1-2-3 Sundays: Ultra Marathon Thoughts

As I said last week, I'm going to break down the ultra from last weekend and reflect on the experience.

I like doing these a week or so later so I can gather all my thoughts around it. Plus, the post-race comedown is part of it so it wouldn't feel right talking about the full process until I've experienced it all.

1 Theme

The Target Time

Going back to the ultra May, I had a goal of completing it in 6 hours. It didn't quite go to plan on the day meaning I finished it in under 7 hours.

Despite being incredibly proud of myself for completing it, I knew I had more to give. This time around I was doing it in less than 6 hours.

In the week leading up to the race, I felt quietly confident even though I hadn't run more than 15km in training. I was sure my conditioning built up over the last 6 months would be evident when I started running.

I wrote multiple times in my journal "I will do Run The Blades in less than 6 hours".

One of the main differences between Run the Blades and Ultra X was the elevation. There was a lot less which was in my favour. It was more the elements you were up against.  

I also hadn't documented the process much so there was no external pressure. I gave myself a healthy dose of pressure so that I would push myself hard.

When I'm running long distances, I pace myself in 5km splits to make the average pace more manageable. It also accounts for changes in terrain across the full distance. Going at 35min/5km (7min/km) would be enough to hit the target.  

2 Positive Outcomes

Going Through Dark Places

There were multiple points where I was deep in the pain cave.

Around 30km (18 miles) is where I got the first visit. My pace slowed here to allow me to keep my heart rate below 160 bpm. If I get too high I would end up frying myself I needed the anaerobic stores in the final stages.

It's you in your head telling yourself what this means to you, why you're doing it and who you want to be crossing the finish line.

If anyone is following Russ Cook run the entire length of Africa then you'll have heard him say "1s and 2s". Because sometimes this is what you have to break it down to - going one foot in front of the other.  

At 35km, there was a checkpoint which allowed me to pick up more food, refill my water and do the toilet. I was feeling much better and ready to hit the last 15km (three 5 km's in my head).

Fast forward to the last 5km and I'm seriously hurting. Nothing particular just everything.  I thought at this point I wasn't going to be able to hit the target but at that point, a flip switched.

Someone ran past me and I thought to myself,

"You're not finishing before me".

A little bit of extrinsic motivation to push me the last couple of miles.

We ended up running together before I emptied the tank on the last 500m and sprinted across the finish line.  

No Music

I decided not to listen to anything unless I needed it.

Instead, I was going to talk and run with as many people as I could.

I met some amazing people. Veteran ultra runners and first-timers.  

This is the beauty of these events. You don't know who you're going to meet.

Everyone is sharing the pain.

I ended up only using my music at about 38 km - 46km.

My mind did most of the work.

3 Learnings

Your Emotions

This is part of the post-race/event process.

Your emotional system is fried having just put you to your extremes.

When I completed the Edinburgh marathon last year, I remember thinking to myself "I've actually done it" before getting quite emotional.

Sitting in the car coming back from Run The Blades, I just sat there completing what I'd done - and then burst into tears of happiness.

When I got home, I went for a hot bath because I was starting to tighten. I was sitting there at one point hyped up thinking "F*CKING YESS". 2 minutes later I was in tears because I was so happy.    

These types of events take you and your emotions for a ride and then some.

You can be prepared as much as you want for the event but you can never be for the feelings afterwards because you're so far into the unknown.

Capability

Three weeks was the time I gave myself to prepare.

But realistically I had been preparing for 6 months.

This meant my baseline when I signed up was already pretty high. A couple of distance runs would get me up to a decent level.

Plus, I really wanted to see how capable my body and mind really are. That was the real challenge. Could I perform despite the lack of training?

The answer is yes.

Would I have done better had I had a full 6-12 week prep - of course.

The purpose of doing this race was to show that when you push your baseline higher and higher by conditioning your body your capabilities grow.

You could say you're Ready For Anything😂

Support System

This makes it all possible.

It's not a one-man job.

Aimee has been the best support team by making me energy cakes, driving me to and from races and being incredibly patient when I've been fatigued after training runs.

Having your family and friends there as you cross the finish makes it worth it. I kept telling myself throughout the race they'll be there at the end to cheer you home.

I put the Ben Lomond climb on hold. I've not decided on a new date yet however, I will be doing it before the end of the summer.

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