Seasoned marathoner who’s done one 50 miler (JFK). Want to take training for my next ultra up a notch. Where can I find the best training plans?

Hello everyone, Interested in this 30k or 50k… Are these the rates of races these Days?

I have not ever done a race this long. I don’t want to make any assumptions. I also know there there will not be a medal or tshirt. Instead you bring a shirt and when you cross the finish line you take someone’s shirt.

Any thoughts? Thanks again!

If anyone on here has a pair of Leki poles, or if you know the difference in the models, I am curious how different they are. I’m on their website and see a few different models like ultra trail, evo trail, and neo-trail, but I’m not sure what the exact differences were. Any idea?

Curious if any ultra trail runners are on there hypermobil/ED spectrum and if so, what you do to stay strong and support your body while getting the miles in.

Hi all. I have been making steady progress on a web app that makes it easier for you to share your Strava races (activities marked as 'Races') with others and I was hoping to get some feedback? Especially about how it looks, how easy/intuitive it is to use, missing features, bugs etc?Please take a look if you can: https://myraceindex.comFeel free to leave me feedback here or email me at chris@mepham.uk. Thank you.

I need some help. My reach goal run did not work out and I need to find another one. There are so many great options, my running partner and I are going back and forth on a good target and decided we need to come up with three domestic and three international trail runs then go from there. So, what are your top 3 trail runs and why?

My Criteria:

• Can be up to 50 miles in 1 to 3 days with <10K elevation gain.

• R2R has been done this year, so holding the R2R2R for a few years.

• Have never been above 8K feet, so have not acclimated or experienced with high altitude (yet!), so trying to stay lower for now.

• Western U.S. weighted high as I have not seen much of it yet.

• Race if possible (for the fun, not the competition).

I would love to hear what you all would choose and why. I need a goal to work towards mentally and physically, and an epic run in my future will help me greatly.

Does anybody have experience with charity bibs for UTMB. Unfortunately due to being in the North East of the US and work, I don’t see myself getting stones in a realistic timeframe. Grindstone is the only one nearby and my job makes it a bit difficult to take time off to go to the west coast for some of the races.

I’m familiar with the NYC marathon so the concept of $2k+ charity bibs isn’t too unfamiliar. Does anybody have experience trying to get one? Do they sell out almost immediately? Can I fundraise for that amount or do I need to be the one that pull the full amount down?

I understand the requirements to qualify but I don’t see much information of people’s actual experience of getting it.

Have you noticed a shift in your menstrual cycle after lowering training volume? The last few months I raced a ton, doing a hard 100 miler in August, a 50 miler in September, and another 100 in October. I have been chilling out and running way less with the change of the seasons and enjoying more cross training activities like skiing and weightlifting. I have gained some weight as a result of not running as much (not a bad thing!) and feel like my cycle has been much more hormonally intense.

I need help to choose the best ultra marathon in the alps/mountains of Europe. I want a scenic route with lots of vertical meters.

In 2018, I finished my first ultra marathon, a 50k on single track. It totally wrecked my body (probably due to me only training 7 weeks in advance), but after the race, I decided that I will never sign up for something similar unless I'm more ready to “race” the race.

Fast-forward 6 years, and I've finally reached a point where I think that I'm capable of doing so with 7–8 more months of consistent training.

I want to sign up for a 50-60k ultra in the alps/or mountains of Europe. Currently, I've been looking at the Adidas TERREX Infinite series 60k run with 5000m vertical meters. From what I can see, this seems like a race has the following three properties I'm looking for:

1. well organized

2. Beautiful surroundings

3. in September (I need at least 7-8 months of training from now)

What other races would you recommend me with these properties?

I'm open for races that +-10km of 60k. Maybe, just maybe a 100k if the route is just too incredible, but I think it's not enough time to train for (maybe in 1–2 years)?

I watched a great format for a race with bikes in a velodrome: About twenty cyclists. For one lap the peleton, stays together. Every second lap is a sprint, and the last one across the line is eliminated.

Surely you could do a great running race format in a similar way. Maybe 300m off, 100m on. Or better yet, in an actual velodrome, making fake motorbike noises the whole time.

Or maybe a sprint to finish every lap of a backyard ultra?

Hit me with your ideas. I'll get a local group to do the best suggestion.

Anyone have any experience with Compressport sizing? Do they run small comparative to US sizing, like Zoot or similar?

Looking into getting a new trail bag on a budget and this one looks promising. Anyone else have it? And if so do you like it?

I am looking for the toughest leggings for trail running. I’m lucky enough to have 2 places to run on large private property that has no designated paths or trails

Lots of sharp limestone and large dry creeks that require climbing large jammed rocks, lots of down trees, lots of cactus and lots of rough brush that tears stuff apart.

Right now I just run through it, but I’m a pansy when it comes to cold sometimes and would like a pair of leggings that don’t tear where they lightly brush a limb. Rocks are so rough I get about 80-100 miles out of trail shoes before they need to be replaced

Hoping some foot freaks will check out my toe pics and share some opinions about what I should have done differently:

https://imgur.com/a/toe-talk-chUcZ5K

Background: This is my right toe after a self supported back-to-back-50ks two day thing. Both of my 1st toes always get corns on the outside edge - if I routinely file them down they aren’t ever painful. Right toe started bothering me towards the end of the second day as a blister was forming. Left foot was fine, but both developed this deep red/brown, mildly tender circles in the area where the corns develop and I routinely file down

Q: I should have put some leukotape on the right toe when I started to notice it, but wonder if these circles are speaking to anybody about what I should do next time. Should I just be pre-taping? Lubing? Am I filing too much? It’s never caused an issue before but this was a new max distance for me

Thanks for any advice and you’re welcome if you get off on it!

Hi everyone,

I'd like to do a UTMB event. I've done some road marathons and ultras before (up to 70 km) and so I feel confident about the distance of a 50 km (approx) trail run.

This might sound crazy but I prefer the idea of a net uphill elevation.

Most of the events I've seen on the UTMB site are either neutral elevation (example: 2500 metres up and 2500 down, so net zero overall) or even have a net downhill profile. Does anybody know of UTMB 50 km events that have an uphill net gain? Bonus points for dry conditions that limit the amount of mandatory gear that needs to be packed (if that's at all possible).

Thanks!

This past year, my husband has gotten really into marathon running. I’m looking for some cool running gear to get him for Christmas. He already has plenty of clothes and shoes. He likes running in the morning, and now that it’ll be dark when he starts his run, I was looking at the Noxgear tracking vest. But, he already runs with a running hydration pack (on top of a regular reflective vest) so I’m not sure how he would wear both the hydration and tracker vest.

Any running related gift ideas you have is welcomed because I don’t know much about long distance running.

Hi everyone,

I am an experienced running (been running seriously for ~10years) and unfortunately in the last two months I started to have external knee pain/feeling if instability. I was diagnosed with IT band syndrome in my left leg (MRI confirmed). I have seen a physio (who gave me exercises and tried dry needling) and I also completely stopped running. I wanted to have some more guidance for my strength exercises, so I went to see a running-focused Kinesiologist. He took a video of me running to determine if my form could be causing the problem and there is a big difference in my foot strike from left to right. My right is a normal looking mid-foot strike. On the left, I am heavily front striking and landing on the exterior side of my foot. The Kin also noticed that I "pop" too much during my run, like I am bouncing. We also deduced a small strength difference between left and right side, with the left side being slightly stronger.
The Kin is going to work on a plan for me, but curious if anyone else has had similar issues and how they were able to solve them. Thanks in advance :)

Used Runna for a year or so found it very repetitive and felt like I started to Plateau, recently tried the Vert.Run app but really don’t like the interface.

Understand I need an actual physical coach to give me tailored training and check ins but it’s not an option money wise atm.

Is there any alternatives to these? I’m UK Based.

Currently just planning on building a base over winter.

I managed to sign up for this: https://dajingmen.utmb.world/races/20K on WeChat despite the registrations being closed on the US site, I believe my signup went through but I can’t find much info outside of what’s listed on the UTMB site. I am wondering if this is the first year they’ve run it or something.

Any insight would be appreciated.

Hello all! Wondering if anybody else has experienced this (recommendations by or for nutritionists appreciated!): I'm a 35 yo female and feel like my nutrition is pretty ok. My normal morning routine is: eat a waffle with peanut butter and salt before a run or workout (usually with a bite something sugary too) > workout > eat a larger meal (always eggs and toast) > immediately feel like I need a nap. My energy is just zapped after I eat, and I'm assuming I'm hitting some kind of carb crash/blood sugar issue. I thought I was doing things right: eating when I wake up so my body isn't flooded with carbs all at once, not overloading with carbs post-run (I usually eat 1-2 pieces of toast with eggs), and if I'm doing a longer run (> 10 miles) I'll eat something during the run as well. This seems to happen to me regardless of the workout too: could be a zone 2 easy jog, a strength workout, a speed day, or a longer run. I feel like my calorie intake is appropriate: I don't starve myself or go to bed hungry (ref: I'm 107lbs and eat between 1,500 on a rest day up to 2,500 or more on a big run day.I count calories and try to keep everything balanced, dinners also includes a mix of carbs and protein, no funky diets).

As much as I love a good nap, I'm wondering if anybody has experienced this, can share their story and what they tweaked. Suggestions appreciated! :)

I've heard for marathons you multiply the half time by 2.something and you have a very rough approximation of your full marathon time .

I doubt there is a rule this simple for 100ks but to those who have done both I'm curious how the two times are related, what you factor in and things that are easy to overlook.

For the sake of comparison let's assume it's a PR time for the 50k and the 100k is two laps of the exact same course with the same weather ect.

I actually have done both myself (just once for the 100k) but the rain made the course un run-able for anyone not wearing crampons lol so I can't really compare. If I ignored the different course it would be 2.7 times the 50k time for the 100k time.

Thanks in advance for your insights and happy trails!

I am currently a zero drop fan of Altra. I train in escalate racer 2 but mostly barefoot xeros. I have only worked up to a marathon distance but eyeing longer duration.

I am thinking about getting the Torrin 7 for a daily trainer and road 50 miler. Any recommendations on shoe cushion (high, med, low) and stack height (ex. 30 mm) for longer distance road races 50 miles - 100 miles? Would prefer to stay zero drop.

Hey guys. A friend and I are going to run/hike/fastpack a lot next summer. Maybe 3-4 days each time and around 25-50km each day. I'm looking for a vest / pack recommendation. Currently have a salomon running vest and love it.

Does anyone else have an issue with swollen legs at the end of the day, not during an ultra - regular everyday training? I feel that at the end of the day my legs look and feel so swollen.

If anyone has this or has had issues in the past with this and a way you’ve fixed it, I’d love to hear!

I will be doing my first ultra UTS Snowdonia 55k (3.3k elevation) in May next year and currently considering signing up to a road Marathon around mid April. Which would be during one of my peak weeks of training volume for the ultra.

I’ve done two road marathons before, both in 2024 with times of 3:48 & 3:28. And a couple of trail races but only up to 25k and 1000m of elevation.

I’m aware that the main difference of this ultra will be the intense elevation and I plan to make hill training a core element of training for the next few months until race day.

Do you think doing a marathon during a training cycle is a good or bad idea?

Hello runners! I'm considering stepping up into the 100k-ish events next year and was considering one of these two as my primary event for the spring. For those that have run and/or crewed at both events, what are your thoughts, and what would you consider when making the same decision?

Many thanks!