I didn’t expect to finish the race on the podium. In fact, just 2 days earlier, I didn’t expect to finish at all.
Mysterious pains in my upper abdomen appeared on Thursday and made me question my decision to travel to the race.
I had experienced these pains before. They appeared seemingly out of nowhere when I was running or going for a walk, and no doctor I visited could find out what it was.
And here I was 3, days out from my first ultramarathon, and the pain was so bad that I could hardly go for a walk.
Still, I told myself I would at least try.
I could always drop out if my body would fall apart during the race.
Amazingly, however, my body did not fall apart.
And while I experienced some pain during the race and had to walk for a bit because of it, I finished and even managed to place on the podium as the third female finisher.
It still feels unbelievable to me, not only because I achieved this despite the pain but also because I had started running again only 8 months earlier – after not running a single mile for over nine years.
How was I able to pull this off? By adopting the following four strategies.
1. I decided I was an ultrarunner from now on.
When I started running again in 2021, I did it to become an ultrarunner.
I didn’t want to take the often recommended slow path and slowly build up to run distances longer than a marathon.
Because while I hadn’t run a single step in the previous nine years, I was no stranger to running.
My love for it started in 2016 when I discovered how powerful a daily morning run was for my mental and emotional health. And it was around 2010 that I found the strange world of ultrarunning.
However, back then, I ran only when I had time and was content to occasionally run a local half marathon. I kept dreaming about being able to run an ultra one day, but I never committed to the process.
I was also injured often, leading me to quit running in 2013.
However, I never stopped thinking about running. When I suddenly found myself at a crossroads with my job and life at the end of 2020, I decided to lace up my running shoes again.
I remembered my old dreams of running an ultramarathon one day and decided to go after it. Due to the state of the world in 2021, the race options were quite limited, and I wanted to avoid traveling to other countries.
And so, the most viable option for me was a 61km trail ultra. I have read about people who were doing 0-marathon in 6-month challenges and succeeded, and I thought 2 months more would give me the time I need to be ready to tackle the 61 km challenge.
Once I decided to do it, there was no turning back.
I decided I was an ultrarunner now, and I changed my lifestyle and environment to strengthen my newly adopted identity. So, I bought shoes, a running vest, and a new Garmin GPS watch. I dug out my old running books, bought new ones, and even got certified as one of the first UESCA ultrarunning coaches.
To program my subconscious, I put a note on my desk that read: “ultrarunner” and used the word as the password for my phone.
I applied the principles I had learned from books and the ultrarunning certification to my training and developed a training plan that helped me to progress safely and effectively. I added more carbohydrates to my diet and experimented with various fueling options. And, of course, I proudly wore my GPS watch every hour of the day.
2. I signed up for a race before I was ready.
If we always wait until we feel ready, we might wait forever. When I signed up for the 61km trail race, it had been over 9 years since I had run.
And even back then, in my old running days, I never ran consistently, let alone followed a structured training plan. When I laced up my running shoes for the first time again in January of 2021, I could barely run 10 kilometers in one go.
I signed up despite having zero evidence that I could finish the race.
I knew I needed a concrete goal to stay focused and train consistently.
And the closer the goal, the better.
I put myself under pressure, and the short time frame forced me to take action immediately and never miss a week of training.
It forced me to evaluate my habits and immediately adopt a lifestyle supporting my new identity of being an ultra runner.
This was a completely different approach than the one I had when I ran in my 20s. Back then, I would test myself in training to see if I could run 20 kilometers, and only then would I sign up for a local half-marathon. I only signed up when I felt ready because I feared failing.
This time, I embraced the possibility of failure, signed up, and got to work.
We are all more capable than we think we are. And by taking on this challenge, I wanted to prove that I could do things I never thought possible.
Do I recommend that people go from 0 to ultra in 8 months? Not at all. For most, this endeavor would likely be a recipe for injury or burnout.
But if you are reasonably fit (either from lifting or other physical activity), know your body well, have a strong mindset, and ensure you also focus on the following two points, I will be the first one rooting for you.
3. I trained consistently and smart.
Running is a sport where injuries are common. Research suggests that as much as 50% of runners “experience an injury that prevents them from running for a period of time.”
And if you are a beginner runner, your chance of injury is twice as high as that for more experienced runners.
I knew I needed to avoid getting injured to reach my goal of completing my first ultramarathon within my first 8 months of running. Otherwise, accumulating enough training volume to get me through the race would be hard.
I hoped my consistent kettlebell training over the past 9 years would help prevent injury. Still, I drastically reduced it as I increased my running volume. I wanted to avoid running on sore legs as much as possible.
Furthermore, I increased my mileage sensibly. Increasing the number of days, I ran came before extending the length of each run. When I started in January 2021, I ran 2 days per week. I gradually increased the frequency to 6 days per week until July 2021.
But more importantly, I also made sure to run easy most of the time. After the initial adaptation, where every run felt hard, I purposefully ran relaxed, telling myself that all that mattered now was staying injury-free and getting the miles in. I did my first “real” speed training only after six months – a few hill sprints up a small hill in a park.
Besides taking it easy most of the time, I didn’t follow a structured plan but instead tried to listen to my body as much as possible. On days I felt good, I ran a bit longer than I had planned, and when I felt overly tired, I cut my run short or walked most of the time.
Seven weeks before the race, I ran 50 km in training because I was highly anxious about the race and wanted to see how long it would take me to run 50 K at a relaxed pace.
In hindsight, this run would not have been necessary.
Still, it gave me enough confidence to believe I could finish the 61km race within the cutoff to stay conservative with my training instead of suddenly ramping up speed training or drastically changing other training variables because I was so anxious.
4. I prioritized recovery.
Recovery is often an afterthought for recreational runners who juggle a running schedule with a full-time job, family commitments, and a social life.
However, many setbacks in one’s running journey, like injuries, failure to progress, or accumulating fatigue, are rooted in insufficient recovery.
I don’t believe we need crazy recovery protocols that look cool but have no real science behind them. Instead, understanding your body’s signals, getting enough high-quality sleep, and eating a nutrient-rich diet are the main building blocks of an effective recovery protocol.
When I increased my mileage significantly, my calves were extremely tight, which caused some issues in my Achilles tendon. Besides foam rolling daily, I also sought out a doctor of physical therapy who specialized in treating runners. Her massages helped release some tension, and I successfully eliminated any lower leg pain by implementing her daily stretching protocol.
I also took extra naps whenever I could – primarily on the weekends. Nowadays, I hardly need naps, which shows that my body has adapted well to running almost daily.
A note on strength training. If you have read my articles and followed my journey, you will know I have been training with kettlebells since 2015.
Before I started running again in 2021, I strength-trained daily, and my body was well adapted to pushing and pulling heavy things around daily. And I firmly believe that the many years of strength training were one of the main reasons I increased my running volume so quickly and continued running long distances injury-free until today.
However, I drastically reduced my strength training workouts and eventually stopped them while preparing for my first ultramarathon. Why? Because of those first few months of running, I was fatigued. Whenever I did a strength training workout, my subsequent run would suffer because I was too sore from all the work.
I knew that strength training was essential, but I also knew that the primary focus for this period was to get my body in good enough running shape to complete the 61 km trail run.
Lessons learned from my first ultramarathon preparation.
It’s been 3 years since I started training for my first ultramarathon.
Knowing what I know now, what would I have done differently?
Very little.
Focusing on running slowly and increasing mileage proved right for my body. I could gradually build up to running 5-7 days weekly while staying injury-free. The few speed workouts in the later phase kept me engaged and the training fun.
Could I have done more speed training? Maybe. However, since speedwork bears a higher risk of injury, I chose the safer route to avoid risking my start at the race.
The only thing I would definitely change is fueling my runs. I have always been an early-morning runner and never have breakfast before heading out the door. And often enough, I forget to fuel during my runs, as it interrupts the running flow.
However, not fueling before and during the run negatively impacts recovery and adaptation. Even today, after several ultras over 24 hours, 100 miles, and various podium finishes, I still struggle to fuel myself during training runs.
Looking back, I might have fared better if I had trained myself to eat more during the race. But then, I am more than happy with a 3rd place finish in my first ultra after just 8 months of training 😎.