How to Train for Trail Running Without Trails
Did you know that 0.1% of the world has completed a marathon? More than 600,000 people completed an ultramarathon in 2018. But that’s still only 0.00008% of people who have completed an ultramarathon.
23% of participants are female, compared to just 14% 23 years ago. But that’s still only 0.00002% of people who have completed an ultra and are female. Even though the percentage of women in ultra running is still small, it has never been higher.
So if you are struggling remember — if it was easy everyone would be training for ultramarathons. And it’s even tougher when you don’t have ready access to trails.
While it certainly helps to train in conditions that perfectly mimic your ‘A’ goal race, it’s not a prerequisite for race-day success on the trails. The reality is that many of the female athletes I support, don’t have the luxury of this either.
And it shouldn’t stop you from hitting the registration button on your dream race either.
Here are just a few of the races the flatlander athletes on my roster are training in 2024.
Fitness comes first
Fitness always comes first! Unless you’re a professional trail runner competing in a 50KM ultramarathon, the reality is you are in an aerobic event and your fitness level is the biggest driver of success on race day. Yes, even on the most technical of courses, you will rely on your fitness more than any technical skill.
Regardless if you live in the mountains of the Lake District or the city of London, if you don’t have a solid level of fitness, you will not be successful come race day. So when choosing your race, focus less on finding ones that feature similar terrain to your home trails and ask yourself can your training physically and mentally support this goal.
At the core of any ultramarathon training program should be your fitness. There are many other (more specific and shinier!) areas that you or your coach should address but none are as critical to your success.
Getting caught up with aspects such as heat protocols, altitude camps and the latest gear can feel more exciting than building cardiovascular fitness but here’s the thing. Fitness makes everything better.
A higher level of fitness means you’ll spend less time on your feet during the race, reducing your chances of injury and exposure to the elements. When (not if) the downward spiral starts, you’ve got a bigger buffer and can afford to spend more time at aid stations.
Whether it’s fixing your feet, coming back from GI distress or trying to find your way back onto the trail. Above everything else, a high level of fitness gives you the best chance of reaching your ultramarathon goal and ultimately having a more positive race day experience because you’re spending less time chasing cut-offs.
Strength training
Before deciding if you should integrate strength training into your ultramarathon training program, the most critical question to ask yourself is ‘why’.
Some of the female athletes I support place more value on strength training relative to other aspects of their training program compared to others. Deciding whether or not to integrate it into your training programme must be individually based but I would encourage any ageing female athlete that lives in an area where you do not have ready access to trails to seriously consider it.
If you already train on the trails, feel confident running downhill and can get the vertical gain and loss close to the gain and loss per kilometre of your ultramarathon, you are likely to get all the adaptation you need and can probably get away with little or no strength training.
But for those of you who do not have ready access to trails, incorporating strength training into your training programme, whether that’s specific descending work, plyometrics, corrective exercises from your physiotherapist, or heavy strength work in the gym might be something you want to consider.
It’s not enough to throw in a few forward lunges after a run, the load and duration must be substantial enough to elicit the desired adaptation. As with your training program, your strength training should follow similar principles of progressive overload and be periodised to your race calendar.
That’s why to take the guesswork out of your strength training, all of my athletes who enroll on 12-month coaching commitments receive additional support from my partner Physiotherapist (Lucy Sacarello) and Strength Coach (Ben Brooks) at no additional cost.
Training camp or recce days
Many ultramarathons and trail races consist of running over varied terrain and surface conditions. The underfoot surface can consist of technical single trails, wet or loose rocks, smooth rolling hills, bogland and everything in between.
A common concern for many athletes I support, particularly those coming from flatter parts of the world, is confidence moving these types of terrain. It makes sense that if you do not have access to technical trails you are naturally slower and less confident than athletes who do.
But the skill to move over this varied terrain is trainable, just like any other running skill. So to be as best prepared for your ultramarathon, or trail race, dialing in training to be as specific as possible and as close to your race is critical. Some of these areas of specificity include:
Surface terrain
Length and per cent grade of climbs
Environmental conditions: altitude, heat
And that’s where your training camp or recce day(s) come in. Once you have prioritised a fitness-first approach to your ultramarathon training, including a training camp or recce before race day can allow you to practice downhill running, get out onto race-specific terrain, perform an overnight run, manage an increased training load and test out equipment.
A training camp would typically be scheduled 4-7 weeks out from your goal race during your most specific phase of training. Here you would leave the stress of work behind to travel to another location for usually 2-4 days, ideally on race-specific terrain or as close to as possible.
Whether you can only escape for a single recce day or can afford to spend a long weekend out on the trails, knowing you have time carved out in your race calendar to dial in the specifics of your ultramarathon can help reduce some of the stress and build confidence come race day.
Looking for support from an Ultramarathon Coach who specialises in helping (extra)ordinary women?
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