Runner’s Life

5 high-mileage training tips from ultrarunners

Pros share secrets for pushing yourself to the very max

By Christopher Prawdzik - lifelinesrunner@yahoo.com
Posted : October 08, 2007

While other sailors were pounding the pierside pavement for their 1.5-mile fitness test run this summer, Special Warfare Operator 1st Class David Goggins was deep in the Death Valley desert.

In a little more than a day, Goggins racked up enough mileage to finish 90 physical training test runs back to back as he claimed third place in one of the world’s toughest foot races, the 135-mile Badwater Ultramarathon.

The morning of July 23, the Navy SEAL left a starting line in the California desert that was 282 feet below sea level. And after 25 hours, 49 minutes and 40 seconds on the move, he crossed the finish high atop Mount Whitney (elevation: 14,496 feet).

Goggins, 32, is among an elite group of “ultramarathoners,” men and women for whom a 26.2-mile marathon isn’t quite enough to test the limits of their endurance. An ultrarace is a test that is as much mental as it is physical. And how ultrarunners train their brains and bodies can pay off for mere mortal runners, too.

Mind games
Perhaps the best-known ultrarunner is Dean Karnazes, who made headlines last fall with his “North Face Endurance 50,” when he ran 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days — and then followed up this already amazing feat by running 1,300 miles from New York City to St. Louis.

For Karnazes, the most important aspects of ultramarathon training is the mind-set adjustment. Don’t focus on speed, he recommends — focus on finishing.

“A fit person can fake their way through a marathon; you just can’t do that with an ultramarathon,” he said. “There are no shortcuts.”

Karnazes, author of the bestselling book, “Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner,” has a long list of long-distance accomplishments, from a win at Badwater in 2004 to logging 148 miles in 24 hours on a treadmill. His longest run was 350 miles over 82 hours — mostly nonstop.

The key is teaching your brain to keep moving long after your body has voted to throw in the towel.

“The one thing is that time on your feet matters,” Karnazes said. “I recommend people spend six to eight hours on a training run, just to get used to moving forward for that duration.”

Goggins, of Chula Vista, Calif., favors 100-milers as his race of choice. When he spoke to Military Times in mid-September, he’d already logged 100-milers on Sept. 8 and Sept. 15 and was preparing for another century run Sept. 28.

Here’s how Goggins recommends wrapping your head around the challenge:

Beat your quitter instinct. “I realize that 100 miles is a very brutal thing to do to your body,” he said. “You have to train to where you’re seriously thinking about quitting.”

Be prepared to hurt — a lot. Goggins said his high threshold for pain is what pushes him through those long, endless miles. “I’m prepared to feel like crap, so when it happens, it doesn’t shock me; it doesn’t throw me off my game.”

Don’t forget your body
While you’re training your brain, you can’t neglect your body, either, or you’ll pay a painful price. Karnazes and Goggins shared tips for getting your body ready for serious punishment.

Build your mileage gradually. In any long-distance run, it’s tough to find the time — and dedication — required to keep up with the training. For an ultramarathon, Goggins recommends building from a base of 40-50 miles a week. From there, add no more than 10 percent to your distance each week.

Goggins admitted that he didn’t follow the 10 percent rule initially, and his body was unprepared. He finished his first 101-mile race in 19 hours — but he also broke most of the tiny bones in his feet.

Carbs are king. While Goggins consumes as many quick calories as possible during a race, he spends his training time focused on complex carbohydrates. “I eat a lot of pasta — more than probably anybody on the planet,” he said. But he stays away from caffeine and simple sugars while at the training table.

Nutrition is particularly important for Goggins because of his build.

Once a heavy lifter at 6 foot 1 inch tall and 280 pounds, he crammed his training schedule so tight during his early ultrarunning days that he dropped nearly 80 pounds in about three months. Now that his training schedule has stabilized, he has settled in at about 190 pounds, with a body fat percentage of about 4.5 percent.

Train tough — but not too tough. Goggins recovers quickly after a race, primarily because he trains on “heavy” legs, rather than waiting until he feels fully rested before getting back out on the road.

For extra training and leg strength, he also completes 10- to 12-hour mountain workouts, walking uphill and running downhill sections — all with a 60- to 70-pound rucksack on his back.

Karnazes also emphasized the need for extremely long but measured workouts.

“The biggest mistake I see [is] people going out way too hard,” he said. “If you fry yourself early, it’s a death spiral.”

Even though an ultramarathon — or even a marathon — might appear insurmountable, it might be closer than some think.

Goggins said he is blessed with the desire, drive and pain tolerance to complete these mega-distances, but he thinks a lot more people could be ultramarathoners if they wanted to.

“This is my honest opinion: I think everybody who has a strong mind, a strong heart and a healthy body has the ability to do an ultramarathon,” he said.

You just really have to want it.

http://www.navytimes.com/issues/stories/0-NAVYPAPER-3070565.php