Surviving Ultra

Because DFL is still an accomplishment

Tag: fitness

  • Base Building Finishing Thoughts

    I just finished the last workout of the Tactical Barbell base building phase and I really enjoyed the program.  It was a great way to get myself back onto a structured running program while still continuing to incorporate strength training into the mix. My per mile times have improved over the course of the two months and I think the program was ideal for building a foundation off of which to build on in future blocks.  After a couple of weeks of religiously incorporating the couch stretch and some of the other correctives, my knees are feeling better when running downhill too.  The program and the progress I made has helped me rediscover some of the passion that first got me into running many years ago and I am excited to start my next training block. 

    The most interesting discovery for me, however, was the two day a week Fighter strength template that the base building block makes use of.  It’s a minimalistic template that is designed to be submaximal in order to allow it to be paired with intense conditioning activities.  While minimalistic, however, it’s a template I can still see myself making slow but steady progress with.  While I haven’t retested my maxes yet, the RPE for the weights I was using definitely became easier than it was for the same weight before my base building phase.  While I admit that I did give into the temptation to add some accessory work in the form of dips and chin-ups on some of the workouts, I really liked the submaximal concept.  As miles per week levels begin in increase and the training gets harder to recover from a result, I think the Fighter template will be nice tool in my arsenal to maintain strength. Now onto my next training block which I will detail in my next post.

  • Running Correctives

    With any endurance sport there is always a risk for overuse injuries and injury prevention is critical as nothing will impact training for an event more than not being able to do it because of an injury. Doing a few thousand feet of downhills each week has the potential to become such an overuse injury for me.  I’ve been more conscious of my form and have tried to make a conscious effort to always maintain good posture and to lessen the amount I sit which has helped, but there is always room to do more. Because of my success with alleviating some issues after reading Deskbound, I decided to check out Ready to Run which is also by Kelly Starret.  It provides a series of 12 recommendations to help keep runners injury free and improve longevity in the sport.  Many of the recommendations are simple to implement such as drinking more electrolytes to improve hydration or wearing zero drop shoes while others touch on warm up and mobility routines to address common running problems.  While some recommendations I already touch on (e.g. the couch stretch), I have not been doing them with the daily frequency recommended in the book. 

    I’m going to start incorporating the recommendations in this book into my daily routine and finish out my last 2 weeks of the Tactical Barbell base building program. Once the base building phase wraps up, I intend to continue giving the recommendations in the book a try over the next couple of months but will probably put a temporary freeze on any major mileage increases until I give my body time to properly adjust to the downhill volume.  I will be picking a 10K or half marathon program with similar weekly mileages to what I am already doing and working on running those miles in an issue free manner.  I will be pairing this program with a strength program so I can continue to make improvements in that area as well. 

  • Too Many Hills???

    While having easy access to steep hills can be a great thing for an ultrarunner, I’m learning it can have its downsides as well.  Roads and trails that I am able to run regularly average about 250 ft of elevation gain every mile. It’s great that my new base building phase has me consistently running again and I have made some nice improvements to my aerobic base as well as improvements in the “mountain legs” department.  Doing a few thousand feet of elevation gain each week has made my ability to go up hills noticeably better.  I’ve also made some improvements on the downhills as well.  Downhill running was always a weak point for me (still is).  I tend to break too much and not lean forward enough, which is something I am getting better at but still need to improve.  My quad endurance has also improved greatly and I don’t find myself with destroyed quads anymore after a lot of downhill running.  This is all great and has allowed me to push longer and farther, but as my distances are increasing, I’m noticing the increased downhill efforts are starting to lead to some soreness in the knees. While “too many hills” is a good problem to have for an ultrarunner, it does mean that I may have to be more conservative about how I build up the distance and that I may need to incorporate some corrective exercises into my programming.

    I was originally thinking of moving onto the Tactical Barbell Green Protocol book which builds you up to running ultra-distances, with concurrent strength training, as my next step, but I may opt to first cap the distance I am running and focus on improving my downhill form (and speed on uphills and flats) so I can keep running consistently and avoid injury when I eventually do make further increases in distance.  With 3 successful 50Ks in the bank, it’s no longer a matter of can I do the distance, but how can I do it better so I can eventually scale to 50 miles.  Slowing down a bit on running distance progressions to correct a problem, while still being a more consistent runner than I was with training for my previous races, will still be a win and Green Protocol will still be there waiting for me in a couple of months. 

  • Burpee Ladders

    While trail running tends to be a largely aerobic activity and burpees can rapidly turn into an anaerobic one, being introduced to ultrarunning through Spartan races, you can’t help but form a love/hate relationship with the burpee.  Burpees feature prominently not only in Spartan inspired workouts, but also as penalties for failing an obstacle (although penalty loops have become more common in recent years).  Burpees have long been a staple of my training and burpee ladders in particular are a go to when looking for an intense HIIT workout. Burpees are something I find:

    1. Help build explosive power – The quick transitions between positions and the full body muscle engagement makes burpees a great way to train explosivity, which as a Spartan racer can help you power your way over an obstacle.  As a trail runner they can help you power your way up a particularly steep section of the trail.
    2. Mental Toughness – Burpees rapidly get challenging. Just like the ultra saying “run the first half with your legs, the second half with your mind”, completing a burpee ladder can often turn into a mental game.  They are a great way to prove to yourself that you can endure.
    3. Can be mixed with hill sprints  – Mixing alternating rounds of burpees and hill sprints forms a killer workout.  For example, do a set of burpees and then sprint up a hill, walk down, and repeat. 
    4. Can be done indoors with limited space – We all have days when we can’t go outside or get to a gym.  Burpees require no equipment and very limited space allowing for an intense workout almost anywhere.

    For some interesting ideas on burpee ladders and burpee variations I found the Jailhouse Strong book Josh Bryant and Adam benShea worthwhile.  I liked the different burpee ladder options that it offered such as the Baker’s Dozen and the Prisoner Burpee Challenge, but what I really liked is that it did not just provide the workout but target times for different levels of fitness.  While progress can always be assessed by I ran faster or I lifted more, sometimes it’s nice to see how your time stacks up against a standard as a goal of beating or exceeding a certain standard can be motivational.

  • Rucking Cross Training

    When I laid out the Base Building Phase that I am currently running, I mentioned that one of my zone 2 cardio activities was going to be a hilly ruck with a 40 pound vest.  Rucking for ultramarathon prep seems to be a topic that elicits very mixed reviews when you search for opinions on it with some saying it has helped them and others saying the time would be better off spent running.  I think it is a bit more nuanced than “it’s great, everyone should do it” or “it’s a waste of time, just run”.  Here is my rationale for using rucking as a cross training activity and why I think it benefits me.

    Elevation Gain Differences – While I have access to some decent sized hills, sometimes the races I like to run are often in locations that have steeper elevation profiles than I can run on a day to day basis.  I find rucking up the hills I have access to a great way to build the “mountain legs” required to get myself up those steeper race day climbs.  To me it’s the same principle as using an ultra-training program where they have you perform a prolonged period of dumbbell step ups to strengthen and build endurance in your legs, only less monotonous. While I do think there are advantages to dumbbell step ups and do incorporate them in some training blocks, rucking, for me, is a way to gain a similar benefit while getting to explore someplace interesting.

    Not a World Class Runner – One of the common arguments against rucking is xyz champion doesn’t do it.  I think being realistic about where you stand is important though.  A championship runner maybe can run the entirety or at least the majority of their race, but that is not the case for me.  If I’m realistic with myself, I have to admit that there are going to be significant parts of a race where I will probably need to switch from running to power hiking. These parts are significant enough that there is benefit to training the power hiking component as a way of improving my completion time. While it’s hard to say for certain if it has made me a faster runner, it has definitely helped to improve my hiking speed which is a win for my current ability level.

    Lower Impact – For me personally, I find it lower impact than running with the added benefit that it uses many of the same muscles as running but in slightly different way.  The slight difference seems to allow me to add in rucking as a cross training session each week without feeling like I am over training.  I don’t run with the added weight as that much too high impact, but stick to a power hike.

    Functional Core Strength – Rucking is also a great compliment to other core strengthening exercises and helps you build strength and muscle endurance in your core which helps with maintaining good form in the later stages of race. 

    Perhaps if I had everyday access to steep terrain and the time to build up to such a high weekly mileage that running the majority of an ultra was not a question, I would reconsider my approach.  However, as a frequent power hiker without daily access to race-like elevation profiles, rucking is working well for me as a cross training option.

  • Trap Bar Deadlifts for Ultrarunners?

    Deadlifts have been a part of my strength training routine for quite some time now, but for the longest time I performed them with a barbell and never gave any thought to trying a trap bar.  Prior to starting my current round of base-building I did a 3-month strength focused block where I gave a trap bar a try for the first time.  The idea to give it a try was largely inspired by a lot of the research compiled in this article on the trap bar authored for Stronger by Science:

    Trap Bar Deadlifts are Underrated

    While this is just my personal experience and therefore anecdotal, my experience was a positive one and I can see myself using the trap bar again in future training blocks.  For the duration of the block I used the trap bar in the low handle position to try to maximize the hinge effect.  I found that:

    1. Less fatigue: Deadlifting with the trap bar was less fatiguing for me.  Working out the day after a heavy deadlift session was always a bit of a challenge as I always felt a bit more fatigued than I would after any other type of strength session, which often impacted my desire to run the next day. When I switched to the trap bar, I felt I still solidly worked out my posterior chain but I did not feel the same level of post workout fatigue which allowed me to push harder on the next day’s work out.
    2. More forgiving of form: While properly positioning the spine and bracing your core is essential before any lift, the trap bar is a bit more forgiving if everything is not perfect.  This made me a little more comfortable challenging myself to get in the extra rep or two as even if my form degraded a bit because of tiredness, the same likelihood of injury was not there. I was a bit more comfortable pushing myself closer to form failure which in turn helped make for a better workout. 
    3. More quad activation: Given how quad destroying running downhill segments can be, I found this to be an added benefit and not a downside.  It turned the deadlift into a bit of an “accessory” exercise for the quadriceps which I feel has had a positive impact on running hills. 

    Given my experiences I plan to use the trap bar deadlift as my primary deadlift variation going forward, particularly for the months of the year where I will be more running focused as the lower level of fatigue is a major advantage. I will likely not abandon the straight bar deadlift entirely though.  I can see myself occasionally going back to it in strength focused blocks or if I hit a plateau with the trap bar to hit the muscles in a slightly different way.