Thursday, February 9, 2012

LT 100 - Training Strategy II

Previously.

Nearly two months has passed since my first installment of LT100 Training and much has changed. First of all, I have narrowed down my list of races for the year.  More on that topic below. And, I've completed my last goal race for 2011 (Vegas RnR) and started training for 2012. I have been marathon training since January 1st. Huh? The goal is to run the Leadville 100, why am I marathon training? If you read my weekly training wrap from a few weeks ago, then you know I was having a little rough patch. It is no big deal, I have them once in a while. I am a bit obsessed about little things (like running) and sometimes it leads to these little fractures. The fun part is the moments of clarity that usually come from them.

I will probably post more on this topic elsewhere, but the important takeaway is that I need to keep the focus on Leadville. Period. And, I probably should allow myself to have a little fun too! I have a formal training plan that I intend to follow beginning March 5th. Between now and then, I will maintain an adequate base and try to have fun and stay fresh. In order to continue challenging myself, there will likely be some marathon specific training built into the next couple of months. When it's time to run the Colorado Marathon in May, I'll just give it all I have that day. As long as I have a reasonable approximation of what I'm capable of that day, then it should be easy!

2012 Race/Event Lineup

I am excited about all the events that I am doing this year, but I am just in shock that the Grand Canyon is going to happen. The opportunity came suddenly and I jumped on it. What a story that promises to be. The San Juan Solstice 50 is alleged to be one of the hardest and most beautiful 50 milers around. That should provide great LT100 training. It's going to be a BIG summer. That's the motivation to get prepared and train hard.

In:
Colorado Marathon (May 6th)
Grand Canyon Rim2Rim2Rim (May 19th)
San Juan Solstice 50 (June 23rd)
Race Across the Sky (August 18th and 19th)

Out:
Collegiate Peaks
Speedgoat 50k
Golden Gate Dirty Thirty
Leadville Silver Rush 50

Training Plan

I don't want to post specifics of the day-to-day details of my plan because it will change, a lot.  The plan is based on the "Training Plan for a 100-Mile Race on 70 Miles per Week" from the book Relentless Forward Progress. Of course, I will modify and adapt it to meet my needs as time moves along. If things go as planned, I should have at least 1800 miles completed in 2012 when I cross the Leadville Trail 100 start line. Pretty much all the foundations I set forward in my previous post remain, including: B2B, night running, fast hiking, and some ultra tune ups.  I ran quite a few long runs last year (22 runs of 20 miles or more) and I hope to improve upon that. Additionally, I climbed just short of 200,000 feet last year and I definitely want to improve on that.

Here are some mini-goals to help motivate me this year:

  • Six weeks with B2B long runs (each run 16 miles or more)
  • 250K feet of climbing for the year
  • 25 (or more) twenty milers
  • 600 miles (combined) in June and July
  • At least two 80 mile weeks

As always, you can follow my daily training on the DailyMile.

Training Spots

Before concluding this session of Leadville 100 training, here are a few spots that I hope to hit during my training:

Incline
Barr Trail/Pikes Peak
Colorado Trail Section 1,2, and 3
Deer Creek Canyon
Mount Falcon
Apex Trail
Green Mountain (and Flat Irons)
Indian Peaks Wilderness Marathon
Hope Pass
Sugar Loaf Pass ("Powerline")

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