Finding Ultra

machomac

So about me:
34 year old male. Irish living in Sydney Australia.
5’11,  70kg
Running History:
Very little up until the start of 2017. Before that…..a handful of 10k and 14k races spread out over about 4 years. Sporadic patches of training runs prior to any of these. Running 10k in about 50mins on average, best 14k was 68mins. For all this time, I had no real knowledge of running about training, running form, nutrition etc. Just run and hurt and generally not enjoy.
Over the last 4 years or so I started doing a lot of hiking in the bush and mountains. Hikes got longer and longer. Multi two or three day hikes started to come into it. In August, last year, myself with a team of three others took part in a charity event where we hiked 100km through the bush nonstop, no sleep, checkpoints for food and a quick break but generally nonstop. We did it in 29 hours. I absolutely loved the brutality of it, both mentally and physically. The feeling at the finish line is amazing. On top of this I just love being out in the wild.
From here I started trail running. Basically, let’s do these trails faster. I loved it from day one. The feeling for tearing through winding forest trails or descending down canyons in complete peace with no cars, no people, no noise….just you and the trail.
Did my first competitive trail run in March 2017. Mates recommended it and went there with them. Baptism of fire. Turns out it is what we call a Sky Marathon. To achieve Sky Marathon status a race must have certain levels of brutal elevation change. It was brutal, the second half of the race was more like mountain climbing than running. It was 35 degrees that day. 30 or 40% did not finish. I got over the line in 8 hours 30mins. A half hour before the cut-off. I take it. I was hooked at this stage.
Two weeks after this I signed up to the epic Ultra Trail Australia 100k. This race was in May. 4000m total accent, thousands of steps, race finishes with a brutal 950 step stair climb. Yes, a big leap, my mates were doing this one also and I was just pumped and just went for it. With only basically 8 weeks to the race the training was minimal. What I did focus on a lot was my running form and how to run slow with minimal impact on the joints. The plan for the race was slow, steady, but most of all don’t get knee or hip pain trough out. Also, focused a lot on getting my nutrition right. If you get that wrong your race is over. Constant refuelling is key. Also, getting my mind right. Did a lot of meditation and learned to focus and moving forward mindfully and not let bad thoughts like pain, time and distance creep in. It went really well. Finished in 18 hours 50mins which got me into the top 65% of 1500 competitors. Finished 3 hours ahead of my mates that have been trail running for the last few years. Body felt great (well as great as can be expected), no injuries except for two swollen ankles which I found out after is because I tied my shoes too tight. Absolutely loved it.
Since then - Ran a 35k trail in 4:20 and a Half Marathon (road) in 1:45
Training has been almost non-existent since the start of August.
I have just signed up to the same race again next May. This time I want to do it better and faster. 15h 30m is the goal.
My lifestyle, diet and training needs a serious overhaul.
First of all, I have been a full-time smoker for the last 18 years. I know, I’m sorry, my life’s biggest regret. So this has to stop immediately.
My weekly alcohol intake needs to decrease dramatically.
My diet is good and bad, heathy nutritious food combined with burgers and chips.
My training needs to be consistent, smart, planned and with purpose.
My sleep needs to be consistent and quality.
My mind needs to be focused to keep all of the above on track.  
So, it’s a bit of a wild one. I have 7 months to race day. I am very excited to get into some decent training and track the results and share my journey along the way. Happy to take any advice along the way and answer any questions also. Below is a link to the race website and also a link to a cool video of last year’s event. Let’s do this.
https://www.ultratrailaustralia.com.au/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DwvA_jzdzk

machomac

So the general workout plan that I see going forward looks roughly like this:
Monday to Friday
2 x Endurance Runs - Slow pace with low heart rate aimed at training my body to use a higher percentage of fat to produce energy instead of sugars and carbs. Important for ultra distance events. These will more than likely be my run home from work which is 14k which usually gets me home 30mins later than I would if I catch public transport. So doesn't eat into my week too much.
2 x A selection from the following - Speed Session / Hill Repeats / Stair Climbing. These are badly needed to increase my cardio and hopefully improve VO2 Max and Lactic Threshold. 
2 x 30min Strength Training - Core, Hips, Ankles and Back. 
1 x Recovery Day
Saturday or Sunday
1 x Long run in the mountains / bush
1 x Recovery Day
Diet
Going to cut as much meat and dairy from my diet as possible. Went through phases of this in the past and my energy levels went through the roof. Also because it cuts down the acidity levels in your body and decreases inflamation it aids in recovery. Green smoothies in the oul nutri-bullet are the business.
Mental Focus and Sleep
Ten min meditation in the morning. Ten min meditation before bed. One coffee max a day. Allow for a solid 8 hours kip. 
When I look at it now on paper it seems like I will be a busy boy. Its also amazing how some weeks can just get away from you because of other commitments. We have all been there. All I can do is give it my all. Two endurance runs under my belt this week already. Time to just do it and enjoy it.

Liamalone

#getalife

career move

Good luck with it. The video is cool. What an amazing place to run. Lucky you!

7 months is a long time to keep your focus. Do you have any other events planned?

Annie get your Run

Oh wow, that looks utterly amazing, am very jealous that you've already run it!! Best of luck with the training and the journey.

machomac

Yeah its an awesome spot. Its about a 1 and a half hour drive from me so a lot of the long training runs will be on the course. No races lined up til Feb, March and April where there is a 16k, 20k and then a 50k. Until then the trail running race season kind off finishes over here due to to the heat and bush fires etc. Also will back in Ireland in 6 weeks for Christmas. Don't think there is too much racing going at that time.

machomac

So first week down. Went well in terms of the running side of things. I will start to work on diet and strength training more this week.

Mon - 11k Endurance Run

Tue - 13k Endurance Run

Wed - 16 x 250m Speed Session. Recovery time between sprints way too long. Absolutely killed me. Needs work.

Thur - 16k Endurance Run

Fri - Recovery

Sat - 28k Long Trail Run. Elevation Gain 720m, Single track, Steep stair climbs, some beach sections. 4 hours start to finish. Steady pace throughout. Got very hot. Body felt great after it, no sore hips knees etc which is the main thing.

Sun - Recovery

Total: 72k

Plan for this week is a couple of good hill repeat sessions as well as strength, stability and flexibility sessions. As well as a couple of endurance runs. I really need to up the cardio and build more power in the quads and calves.

machomac

So, week 2 roundup. A bit of a funny week. Have a visitor from home staying for the three weeks so trying to get all the training in without disappearing for long periods is proving a little difficult. There should be no excuses all the same. Where there’s a will there’s a way and all that.

Mon - 15 x 100m Steep Hill Sprints

Tue - 21km Endurance Run

Wed - 5k Tempo. Stair Running 8 Floors x 5 Reps. 7k Endurance Run. Big Day.

Thur - Recovery

Fri - Recovery (had an endurance run planned but had to cancel, leaving a big hole in the week)

Sat - Recovery

Sun - Couldn’t make it out to the trails unfortunately so ran a quick ish road half marathon training run. 22k - 1h 53min. 

Total: 55k


So not entirely happy with the week missing my Friday run and getting out on the trails. Happy with getting started on the sprints and tempo runs. The stairs were great also. Think I’m really going to benefit from more of them. I might be getting a loan of a weight vest for the stairs training also which could be beautifully brutal. Body still feeling great. No aches or pains following any workout. Sweet. Onward and Upward.

Annie get your Run

Stairs workout? Is that a thing?

aquinn

machomac wrote: »

Yeah its an awesome spot. Its about a 1 and a half hour drive from me so a lot of the long training runs will be on the course. No races lined up til Feb, March and April where there is a 16k, 20k and then a 50k. Until then the trail running race season kind off finishes over here due to to the heat and bush fires etc. Also will back in Ireland in 6 weeks for Christmas. Don't think there is too much racing going at that time.

Hey,

If you're looking for events over Christmas maybe try EOI marathons. They do a canal marathon and no doubt a few ultras around the NY. They had a Howth event too, maybe 5 marathons on 5 days sounds suitable with what you have planned.

Good luck.

machomac

Annie get your Run wrote: »

Stairs workout? Is that a thing?

Yeah its a bit of a thing in trail running. There's something silly like 5 or 6 thousand steps alone in this race. The last 300 metres of the 100k is a 950 step climb. Cruel. So when I looked into it its supposed to be great cardio and quad and calf workout. Also good for core strength and stability. Recommended for road runners also. I have also heard of coaches recommending it for runners recovering from injury as it is low impact (if you just go up, not down). Rocky used to run up stairs and he fought Mr T so case closed on the benefits :D. 
https://goqii.com/blog/stair-climbing-one-of-the-best-exercises/ ;

aquinn wrote: »

machomac wrote: »

Yeah its an awesome spot. Its about a 1 and a half hour drive from me so a lot of the long training runs will be on the course. No races lined up til Feb, March and April where there is a 16k, 20k and then a 50k. Until then the trail running race season kind off finishes over here due to to the heat and bush fires etc. Also will back in Ireland in 6 weeks for Christmas. Don't think there is too much racing going at that time.

Hey,

If you're looking for events over Christmas maybe try EOI marathons. They do a canal marathon and no doubt a few ultras around the NY. They had a Howth event too, maybe 5 marathons on 5 days sounds suitable with what you have planned.

Good luck.

Cheers for that. They look to have one on the 27th. Can't see myself making that one realistically but I'll keep it in mind.