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Aug 2014
3:14pm, 6 Aug 2014
2,428 posts
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Triplet Dad
5 weeks to go and I'm just starting out running again after a 2 month hiatus since the Fling and our club's running of the John Muir Way. I think I may need to set my sights lower than the 50 miles in 12 Hrs I was hoping to do a couple of months ago.
Whatever I manage it'll be good conditioning for the Clyde Stride and the Jedburgh 3 peaks which I have coming up.
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Aug 2014
3:18pm, 6 Aug 2014
70,685 posts
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santababy
good thing about Glenmore is that its entirely up to you what you do. no pressures. I'll be there to offer words of wisdom 
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Aug 2014
4:04pm, 11 Aug 2014
47 posts
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idle_wilder
Precisely why I've entered sb! Looking forward to it - no idea what to expect, and feeling like I haven't done much since Dundee marathon, but also not wanting to risk doing too long a run now it's only 4 weeks!
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Aug 2014
4:49pm, 11 Aug 2014
22,564 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
Last long run for me this weekend - going to try 47 miles on Saturday. Anyone want to join me (central Scotland - I'm planning on taking train to Glasgow then running back along canal tow path towards Edinburgh, opportunities to cut short and jump on train at Falkirk 26 miles, Linlithgow 35 miles).
Then 3 weeks recovery! G
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Aug 2014
8:39am, 25 Aug 2014
9 posts
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Sjjh
As ready as I'll ever be for this one now. Had a nice day out on Saturday running from Fort William to Bridge of Orchy. Really pleased to have went to the 7 hours plus mark as I learned quite a bit on what to expect come race day. Looking forward to it!
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Aug 2014
10:32am, 25 Aug 2014
22,615 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
Nice one Sjjh, that's a big day out. Well done. Very easy 7 and 10 for me this weekend. I do love taper time!  G
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Aug 2014
1:29pm, 25 Aug 2014
11 posts
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Sjjh
I'm moving into taper mode shortly, just the small matter of Paisley 10k on Sunday!
Not looking for anything spectacular just avoid any niggles.
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Aug 2014
4:01pm, 27 Aug 2014
22,648 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
I've noticed ultra runners tend to be a lot less *ahem* errr "structured" in their training. Would that be fair to say?!
For a marathon, there are threads and threads and books and whole websites calculating paces down to the second and carb intake to the mg for optimum preparation and race day execution.
In ultra land there seems to be a lot more "I just eat fish and chips and run a bit, then I rock up on race day and see what happens." Now it could be because everyone is different, and what works for one doesn't for another etc. but that's true of marathons to a certain extent too, but doesn't stop people writing books and making money out of it.
So why the reticence to define a training plan and race approach? Is it some sort of ultra runner inverted-snobbery? Or preserving the mystique of it all - if you have to ask, then you're not a real (wo)man of the long distance trail and you don't deserve to enjoy our beloved sport?
Yes, it's taper time and I'm spouting nonsense with time on my hands! G
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Aug 2014
4:41pm, 27 Aug 2014
854 posts
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RedWineRunner
HappyG; dude, chill out - you're over thinking it. It's just running. I ran 4 miles last week and 8 miles this week. Next week I'll probably run 60ish.
With ultras, half the fun is figuring out what works for you for yourself. The journey doesn't start at the start of your first ultra, it starts at the beginning of your training. It's easy enough to explain to someone how to train to run a 5k, but nobody wants to be the one to sit down and try and explain the definitive guide on how to train for and execute the perfect 50 miler. Unless they're a total asshole, no one who's run ultras for a while will sit down and try and tell you what or what not to do in great detail. There's lots of assholes in road running...less so in ultras. They're out there for sure, but there's less of them.
I hate it when people ask me how to train for an ultra. Or worse...how to change their training from training for 41 miler to a 53 miler or something wildly specific like that. Just because I've finished a handful, doesn't mean I know how they personally should do it. I never get more technical than 'run lots, rest lots, eat right'...and that's not going to fill a book.
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Aug 2014
4:48pm, 27 Aug 2014
22,651 posts
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HappyG(rrr)
Ah. I'm either an a-hole or the annoying one who *wants* to ask, "so how do a I change my training to do as well as I can in my next 100 miler" please?!
Sorry, but there are ways of optimising what you, even for ultra running. And there are those of us anal enough to want to do the best we can with the little we've got! Half the fun of running for me is the analysis, planning, training, adjusting, optimising and then on the day seeing it all come right. Or all go wrong and starting a new plan trying to fix what went wrong last time.
Don't know if that's "over thinking" - I think it's just thinking! And I rather like that!
And you also undersell yourself (no harm in that, it's just your modesty) - as you actually *could* fill a book with
* training that went well
* training that made your race go well
* training that was useless
* training that you could have done more of
* preparation - getting your kit right
* preparation - arriving in good shape and relaxed at start line and the effect on your race
* race day execution - going slow and finishing strongly
* race day - nutrition and hydration
etc.
I know, cos I've read it all in your blogs. And you've even analysed "went well vs. need to change next time" lessons learned type stuff. So actually, distil that and you've just written a book (or at least an article) on "how to train, prepare and race well at my next ultra"! For which I say, "Thank you RWR"! G
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