Cross Training

I agree that you need to be on your feet more.  Who cares about the pace :-) I'm a slow runner, too - I don't worry about that.  What's the cut off for the MCM?  It can't be less than a 14mph cutoff.  That's plenty of time.  I think BigDH's suggestions are solid.  I knew a  runner who would do her runs then later in the day would throw in some fast walking in the evening just to get more time on her feet and trying to avoid injury with running too much (for her). 

If you are throwing in walking during your runs maybe you can practice walking at a decent clip.  Lots of folks I know walk pretty leisurely.  Picking up your walk pace, if you have to walk/run, will help with in beating the cutoff.

Thanks so much for the information!  In the MCM, you have to maintain 14 min miles up to 20 miles or you get picked up by a bus and taken to the DNF line!  I refuse to ride that darn bus!!  I am going to take all of the advice and start running LOTS more!!  I'm not sure if my Achilles/PF issues are ready for a 10K every day, but I'm going to run a minimum of 6 days a week.  This is my schedule for this week (I got this from the Marathon Countdown book) and I'll continue to build up from here:

Monday - 5 miles

Tuesday - 40-50 mins easy pace (should be about 4 miles at my pace)

Wednesday - 4 miles

Thursday - 40-50 mins easy pace (should be about 4 miles at my pace)

Friday - 40 -50 mins easy pace (should be about 4 miles at my pace)

Saturday - 10 miles

BTW...the 12 mins of running on my schedule last week is an anomaly.  I try to run a minium of 3 miles every time I go out, however that day I had some SEVERE GI issues and had no choice but to sprint (the fastest I've ever ran) home!!!!! 

I think that's manageable - I guess as long as you make it to the 20 mile mark by the time limit you can take as long as you want for that last 6?  I'm not sure if you're use to running 6 days a week.  If not, just listen to your body and add recovery weeks.  I make that mistake all too often.  At some point, you can also throw a speed work day in there, maybe on Wed.

Those 12 minute runs happen to my sister ;-) 

I'm training for Cascade Crest 100 right now, and have been having issues with pain in my left Achilles.  After giving it some rest I've been able to resume some trail running, but still seeing some issues with the sore tendon.  So, I've started replacing some of my running with time on a StepMill...that under-appreciated machine in many fitness centers that looks like a little escalator.  I'm banking on this being an excellent replacement for running miles, particularly for a race like the one I'm preparing for which involves lots of climbing...also, particularly due to the fact that I have nothing remotely resembling a mountain anywhere near where I live, and my race is a mountain race.

How well it will work out, I won't know until August 28th.  But I can attest, I feel like I'm getting more benefit out of 90 minutes on that thing than I would from a 90 minute run.  It's a butt-kicker of a machine that's worth a look if you're preparing for an ultra with thousands of feet of climbing.

I've been thinking of adding the step mill into my schedule for a similar reason - lots of climbing in my next ultra with no real hills around :-)

I think I now agree with you!!  I tried it and actually felt pretty good after running 9 days straight, but it caught up with me!  My 11 miler this morning became a 2 mile limp!  Thankfully, I have my first ART appointment on Monday.  Hopefully I can figure it all out!

Sorry to hear that.  I hope you heal quickly.

We followed this plan for 11 weeks with a 2 week taper at the end. She has already done (and won) the Florida Double Ironman in March and had a solid race at IM Cozumel in November so we had a really solid base going into the Badwater training.


We are going to put out a fairly long article or series of articles on the road to the race and how we got there. I'll link to it once we put them out.  

Thanks for all of the good info!!  I think for me, right now, Ultra's are just a dream.  I REALLY need to work on building my run base and overcoming my injuries.  I am going to add more cross training into my schedule and back off the runs a little until I get in better shape.  I'm still training to do my first Marathon this October...I just plan to finish no real time goal...just finish!

I went to my first ART appointment the other day and the one thing the guy (who has been a distance runner for 30 years and is an ironman)  told me was that on average it takes 3 years to become a distance runner.  You can get there the easy way (by building your run base smartly) or the hard way (going too hard, too fast and getting hurt i.e. me), but either way...it'll still take 3 years!  I'm only a year and a half into trying to become a runner and I have a LONG way to go!!!  I think more cross training will help me get into better shape quicker (hopefully, lose more weight) and help me to become a better runner in the long run!

Damn thats a sick schedule when its down on paper. 

yeah, I slept a TON during all this and I am lucky enough to have a husband that spent every sunday for 2 months crewing me during the runs in the gaps