When the Tough Gets Going: Race To The Stones – Weeks 7-9

The middle weeks of a training plan can be the toughest weeks and not just from the physical side of things.

Yes, the miles are ramping up and the long runs are getting longer. But sometimes the mental side of training through these weeks is even tougher to get through. The goal race that you are training for is seemingly far away, meaning that you still have a good amount of training to do to get ready.

Both the physical and mental side can affect your motivation levels also, so I always find it helps to have at least one race in the middle of training to serve as a distraction and to see how your training has been going so far.

The big difference for this training plan is that my ‘distraction’ race is a longer distance than I have ever run at one time. Oh, and it’s a trail race!

When I registered for the Dirty German 50km a couple of months ago, I did it out of convenience – it is somewhat nearby and it is said to be a good introductory race to trail and ultra running. And since my goal race for this training plan is a 100km trail race, this seemed like a good race for me to use in the lead up to this summer.

I knew that this race was going to be tough. But that was kind of the point – to see what adjustments I could make through the rest of my training.

My training so far has been pretty good. I’ve hit almost all of my mileage targets and managed to work around a couple of smaller aches and pains. Yes, I came up a little short on one or two long runs, but overall I am feeling good with how training has been going.

Ok, so let’s get to the race…

In the days leading up to the race, I felt OK – not nervous or anything like that, which is how I typically am before a race. Even as I arrived to the race, I just wanted to get started to see what happened.

The plan was to start out as slow as felt comfortable and work from aid station to aid station, which were 3-4 miles apart. And hopefully, I would get to the end of the first 25k (15.5 miles) loop feeling like I still had some life in me.

Aside from what I was carrying on me and in my pack – Precision Fuel (carb drink mix), water, gels and chews – I was planning to make good use of the aid stations to refill my drinks and try some of the food options to see what works well for me.

And then once things got tough, and I knew they would, I would do whatever was necessary to get to the finish.

Predictably, I started out faster than (or not as slow as) I had planned. I felt good at the pace (10:00-10:30 per mile) and didn’t feel like I was overextending myself. Because it was mostly singletrack for the early miles, I was just one in a parade of runners through the early miles.

After a few miles, where the course opened up a little and the runners had spread out some, I started running with Kevin (I think!). We were running the same pace and he was sharing some of his previous trail/ultra race experiences. It helped to pass a few miles, but I knew that I would need to slow down a bit in order to conserve some energy for later. So at the next aid station (7.5 miles into the race), I let him go ahead, which allowed me to slow down a bit.

Over the next few miles, I tried to focus on keeping up with my fueling, hydrating and eating, which I think I managed pretty well. My legs, feet and ankles were feeling a little tired/sore, which I put down to my overall lack of trail running experience. This was also something I expected, but I was hoping not to feel it so early. Even with that, things were going well enough, so I tried to put it out of my mind as much as possible.

After the fourth aid station on the first loop, there was just 1.5 miles until the end of the loop. I was feeling good, with a flat section followed by a slightly downhill section into the end of the loop, but maybe I was a little too excited about getting to the halfway point.

Because down I went for the first time!

I had stubbed my toes/feet a few times already, including a couple of times just before this, but this was more than a stub. It was a trip on the downhill section, which only added to the distance to the ground (and maybe to the distance I skidded!). It felt like a hard fall and was definitely a little jarring, but after a couple of seconds and the help of a couple other runners, I was back on my feet.

I started walking again as I made sure that everything was still working properly. And as I was walking, I could see my car through the trees, which seemed especially cruel after the fall!

Anyway, just some dirt and a few scrapes were the extent of the damage, so I made my way to the end of the first loop, where I had change of shirt and a restock of my gels waiting for me.

And then it was time to start the second and final loop!

And within the first mile of the second loop – down I went again!

This time wasn’t nearly as bad, since it was on a flatter section, but it also didn’t do much to help my confidence for the remaining 15 miles! While it was frustrating to fall for a second time, I think that it also helped to reset my mind for the rest of the race. I just needed to relax, try to enjoy it and keep moving forward no matter if that was running or walking (or tripping!).

At this point, there were many other people alternating between running and walking. One minute, you’re feeling good running and passing a few people; the next minute, you’re taking a walk break and those same people come running past. This seemed to happen over and over, especially during the second loop.

I spent a few miles running and walking over the course of the second loop with Brian, who had a lot more experience running on trail and in ultras. Again, it was nice hearing some of his experiences from this same race last year and in other races that he’s done. It was also nice counting down the miles with him and knowing that no matter if I was walking or running I was still making progress towards the finish line.

After the final aid station, the route turned on to a bike path and I was feeling great, even picking up the pace thinking that the finish line was quickly approaching. Until I realized ‘we definitely did run this far on the bike path on the first loop.’ And when I saw the finish line coming, it confirmed that I missed a turn.

So I turned around and backtracked until I saw the blindingly obvious markers for the trail – ribbons, cones AND a sign! – that I had somehow missed. My missed turn had added a little more than 1.5 miles, but I now knew I was back on the right track (literally) and finished as strongly as I could.

I crossed the finish line in 7:33:03, which was a good amount slower than I was expecting, but the time wasn’t important for this race. It probably won’t be for the race this summer either.

What’s important for these races especially being my first experiences on trail and at these distances is to enjoy them as much as possible and learn something to enjoy it more for the next race.

And for that, I can say I accomplished those goals for this race!

As I had suspected, it was perhaps a little early in my training for this race, but it was good to get an idea and test some things out.

I now feel comfortable with my trail shoes and running pack as well as the drinks, gels and chews I carry with me. I learned that I really like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, oranges and Coca-Cola from the aid stations. All of these things kept my energy levels up and more importantly they kept my stomach under control.

The rest of my training leading up and following the race has been good. Like I said earlier, a couple of my planned longer runs have been cut a few miles short, but I’m still feeling positive and ready to get through the final weeks of the training plan leading up to the race in July!

As always, thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it and know someone else that might enjoy it also, please share it with them!

Here’s a quick rundown of my training from the last three weeks:

Week 7 (51.6 MIles/83KM)

• M: 5km Easy
• T: 3 x 1 Mile Intervals (7.5 Miles Total)
• W: 20 Minutes Easy
• T: 20 Minutes Easy
• F: 20 Minutes Easy
• S: Dirty German 50km
• S: 20 Minutes Easy

Week 8 (34.4 Miles/55.4km)

• M: 20 Minutes Easy
• T: 25 Minutes Easy
• W: 7 Miles Easy (w/ 5 x 20 second strides)
• T: 5km Tempo (4.5 Miles Total)
• F: 20 Minutes Easy
• S: 9.5 Mile Long Run
• S: 10km Easy

Week 9 (45.5 Miles/73.2km)

• M: 5 x 400m Hill Repeats (7 Miles Total)
• T: 5 Miles Easy
• W: Half Easy/Half Tempo (7.5 Miles Total)
• T: 5km Easy
• F: 9.5 Miles Easy
• S: 12.5 Miles Long Trail Run (19 Miles Planned)
• S: 30 Minutes Easy