Ultras are basically my job at this point (which I make no income from). This has been a very serious hobby of mine for the past 10+ years. It is something I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about, reading about, and studying intently. I’m analytical in how I train and race. I’m always looking for how to improve. But I’m also focused on how much time and effort I put into this. There are seasons and years that I take this more seriously than others. Sometimes I’m focused on training. Other times I’m focused on racing. And occasionally I’m focused on other activities. Regardless of where you are on your ultra journey, I believe it’s beneficial to be open and honest with yourself on how seriously to take this sport.
Factors To Consider
- Running History
- Performance Goals
- Available Time
- Long Term Goals
- Importance To You
Running History. The more of a running base you have, the less you seriously you can take training. If you’re a former D1 cross country runner, you can probably just show up and send it. Not to be that guy, but I can roll out of bed and run pretty much any ultra distance at this point. The fewer lifetime miles that you have, the more focus you need to put on your training. You may not need to hit every single workout, but you definitely can’t skimp on the long runs.
Performance Goals. Most of us just want to finish these races. Those who want to win or podium will need to put in more time and effort. Like a lot more. You will need to hit much higher volumes (think 80 to 100+ mile weeks). You will need to experiment with optimal fueling. You will need to . . . actually, I’m not really sure what you need to do to become elite. You should probably hire a coach to get you where you want to go.
Available Time. It’s kinda tough to seriously train for ultras if all you can devote is a couple hours a week. This isn’t meant to be a gatekeeping comment. Ultras are graduate level running and basic competency at the distance requires more than this. The more time you can spend training, the more serious you can get with your training/racing. A large benefit of this extra time isn’t so much more volume, but it allows you to do all the sustainability/recovery activities that go along with it. I’m talking about stretching, strength training, foam rolling, cross training, all those other things runners are told to do but most of us don’t.
Long Term Goals. If this is just a bucket list type endeavor, then feel free to half ass your way through a couple training blocks. It doesn’t make sense to spend thousands of hours training if you just want to run a couple 50Ks. The longer the distance you want to tackle though, the more serious you need to take your training and racing. Especially since the shorter ultras will end up being training for your longer ultras.
How important is this really? You can tell how important something is by how much time you spend on it each week. Activities that are a priority get done first. You end up thinking about them more. They get more time devoted to them. Modern life is hectic. If you have a family, make that doubly so. If ultras aren’t that important to you, then you shouldn’t take them too seriously. Life’s too short to get all worked up about stuff that doesn’t matter.