such as biking or cross-country skiing that can tax your aerobic system without fatiguing the muscles too much to impact your runs (read coach Alex Willis’ cross training tips here). Ultramarathoning involves a much more varied skill set than other types of running, which also gives greater potential for athletes from other backgrounds (skiing, climbing, biking, etc.) to transition into ultras and find success more easily. If your ultramarathon training feels dull or overly repetitive, that’s a sign you likely need more variety. This will not only make training more fun but is essential for successful ultramarathon training.
Set one goal…FINISH
For many runners, especially those coming from cross country, track, or road running backgrounds, race placement or time goals are often what matter most when goal setting. In the unpredictable world of ultrarunning, however, such goals can actually increase the chances of “blowing up” and not making it to the finish. The longer the race, the more chances there are for things to go wrong.
As you race an ultra, I suggest checking in with your body and mind consistently every few miles and asking yourself this question: “In this moment, am I doing the most for myself to reach the finish?” Asking yourself this question will hopefully allow you to avoid overexertion and remind you to take every opportunity possible to nourish your body and cultivate positive, performance-enhancing mindsets and practices. It is a great way to place yourself in safer, less risky situations. This question will help you seek opportunities to take care of yourself and maintain physical and mental strength, as opposed to reaching for time or placement goals that are often more self-destructive than self-serving.
Build your community
Ultrarunning is more of a team sport than most people realize. Due to the increased logistics of ultramarathons and the potential for things to go wrong, there is a greater need to organize a crew of family and friends to support your race day effort.
Crews can be essential in making sure you have the gear you need, aiding you if something goes wrong, pacing (during designated pacing sections in certain ultramarathons), and keeping you uplifted mentally when you may be tired, delirious, or sleep-deprived. The single greatest thing you can do to increase your chances of finishing an ultramarathon is to have the right crew (read my detailed article on how to build a perfect crew here).
Consider a related sports example: a pit crew in F1 or NASCAR. This crew allows the driver to reach their full potential and not worry as much about logistical issues such as fueling and changing tires so they can focus on racing. A team can brainstorm solutions to racers’ problems in real-time, while the racer might lack the mental energy to problem-solve in their tired and adrenaline-fueled state.
A proper crew makes the driver and runner more capable of responding to the moves of other racers and the challenges of the course. Plus, what better way to celebrate your first ultra finish than with friends and family who give the experience added meaning?
