This was interesting to me. The strength work looks great. I'm doing a lot more weight training since my objectives have changed from running long distances to long approaches in the mountains with a heavy backpack, and then climbing the mountains with the climbing gear in the heavy backpack. You might want to check out Training for the New Alpinism by Steve House (the same guy who wrote Training for the Uphill Athlete). I think the strength programs would transfer well to Hardrock.
It's so fascinating that you wrote on durability, as I was just deeply thinking lately "if anything, durability is a word that describes me, physically and mentally". Yes, fully aware of the difference with endurance. Durable and resilient, getting through life's shit, and through miles and miles. Turning around, from Canyons 100k, straight back to training with over 100 mpw and lots of vert, running a 50k in the middle of it, and keep plowing through. I'm grateful for this weird gift, and don't take it for granted, mindful I can lose it any moment. I feel urgency to use my durability, because wild things (like an accident and a surgery 2.5 years ago) can force me to stop. In some odd way, I don't want to "spread it like OB, thinly, but longer". I want to press on, use it, and when it's done and over, rethink other options.
Kudos on knowing what YOU need. On the deliberate fueling (my other weird prop). On creating a self-driven program to tend to your weaker points and focusing on that, rather than dwelling. Mind is a powerful thing. Rooting for you and your long awaited Hardrock!
I wish! I'm hoping to be "past" that area, fingers crossed 😉 I seem to not be willing to give up on one of my crazy ideas (if you know what I mean). Once it finally happens, I will move on to a better summer spread out! I would have loved to help you!
On a related to one of your paragraphs (and our previous discussion) points, GNAR races are absolutely incredible, comparing to a big name thing that overcharges and gives so little. I actually had to defer my entry to Kodiak (wish they offered refunds, mofo), because I can't bear the thought of 3rd time crowded race and sucky goodies. Lots of pomp, not heart. But, I had to make the judgment for myself per experience.
I always learn so much from your writing, Sarah! So happy you had a good training run and preserved your body for Hardrock. That’s an interesting concept of distant self-talk. I tend to beat myself up for “mistakes” during races (especially during falls or bonks or other slowdowns) and this practice would help me to stay calm and positive - I’ll check out the Hidden Brain podcast too. For longevity practice, I tend to do more daily / midweek mileage to reach a high weekly total - I only do a couple long training blocks on the weekend (need to get the body and mind used to this!), but not as many as other ultra runners I know. Some of this is due to family schedule, but also find it much easier to recover from a 15-miler than a 50K+. Just one day of recovery and I’m back at it again, my body isn’t as beaten up and depleted, and I feel like I can get more out of my training and avoid injury. For longer and more arduous races, this might not work! But it has helped me so far. Wishing you best of luck for your training push in the next five weeks, will be cheering for you!
Katie, thanks for catching up on my newsletters and for your feedback! I definitely need to up my midweek runs in the coming 6 weeks (in addition to maintaining a long weekend run). A medium-length midweek run, I've found, is so beneficial for endurance and gets us out of being "weekend warriors."
Sarah, we are so excited to see you at Animas in a few weeks :) Great job coaching yourself through, knowing when to call it - you have a bigger goal this year!!! What is the long sleeve you wore at Quad Rock?
Hi Julie, I'm so excited to get to Animas Forks and see your crew and hit reset there. I was looking at Open Split Time last night, estimating my splits for ~44 hour effort, and realizing holy shit, it'll take me 4ish hours between Burrows and AF, I'll really need you and your crew! (and my pacer, who'll meet me there) Bless you. As for the sun top, it's by rabbit. I didn't see it on their website anymore but REI has it and REI has their sale going on now, so grab it before it's sold out! https://www.rei.com/product/243045/rabbit-upf-deflector-20-shirt-womens
Glad you were able to benefit from Quad Rock in terms of building mental resilience, and also glad you were able to pull the plug to allow for recovery to focus on your A race. HARDROCK!!!!!
I’ve been working on durability just by getting back to a near daily foam roll routine and working on yoga a few times a week to keep flexibility through my body. I have been doing strength 1-2x a week as well, but that was mainly through the winter, and it’s the first thing to fall off if I’m tired. I think taking an off season and back country skiing on the weekends instead of doing long runs in the winter has also allowed my body more rest and recover for training. One of the things Koop has mentioned in his podcast, is that as we age we don’t need to stop doing what we’re doing, we may just need a little extra rest.
Great write-up, so many great lessons to take away here! I love a Gnar runners event, if you have ever a chance to run Never Summer 100k it's spectacular!
Wow, I am nursing a knee injury and “poor me” is running loops in my mind. Your newsletter always helps me to reset and be kinder to myself. Thanks for taking the time to write this!! And so glad you shared the “durability” concept!
I love the intentionality of everything you bring to these pursuits. Also, that work out screen shot breakdown was dizzying. Did you build that program yourself? Amazing.
Yeah, the workout mix was just based on what I felt I needed. Would’ve done more core if I had more time. My guidance on strength conditioning is summed up here:
I love your attitude and I’m inspired by your ability to dust yourself off and get down to business. I have been having my ups and downs about racing as I begin to slow down and appreciate your commitment to Hardrock. Have you ever experimented with nose strips? I wonder if that would help. I gave one to a friend on our recent R2R2R when she was having breathing issues and I think it helped. Also, where do you stand on tight cutoffs for some of these races? I completely understand the race directors perspective, but wish cutoffs could be more generous as more aging runners or slower runners want to participate. Best of luck with the next training block.
Thank you! I do not plan to try nose strips because they are really for nasal passages and my issue is with my lungs, and there’s not good evidence to back them up anyway.
For QuadRock 50 as well as Miwok 100K (also notoriously tight for older runners to make) the cutoff time is due to the permit. Brad apologized to me about the 14 hour limit last Saturday, but said there’s nothing they can do about it.
Good job on the race and good job on the post! I enjoyed reading it. I also "ran" the Quad Rock 50 this past Saturday, I think I caught a glimpse of you during my approach to mile 25. There was a guy standing on the trail, he yelled "SNAKE!"-- I think is where you rolled your ankle? Sorry to hear that. I had such a similar experience with you. From the first hour, I had trouble breathing, and found myself sweating a lot. "Uh, oh" I thought. I know what this is. I'm going to have hard time breathing today. I have exercise induced asthma, sometimes it flares up more than others. When I arrived at mile 25, I had just 90 seconds to get out. I chose to drop here, and still have enough left in my body to continue my training this coming week for Oregon Cascades 100 in August, instead of trying to recover for a week for trying to complete the 50 miles. As I'm getting older (I will be 55 in a month), my lungs are getting weaker and weaker it feels like. I just can't breathe well enough to power my legs-- which are still pretty strong for ultras. It's so frustrating, my heart feels like my 47 year old self at top of my ultra fitness, but when the feet hit the ground, they seem like running at 50% of the power :(. Thanks for sharing your experience, it was validating for me to read it, knowing I'm not the only one with breathing issues as we age. I do, however, am thankful and encourage that my age does not reflect my natural decay. There was a book my friend read about age and decay... He said that our age is independent of decay of our bodies. My Garmin tells me I have 47 year old cardio, haha. I'm thankful I can still get out there and toe the line, and will keep at it!
I applaud you for sticking to your plan and following through. I always worry about getting injured before my goal race when I decide to do another "less consequential race."
I have coped with my own durability over the last 10 years or so and came slowly to the realization that I need to "slow down" or "take it easy" or do other things that still provide that kind of endurance experience I crave.
I am having the same kind of issue with a strained meniscus causing pain and inflammation in the back of a knee. I started taking ibuprofen which I have never taken.
With that said, I find your gym workout very strong - do you do that twice a week?
And thank you for sharing your inner feelings and thoughts on how your training is going!
I tend to do one bigger all-over gym workout during the week (working both upper & lower body and including a lot of multifunctional exercises and plyos), then two shorter ones that either focus more on upper body or lower body. All three include mobility and balance exercises and some core work.
I'm sore just reading about the race. Your "this-is-what-happened-and-what-I-learned" narrative is great coaching for the rest of us! Thanks for sharing. Good luck Hardrocking!
I am trying to do more leg conditioning like squats and lunges to build leg strength and resilience for running up and down hills! I did my first 50k this year and thought it would be similar to a trail marathon, but the extra elevation was tough! would love to hear more advice from the community on how to better prepare for this!
My main advice is, train consistently and also build in adequate recovery! Recovery means not just rest days, easy days, and plenty of sleep but also consuming a level of nutrition, especially protein and carbs, you need to rebuild your body and keep it energized.
This was interesting to me. The strength work looks great. I'm doing a lot more weight training since my objectives have changed from running long distances to long approaches in the mountains with a heavy backpack, and then climbing the mountains with the climbing gear in the heavy backpack. You might want to check out Training for the New Alpinism by Steve House (the same guy who wrote Training for the Uphill Athlete). I think the strength programs would transfer well to Hardrock.
It's so fascinating that you wrote on durability, as I was just deeply thinking lately "if anything, durability is a word that describes me, physically and mentally". Yes, fully aware of the difference with endurance. Durable and resilient, getting through life's shit, and through miles and miles. Turning around, from Canyons 100k, straight back to training with over 100 mpw and lots of vert, running a 50k in the middle of it, and keep plowing through. I'm grateful for this weird gift, and don't take it for granted, mindful I can lose it any moment. I feel urgency to use my durability, because wild things (like an accident and a surgery 2.5 years ago) can force me to stop. In some odd way, I don't want to "spread it like OB, thinly, but longer". I want to press on, use it, and when it's done and over, rethink other options.
Kudos on knowing what YOU need. On the deliberate fueling (my other weird prop). On creating a self-driven program to tend to your weaker points and focusing on that, rather than dwelling. Mind is a powerful thing. Rooting for you and your long awaited Hardrock!
Thank you Olga! Any chance you’ll be there July 11-12?
I wish! I'm hoping to be "past" that area, fingers crossed 😉 I seem to not be willing to give up on one of my crazy ideas (if you know what I mean). Once it finally happens, I will move on to a better summer spread out! I would have loved to help you!
On a related to one of your paragraphs (and our previous discussion) points, GNAR races are absolutely incredible, comparing to a big name thing that overcharges and gives so little. I actually had to defer my entry to Kodiak (wish they offered refunds, mofo), because I can't bear the thought of 3rd time crowded race and sucky goodies. Lots of pomp, not heart. But, I had to make the judgment for myself per experience.
I always learn so much from your writing, Sarah! So happy you had a good training run and preserved your body for Hardrock. That’s an interesting concept of distant self-talk. I tend to beat myself up for “mistakes” during races (especially during falls or bonks or other slowdowns) and this practice would help me to stay calm and positive - I’ll check out the Hidden Brain podcast too. For longevity practice, I tend to do more daily / midweek mileage to reach a high weekly total - I only do a couple long training blocks on the weekend (need to get the body and mind used to this!), but not as many as other ultra runners I know. Some of this is due to family schedule, but also find it much easier to recover from a 15-miler than a 50K+. Just one day of recovery and I’m back at it again, my body isn’t as beaten up and depleted, and I feel like I can get more out of my training and avoid injury. For longer and more arduous races, this might not work! But it has helped me so far. Wishing you best of luck for your training push in the next five weeks, will be cheering for you!
Katie, thanks for catching up on my newsletters and for your feedback! I definitely need to up my midweek runs in the coming 6 weeks (in addition to maintaining a long weekend run). A medium-length midweek run, I've found, is so beneficial for endurance and gets us out of being "weekend warriors."
Sarah, we are so excited to see you at Animas in a few weeks :) Great job coaching yourself through, knowing when to call it - you have a bigger goal this year!!! What is the long sleeve you wore at Quad Rock?
Hi Julie, I'm so excited to get to Animas Forks and see your crew and hit reset there. I was looking at Open Split Time last night, estimating my splits for ~44 hour effort, and realizing holy shit, it'll take me 4ish hours between Burrows and AF, I'll really need you and your crew! (and my pacer, who'll meet me there) Bless you. As for the sun top, it's by rabbit. I didn't see it on their website anymore but REI has it and REI has their sale going on now, so grab it before it's sold out! https://www.rei.com/product/243045/rabbit-upf-deflector-20-shirt-womens
Glad you were able to benefit from Quad Rock in terms of building mental resilience, and also glad you were able to pull the plug to allow for recovery to focus on your A race. HARDROCK!!!!!
I’ve been working on durability just by getting back to a near daily foam roll routine and working on yoga a few times a week to keep flexibility through my body. I have been doing strength 1-2x a week as well, but that was mainly through the winter, and it’s the first thing to fall off if I’m tired. I think taking an off season and back country skiing on the weekends instead of doing long runs in the winter has also allowed my body more rest and recover for training. One of the things Koop has mentioned in his podcast, is that as we age we don’t need to stop doing what we’re doing, we may just need a little extra rest.
👍💪
This is great Sarah - I'm going to share with Hilary too...I think all ultrarunners can benefit from reading this!
Billy, thanks for reading! ❤️ Can’t wait to see you both out here.
Great write-up, so many great lessons to take away here! I love a Gnar runners event, if you have ever a chance to run Never Summer 100k it's spectacular!
Thank you! I’ve always wanted to do Never Summer, it just has never worked out with the other runs on calendar in July.
Way to protect your hardrock, sarah! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Wow, I am nursing a knee injury and “poor me” is running loops in my mind. Your newsletter always helps me to reset and be kinder to myself. Thanks for taking the time to write this!! And so glad you shared the “durability” concept!
Great job on a tough course for a valuable training experience. Loved this.
I love the intentionality of everything you bring to these pursuits. Also, that work out screen shot breakdown was dizzying. Did you build that program yourself? Amazing.
Thanks Josh, that means a lot.
Yeah, the workout mix was just based on what I felt I needed. Would’ve done more core if I had more time. My guidance on strength conditioning is summed up here:
https://sarahrunning.substack.com/p/conditioning-for-trail-runners-updated
I love your attitude and I’m inspired by your ability to dust yourself off and get down to business. I have been having my ups and downs about racing as I begin to slow down and appreciate your commitment to Hardrock. Have you ever experimented with nose strips? I wonder if that would help. I gave one to a friend on our recent R2R2R when she was having breathing issues and I think it helped. Also, where do you stand on tight cutoffs for some of these races? I completely understand the race directors perspective, but wish cutoffs could be more generous as more aging runners or slower runners want to participate. Best of luck with the next training block.
Thank you! I do not plan to try nose strips because they are really for nasal passages and my issue is with my lungs, and there’s not good evidence to back them up anyway.
For QuadRock 50 as well as Miwok 100K (also notoriously tight for older runners to make) the cutoff time is due to the permit. Brad apologized to me about the 14 hour limit last Saturday, but said there’s nothing they can do about it.
Good job on the race and good job on the post! I enjoyed reading it. I also "ran" the Quad Rock 50 this past Saturday, I think I caught a glimpse of you during my approach to mile 25. There was a guy standing on the trail, he yelled "SNAKE!"-- I think is where you rolled your ankle? Sorry to hear that. I had such a similar experience with you. From the first hour, I had trouble breathing, and found myself sweating a lot. "Uh, oh" I thought. I know what this is. I'm going to have hard time breathing today. I have exercise induced asthma, sometimes it flares up more than others. When I arrived at mile 25, I had just 90 seconds to get out. I chose to drop here, and still have enough left in my body to continue my training this coming week for Oregon Cascades 100 in August, instead of trying to recover for a week for trying to complete the 50 miles. As I'm getting older (I will be 55 in a month), my lungs are getting weaker and weaker it feels like. I just can't breathe well enough to power my legs-- which are still pretty strong for ultras. It's so frustrating, my heart feels like my 47 year old self at top of my ultra fitness, but when the feet hit the ground, they seem like running at 50% of the power :(. Thanks for sharing your experience, it was validating for me to read it, knowing I'm not the only one with breathing issues as we age. I do, however, am thankful and encourage that my age does not reflect my natural decay. There was a book my friend read about age and decay... He said that our age is independent of decay of our bodies. My Garmin tells me I have 47 year old cardio, haha. I'm thankful I can still get out there and toe the line, and will keep at it!
Thanks for reading — it sounds like we have a lot in common! Good luck training for Cascades. Breathe well.
I applaud you for sticking to your plan and following through. I always worry about getting injured before my goal race when I decide to do another "less consequential race."
I have coped with my own durability over the last 10 years or so and came slowly to the realization that I need to "slow down" or "take it easy" or do other things that still provide that kind of endurance experience I crave.
I am having the same kind of issue with a strained meniscus causing pain and inflammation in the back of a knee. I started taking ibuprofen which I have never taken.
With that said, I find your gym workout very strong - do you do that twice a week?
And thank you for sharing your inner feelings and thoughts on how your training is going!
Thanks Jenn.
I tend to do one bigger all-over gym workout during the week (working both upper & lower body and including a lot of multifunctional exercises and plyos), then two shorter ones that either focus more on upper body or lower body. All three include mobility and balance exercises and some core work.
I'm sore just reading about the race. Your "this-is-what-happened-and-what-I-learned" narrative is great coaching for the rest of us! Thanks for sharing. Good luck Hardrocking!
I am trying to do more leg conditioning like squats and lunges to build leg strength and resilience for running up and down hills! I did my first 50k this year and thought it would be similar to a trail marathon, but the extra elevation was tough! would love to hear more advice from the community on how to better prepare for this!
My main advice is, train consistently and also build in adequate recovery! Recovery means not just rest days, easy days, and plenty of sleep but also consuming a level of nutrition, especially protein and carbs, you need to rebuild your body and keep it energized.