Slow Burn

*Title borrowed from Stu Mittleman's book.

Back when I was training for my first 100 miler (Leadville in 2012), I quite literally beat the s&%t out of myself. In fact, I nearly couldn't run the race because of a knee injury that left me scrambling in and out of doctors offices the week of the race. I just didn't believe that the common person -- the guy with a full-time job, kids, etc... -- could really train the way "elites" do. But, I attempted to do it anyway.  During training, I asked Wyatt Hornsby about his thoughts and methods on training and he referenced Dr. Maffetone to me. That was the first I heard of Dr. Maffetone. Wyatt went on to train very diligently using Dr. Maffeton's methods in 2013. While he had some horrible nutrition issues, he still finished only 5 minutes off of his personal best time at Leadville 100. And, talking to him and Chuck (his pacer) after, it sounded like he was incredibly strong the last 30 miles of the race. What struck me following along with Wyatt's training that summer was the consistency. There weren't a ton of crazy long runs or super intense speed session.  I think he surprised himself with a break-through performance at the Leadville Marathon that year as well.

Since that Summer of 2012, I have been quasi-practicing Dr Maffetone's methods myself. Of course, like many runners, I have adapted to make them my own. After listening to yet another podcast with him yesterday, I am struck by the simplicity of his method as well as the holistic approach to health. In his book, The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing, Dr Maffetone talks about a three pillar approach to training -- Brain, Muscle, and Metabolism. The book is about running faster by living a healthier life. It is about giving up the short-term for the long-term. Can hacks like overtraining, high carb living, etc.... make us better for one season or one race? Probably. But, at the cost of long term success and health.

Muscles is quite simple: prepare your body for endurance. There are numerous elements to this, but the bottom line is that running easy allows your muscles (and joints, ligaments, etc...) to catch-up and stay even with your aerobic system. Running anaerobic puts undo stress on the muscles and joints and can lead to injury. Why spend hours in the gym and PT playing catch-up AFTER you overdo it when you can just ease into it and prevent these things to begin with?

Metabolism is something I completely endorse. If you follow along on this blog, you already know I am a believer in low carb living -- not NO CARB, but LOW CARB. Primarily that means eliminating processed sugar, grains and legumes. This is a complex topic and books are written about it. But, the bottom line here is that having a happy metabolism allows your body to train and race better. I have seen huge benefits in my own life. Those benefits will be amplified by training slower to build a bigger aerobic engine.

That brings us to the brain... Is that the missing piece? I think so. I've blogged several times about the difference between Bear 100 and LT100 for me. The biggest thing is that I just wasn't having any fun. Training felt forced. My body was nagging with injuries. I never really got into it. I was much stronger at Leadville because I was happy to be there. I didn't obsess about time goals. My plan was simply to run patient for 40 miles -- easy to do a LT100 -- and then simply getting to the next aid station as quickly as I could. My pacers can attest to the fact that I was mostly upbeat. (Note that Dr. Maffetone wasn't just talking about mental perceptions but also chemical and other factors regulated by our brain...)

I finally decided to quit splitting hairs with Dr. Maffetone today and ran my entire run at sub-142 (my MAF number). No more rationalizing zone 1 or 2 or whether I should add 5 or 10 beats for this or that. (Note that most runners are happy to find reasons to add beats to MAF, but few are honest enough to subtract them when they are sick or injured.) The run felt amazing, even after a 16 mile trail pounding the day before. It was so good that I added mileage. In my post, I described it as a "religious experience". I felt good the whole way. No aches. No hunger. My breathing was regulated and I was in-tune with my body the whole way. Midway through the run I began regulating my HR almost with my mind. I could tell when it was rising and I kept it in the zone by concentrating on breathing, form, and taking what the route was giving me.

To be honest, I enjoy running aerobic. I enjoy getting home and feeling like I barely worked out at all, having a simple breakfast and moving on with my day. No need for extensive recovery or well planned out "recovery foods". So, this change isn't a big deal for me, much the same as LCHF fit me well. This journey has always been about life health and enjoyment. Things lined up well for me, and this method is proven. I have never bought into the "No pain, no gain" method of training, even though I have tried it once or twice.

The day-to-day changes really just mean two things for me: 1) I will lower my MAF effort to 142 beats per minute instead of the more typical 150 I used to use 2) I will do a more comprehensive warm-up before my runs. I typically do MAF workouts about 80% of the time, but I won't do them 100% of the time. Even during MAF workouts, I will add occasional "light quality" such as short Fartleks and Hill reps to improve myself as a runner and vary my training. I will still do some quality work -- primarily during my weekend longs -- to push my fitness after a solid base is in place. I am also a big believer in progressive runs where only the final third is hard.  More than anything, the goal is to stay healthy, enjoy the journey, and build a monster aerobic engine. It is the ONLY way to survive the extreme circumstances that 100 mile race brings.

Western States 100 - Crew and Pace Strategy

Information here is based on the following page from Western States Official Site. Information also taken from the aid station page on Western States site.

The first half of the course is somewhat remote and rugged and difficult for crews to get to all the allowed aid stations. WS100 recommends that you either have a single crew ("A") or two crews ("A" and "B"). Steve and I are considering a plan where we split crews the first half of the race to minimize the time without seeing crew. Should we decide not to go with this strategy, then my crew will only be at the aid stations marked for crew "A". (The other possibility is to see crew "A" at Robinson Flat, Michigan Bluff, and Forrest Hill.) Notice that crew "A" and "B" are only necessary until Forrest Hill.  From that point, only one crew is necessary.

Course Profile - borrowed from www.wser.org

Course Map - borrowed from www.wser.org

Crew A - Chuck and Heather
Crew B - Kara and Thomas

Destination	Mile	24-Hr	30-Hr	Cut Off	Time of Day*	Crew	Drive Time
Duncan Canyon	23.8	4:50	6:05	12:00 PM	9:50 AM	B	3.5 Hours
Robinson Flat	29.7	6:20	7:55	1:50 PM	11:20 AM	A - Shuttle	2.5 Hours
Dusty Corners	38	7:55	10:15	4:10 PM	12:55 PM	B	3 Hours
Michigan Bluff	55	12:20	15:50	9:45 PM	5:20 PM	A	1.5 Hours
Bath Rd	60.6	13:30	12:30	---	6:30 PM	A* - Chuck	-
Forrest Hill	62	13:45	17:45	11:45 PM	6:45 PM	A - Heather	20 Mins
Rucky Chucky (far)	78	17:40	23:00	5:00 AM	10:40 PM	A** - Heather	45 Mins
Green Gate	79.8	18:20	23:55	5:40 AM	11:20 PM	A*** - Foot	-
Hwy 49	93.5	22:10	28:00	9:20 AM	3:10 AM	A - Shuttle	1 Hour
No Hands Bridge	96.8	23:10	28:55	11:00 AM	4:10 AM	A	-
Robbie Point	99	23:40	29:35	11:00 AM	4:40 AM	A - Heather	-
Finish	100.2	23:59	29:59	11:00 AM	4:59 AM		30 mins

* - Walk in from Forrest Hill - 1.0 miles
** - Walk in from Green Gate - 3.25 miles
*** - Green Gate is 1.25 mile walk-in from designate parking area

Training Update

I have not decided if I am going to stay with the weekly training update or go to infrequent, general updates for 2015. For now, I'll do the latter.

At the end of 2014, I felt pretty run down and wasn't really enjoying running much. Frankly, I think most of this had to do with not having a goal that got me motivated; I was never fully into Bear 100. I wrote several blog posts about motivation and trying to get myself excited. But, I just never managed to find my groove and trained pretty poorly in July and August due to an ankle injury and "life". Taming a hundred miles is so much harder than any other distance I have run. I cannot fully explain to people that have done another distance of ultra how much harder the 100 mile distance is. It weighed on my mind big time ahead of Bear 100.

I also have been dealing with an injury since before the North Fork 50. This is not an injury I have discussed here and may not be much of an injury at all, more of a compensation thing. Basically, I have had general knee pain -- and occasional shin pain -- since June. I finally decided to see my PT at the start of 2015 so it didn't linger into Western States. The good news is that isn't anything major and quite curable. The better news is that I can run through it (smartly, of course). We think it started with a pulled hamstring that occurred in March of 2014. When I attempted to run through it, I developed a compensation pattern that has me rotating my knee inward and sort of hyper-extending it backward. And, my hamstring remains quite tight and knotted from the injury. All of that is fixable with time, but it really played with my head for a long time. Being "injured" sucks and is highly demotivating to training.

Finally, being and obsessive and an ultra guy, I think overdid things a bit, particularly in the areas of vertical gain and long-long runs. Every year I have a tendency to slip into logging mileage and long-long runs during ultra season, foregoing the consistency and structured training that I like to do. I ran 6 runs of longer than 30 miles in 2014 and 10 longer than a marathon. When it was all said and done, I had one of the bigger stats years of my "running career", accumulating nearly 300K of vertical gain and nearly 400 hours of running -- not including, on average, 1.5 XT sessions a week.

Put it all together, and I just needed time. So, for the last few months of 2014 I tried to just run by feel and for fun. Then, I got a jolt when I got into WS100 that carried me for a few weeks. However, that quickly turned to angst as I obsessed about my knee before I finally got into see the PT.

Ah, finally, I have a plan and I am moving forward. Running is fun and I am going with the flow. Some days I sleep in and run at lunch. Other days, I run in the morning. I've even had a few days where I ran after work. I just fit it in where motivation and time allows. And, I am slowly starting to stop obsessing about cross-training. When you are injured, it is easy to convince yourself that adding more cross-training is what you need, possibly even considering alternative ways to train like CrossFit. And, like everything, I can overdo that too! The last thing that I have done is to stop fighting Winter. I haven't really attempted to run trails since New Years Day (a tradition) because the conditions just aren't enjoyable to me. So, I am running lots of hilly roads and lots of structure, things I enjoy. I am working a lot on raw speed -- short intervals and strides. The nice thing is that I suddenly feel like I am holding back, where two months ago every run felt like labor. I can -- and want to -- run more. But, I am intentionally trying to slowly build momentum towards March and April when real training will begin. I plan to peak once only this year -- June 27th. I have no plans for June 29th and beyond... yet anyway.

LCHF in Practice

I have had quite a few people ask me about low carb high fat (LCHF) recently and I decided detailed post was in order! One thing I need to mention upfront is that you will often hear that this journey is an experiment of one (n=1). The reason is that we all have different physiological profiles that we bring to the table and we all have something why are trying to accomplish as well as certain tastes and preferences. However, the core idea of reading labels to understand what we are eating, avoiding cheap, processes foods, and allowing our bodies to adapt to a more natural metabolic state remains the same. Once you learn the foods that are good, bad, and in moderation (or green, red, and yellow according to Noakes), then you can develop a routine that works for you. Understand that you are fundamentally changing the way your body processes and maintains energy each day. This is not a small undertaking, usually requiring 1-3 months at a minimum and possibly up to a year to see full benefits. This post contains a ton of information and is best used as a reference. The easiest way to get started is just to track what you eat and eat more fat and less carbs, particularly those from grains and sugars. A book is another good place to start. And, I highly recommend tracking your diet -- calories and macro-nutrient breakout -- before you start so you have a means to compare.

Why I went LCHF?

I have been experimenting with low carb living for more than 10 years now. After my daughter was born and I weighed almost 250 pounds, I went on the Atkins diet and it started there. It has been a bumpy ride because I got caught up in believing the products "nutrition companies" like GU started selling me when I became an endurance athlete. And, I believed in calorie math. If I burned 2500 calories on a training run, then I could eat 2500 calories of whatever I wanted and be even, right?  (I no longer believe in calorie math, at least not in an absolute state.)  While I have believed for a long time that low carb is a healthy way of life, I just had a hard time reconciling that with the demands of training to be an endurance athlete.

As I have taken my running to greater time and distances, eating (and energy) has become a common source of problems. If you are carb addicted, you need to eat an almost endless supply of carbohydrates to keep your energy level constant. But that is tough to do. Your body can only process something like 250 calories an hour -- it varies person to person -- and you are burning like 800. The math doesn't work. Making the problem worse, many of the products we eat are from sources that, given enough time and quantity, will make us sick -- either GI distress or nausea. And, much of what we drink comes in the form of a sugary beverage which can lead to hydration issues from consuming too much liquid. When I first read that Jason Schlarb ran a 100 mile race (and won!) on 1700 calories, I decided to investigate this topic more. (I probably ate something like 10,000 calories in my first 100 mile race.)

What are the results I have seen?

I have seen almost all the benefits that Phinney and Volek predicted in their books -- leaner physique, more constant energy, quicker recovery from races and hard training sessions, stable weight, and solid gut (no more runner's trots!), and more.... I had two of my best race ever in 2014 and I fueled pretty much with one gel every 45 minutes and water, about 150 kcals an hour. My energy level was constant and I was surging past runners after 7 hours. I set a personal best on a segment of the North Fork 50 course after running 43 miles. The best part is that I rarely think about calories I am eating -- unless I am trying to eat more! I eat until I am full.

What are the challenges I have encountered?

The main challenges I encountered were early on and part of the adaption phase. I attempted to go extreme low carb (20-50g a day) while training 55+ miles per week and I was groggy all the time. I hated running. Some of this was due to adaption phase and should be expected to take time. Some of this was due to the extreme nature of trying to go so low so quickly. (These days I typically eat 50-150g a day, though I rarely count anymore.) And some was due to the amount water weight I shed. This is referred to as the "Atkins flu" and is cured by drinking some beef broth to get sodium in your system.

The other thing that has remained with me and been somewhat elusive is a bit of a "fog" that comes over me once in a while. I think the difficulty here is with the central nervous system (brain), which requires lots of energy, mostly from carbohydrates. You need to keep the brain energized and alert. In races I started using amino acid pills to aid in keeping my central nervous system from being overcome by fatigue. As the central governor to your entire body, once your brain fatigues, it will shut everything down. The pills were expensive and kind of a hassle. Lately I have been experimenting with an amino acid supplement (called Biosteele). I use it before and during workouts and even as an energy supplement during the day. It contains no sugar and no caffeine.

*UPDATE* I have recently started using VESPA before and during my long runs, particularly my long races. The product is crazy expensive, but it works. It has really helped with my mental clarity and keeping my energy stable. I was genuinely amazed at how stable my energy was for all 23+ hours at Western States 100.

What do I actually eat?

Day to day, I eat lots of things and won't waste (much) space here. Google LCHF or Paleo and you'll find lots of ideas. The books I recommend below also have example recipes. I tend to eat lots of salad, soups based with broth and/or heavy whipping cream, red meat, pork, eggs, coconut oil, cheese, high fat dairy, etc... I try to buy organic fruits and veggies and grass fed meat, but I am not super strict about that. I never eat legumes or grains and I rarely eat fruit (typically just berries or organic apple sauce). My beer drinking has been cut significantly down. But, I still have cheat days -- usually pizza and beer. I don't try to be perfect all the time. I think that is a misconception of this diet. My cheat days are fewer (maybe every 2-3 weeks) when training hard. After Bear 100, I went off the diet for several days and ate like a pig.

Eating on the run is a bit of a moving target. Fat adaption does not mean that I do not eat sugar during runs. It means that my body is quite happy to burn fat. In fact, it burns fat as the primary energy source. However, for shorter distance races (up to 50 miles), I find the convenience of gels hard to pass up. They are easier to pack, cheap to buy, and convenient to eat. I just eat fewer of them. For North Fork 50, I ate Hammer Bars and drank Skratch Labs for the first 25 miles, then I switched to gels and plain water in the second half of the race. Pretty simple.

Beyond 50 miles is the point when all that sugar starts to take a toll on the GI system. And, running 100 miles takes a serious toll! Your body goes through a lot, including missing multiple meals and being awake for up to 48 hours. Having only tried twice, I have not yet perfected a 100 mile diet, but I think it will require more real food (Epic Bars, Nut Butters) and supplements (like Generation Ucan and pure MCT oil) as well as gels. During my recent Bear 100, conditions were miserable (hot early, then pouring rain) and I lost patience with my nutrition plan early. I also think I was attempting to eat too many calories, nearly double what I was eating in shorter races all summer.

I see lots of advantages in a product like Generation Ucan and have attempted to use it -- and will continue to try -- as an in-race fuel source. It is great pre-run. But, it is extremely inconvenient on-the-run. Not only is it expensive, it is difficult to mix, grainy in the mouth, and does not provide an instant energy source when you get low. I am considering just drinking it at aid stations where I see crew. I think my 2015 strategy will be fewer calories between aid stations (some Skratch Labs and Vfuel gels) and then real food at aid stations -- Epic Bars, Ucan, Nut Butters. And, don't forget the amino acids!

*UPDATE* At Western States this year, I had a Coconut Lara Bar every 2 hours, VESPA every 2-3 hours, and a serving of Skratch Labs about every hour. That's it. About 150-175 Kcals an hour and I had stable energy, no GI distress, and no nausea for 24 hours.

Please note that I have no sponsors. Every product I mention above I pay for with my own money. Therefore, I have no allegiance to them an no incentive to push products on you. Most products I choose are either because I believe in them -- usually they are wholesome food with clean labels -- or because they are convenient (cost, taste, easy to carry on the run).

More Resources

If you undertake this process, I highly recommend reading as much of the following as you can. Remember this is a major life change that impacts your long-term health. I am not a doctor, but many of the of the following folks are.

Previous Blog Posts of Mine

• http://ajwellman.blogspot.com/2014/09/how-i-get-my-fat.html
• http://ajwellman.blogspot.com/2014/04/diet-update.html
• http://ajwellman.blogspot.com/2014/03/high-fat-diets.html

Links and Authors I recommend
Peter Attia Blog
Zach Bitter Blog
Timothy Olson Blog
Endurance Planet
Ben Greenfield
FASTER Study
Phil Maffetone

• http://www.philmaffetone.com/the-energy-spectrum-part-2
• http://www.enduranceplanet.com/tag/phil-maffetone/

Tim Noakes

• http://talkfeed.co.za/fat-adapted-need-carbohydrates-running-lchf-diet/
• http://realmealrevolution.com/

Books I recommend

• Real Meal Revolution (tough to get in US right now)
• The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living
• The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance

2014 Year in Review

Writing one of these is always a little hard because there are lots of ways to look at the same picture. After reading this incredible post by Joe Grant, I've decided to look at the positives, big and small.

"At first, when I process the past year’s events, I immediately jump to the bigger picture, of performances and race results, of what I did or did not produce, and I am dissatisfied. I want more, I want better, and I compare myself vainly. What I fail to acknowledge, with deeper, more astute observation is the quality of the experiences I have had, which is where their depth and meaningfulness truly take shape." -- Joe Grant

Running is an individual sport and it is easy to get caught feeling insecure or unworthy... the clock doesn't lie. I think the issue is compounded by the fact that you start off climbing a steep curve, getting faster, learning more, and generally just eager to do it all. Then, at some point, the race performances plateau and the goals start to dwindle. It becomes much harder to find success and to be satisfied with results. Former NFL players and coaches often speak of how the loses hurt more than the wins satisfy them, particularly as their career winds down. Running has a parallel where you invest yourself so much in a race and it is over in a fraction of the time it took to get there. The highs only last a few days or a week and the lows seem to last for months. But, if we step back and analyze the place running occupies in our lives, it is so much easier to find the good. With this in mind, I analyze my 2014.

At the beginning of 2014, I wasn't sure what my year would look like having had surgery in August of 2013. If you had asked me back then, running at all would have made a successful year. And boy did it turn out better than that. First, I crushed all my expectations at Quad Rock 25. I am still astounded thinking about that day because I didn't feel prepared at all. And, that course just doesn't suit me all that well -- tons of vertical and technical trail. I felt so strong the last half of that race. Finishing a race strong, regardless of the distance, is one of the purest joys of running. That sense of feeling prepared and that you have run the perfect race is easy to soak in. I have had that feeling only three or four times and it brings me a deep sense of accomplishment for all the effort put into a goal.

In June, I surpassed my 50 mile goal time. That was my primary race goal to accomplish in 2014. There are so many emotions thinking about that day. The primary thing is satisfaction, knowing that my own confidence in myself was justified.  Thanks to Jon, I took a big leap and started way faster than I thought I could maintain. I once again finished the race so strong and feeling like I could run forever that day. But, I am also grateful to all my friends that ran that day and the role each of them played in helping me get to that point. And, I am grateful to my family that continues to support more my racing adventures. We had a BBQ at my house that evening and celebrated as a group, which was quite fitting. It was really a celebration of the group of guys I run with and the things we have accomplished together.

Cruisin' Early at North Fork 50, on my way to 4th place!

I won't lie, I was disappointed with my performance at the Bear 100. It wasn't hard to predict that it would be a tough day, in hindsight anyway. I wasn't fully prepared for that race and insanely hard race day conditions only made a good performance less likely. More importantly, I lost my perspective and love of what I was doing. It is a privilege to run, something I often forget. And, I trail run to be out in nature and for the adventure. The Bear delivered plenty of both that day. One of my lasting memories of that day -- other than mud -- is my buddy Steve high-fiving and fist bumping people as he ran to the finish. He found joy in the beauty of the accomplishment. It was really special to line up that day with two good friends. And, I take great pride in the fact that we all three finished in the worst year of that race (50% DNF rate). Another lasting memory of that day was being paced for 50 LONG miles in horrible conditions by Chuck. If you know Chuck, he hates to be cold. But he had a steely resolve that day and refused to let me quit.

The Three Amigos for Bear 100.

It was a real pleasure to watch many of my friends continue to take on new challenges. I like to believe I have touched all their lives in some way and I know they have all touched me. Each race has a unique story and group of guys that made that day special. That is the real reason I run. Even if 2015 only gives me more of that, it will be a good year.

In my running goals for 2014, I mentioned wanting to be kinder to myself and that is an area that I made some strides, but still an area I can continue to improve. I have an idea about what perfect training looks like and I don't always deal well with interruptions and changing conditions. I must say, it is hard to do this day in an age when you see so much information on the Internet. It is impossible not to compare yourself or somehow feel like you are falling behind even when not running is truly the right thing to do. In fact, some elite runners, like Rob Krar, prefer to keep their training private for this reason. I just need to get over it... I need to find flow in training and racing. If I am to tame the 100 mile distance, I must find more patience and presence in the moment.

2015 hasn't even started, but it has the makings of an epic year. Thanks to good fortune in the WS100 lottery, my buddy Steve and I both got into the race. Steve lives in Arizona, but somehow our trail running "careers" have been inter-twined for 3 years now. I think I have contributed a lot to his success through traditional coaching aspects -- plans, specificity, nutrition, etc... And he has taught me a lot -- and continues to do so -- about perspective and enjoyment. It is fitting we will be lining up together that day. There are a lot of days between June 27th and now, but I am confident I am meant to be there. I will be ready and what ensues will be one hell of a ride.

Western States 100 Training

Well, this could be long, better grab coffee if you plan to follow along.

A few general notes first. Obviously, like all training plans, I will not follow this day in and day out. Rather, it is a guide to get me to my goals below. Lots of the goals and ideas I have will require flexibility and adapting to how life (and the weather) unfolds. This is particularly true of heat, night, and long run training. For example, last year we didn't get any heat until late June, after WS100 was over. That will make it tough to train for heat if it happens again. I have also tentatively outlined a few events that I'll do. Most of the events are just organized long runs that help me to get to my fitness goals. I noticed that short tune-up races were a big advantage for me in 2014, so I hope to repeat that. In particular, I enjoyed running the Colfax Marathon as a structured long (with no calories).

My plan is roughly based on mileage from the book Relentless Forward Progress. However, it will be easiest to explain this in terms of my training goals. Here are those goals:

2-3 good night runs on trails 

As I noted after my Bear 100 run, I just don't feel comfortable at night running. There are obvious things like footing and ability to see. But, there are subtle things like changing temperature and non-fasted state that cause me issues as well. I hope to spend a few evenings on long-ish trail runs (3+ hours) to try and work through some of these comfort zone problems.

8-10 heat runs up to 2 hours in length 

I have a few place in the plan where I put "heat?". As I mentioned above, I will try to remain flexible. The easiest and most obvious thing will be to throw on a long sleeve shirt at lunch and go run something flat and short. That serves a double purpose of heat and added mileage (to get me closer to my weekly peak below). But, if the weather doesn't cooperate, I may take my heat training inside and use the treadmill at the gym and/or sauna. I don't plan to go crazy with my heat-specific work, making only those runs that are specific in nature about an hour on average. However, there are a few trails in Colorado where I can get some exposed climbs and stagnant, hot conditions, which I will try to tackle a bit more in the Spring.

***UPDATE***: I decided against heat runs and used sauna training instead.

Consistent mileage above 55 

For me, good mileage is 5 days a week and about 50-55 miles total. This is "base" fitness for me. While my plan only has 5 days a week, I will probably try to get more like 6 days a week on average, using that extra day to get some free mileage and possibly some heat work.

Peak mileage at 70+, 4-6 times 

In reviewing my logs, I feel I reach peak fitness about 65-75 miles per week. So, my goal will be to get to this level about 4-6 times, clustered mostly toward the back-half of training. Again, the plan only has 5 days and I plan to add to that when I can. Some of the days on the plan have huge morning runs (like 14 miles) and I don't know that I can do that frequently. I may utilize some doubles on those days as well.

Lots of "light quality": Fartleks, Progression 

Another topic I have covered at length on this blog is my belief in "light quality". These are structured runs with a purpose but don't push me too deep in the red. I will utilize LOTS of these types of workouts in addition to my typical Maffetone/easy-aerobic workouts.

Modest amounts of true quality: tempos/threshold, intervals, hard longs

I definitely see the benefits of "true quality workouts", even to ultra runners, but I think there are diminishing returns on those workouts for ultra runners. Therefore, I plan to do a workout like this only every 7-10 days. Of course, some people will argue that any long run is a quality workout, and I tend to agree. For these purposes, I am only counting the workouts listed above.

Don't over-do trails and vertical 

This is self-explanatory. If you know me, I am a more is better kind of guy. Once I start training for a particular type of thing, I can really go bananas doing just that. In the context of trails, that is fine if it accessible and you love it. But, my kids are at an age that makes getting away tough. We have family plans nearly every weekend and time is short. The best trails around are 35-45 minutes away. It just isn't convenient to do that everyday, or even every weekend. I do live in an area with some modest trails and decent vertical (75-85 feet of vert per mile) just running around my home. My plan is to be generally fit and just specifically fit enough to finish the race well.

Don’t fight winter 

This is a tough but obvious reality living in Colorado. Most of my favorite trails will be covered in ice and snow until April, at least. Trail running really gets good in the Front Range about May. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a nice fresh powder run in the serene environment of a nice trails. But, last winter, I spent a ton of time running on ice and snow and was largely negative on many of those runs. It just wasn't fun, particularly the ice. So, my plan this year will be to not fight that. If we have a tough snow year, I'll stay close to home and work on "general fitness" until the trails are ready.

Emphasize body weight training for XT

And, finally, I want to continue my cross training regimen. In 2014, I managed to average about 1.5 - 2 sessions a week of cross training. I plan to carry forward that plan in 2015, but adapt to a bit more body weight training and less weight training. Instead of weights, I'll do more body weight exercises (bridges, single legged dead lifts, push-ups, and pull-ups for example), tons of core, and lots of balance work. The double duty on my legs of strength training plus lots of vertical took a toll in 2015.

Western 2015

Wow, I am still shocked I actually got in! After the disappointment of missing out two years in a row, I wasn't really even letting myself think about it. What was funny was my phone blowing up before I ever even knew I was selected -- apparently some folks were watching the Webcast. And, I got selected twice!!! Of my four tickets, they pulled two! It was definitely my year... And, my buddy Steve -- Salsa Steve, as my daughter likes to call him -- also go in.

The truth is that this is exactly the kind of jolt I needed. Training the last six months has become mundane and I was feeling the spark start to fade. Western States is one of the few remaining goals I have in ultra running -- the kind of goal that gets you going at 4:30 on a February morning. I really hoped all along that it would happen because I didn't really want to half-ass another hundred like I did at Bear last year.

Time for the Rocky quotes.... This is what I need, to get that look back. I had it at LT100. I could never find it for Bear 100. I tried to make Bear special and I couldn't do it. And, predictably, when it got hard, the race got the best of me. Fortunately, I finished and kept the Western States dream alive!

So what has changed? And what will change? Well, this is all preliminary, but here are a few thoughts I have about changing things to be prepared for my best shot at sub-24 hours:

1) My ideas about training are pretty well cemented at this point. I know who I am and what my body can take. I have written about this in the past, but I am not a mileage junkie. I believe in mostly MAF/aerobic work with some light quality (fartleks, hills, strides, progression) and just enough true-quality (lactate threshold runs, intervals, hard longs, long-longs).  Typically, I race best between 65-75 miles per week as my "peak" weeks. I will do a few more B2B longs this time than I did for Bear. However, for the most part, I will try to get my mileage through consistency and, likely, 6 days a week of running.

2) This time out I will emphasize more night running, hopefully doing 3-4 quality night runs. While I am not looking to burn up the track at night, I do need to get more comfortable running on trails at night plus all that encompasses (non-fasted state nutrition, temperatures, changing light, etc..). To aid in my cause, Santa will be bringing me a Petzel NAO headlamp. What a nice guy!

3) Being Western States, I will obviously have to train for heat like I never have before. I am not totally sure what this means yet, but I do know runners typically use saunas and midday runs with layers on to aid them in preparation. The good news is that most events I have raced in the past were hotter than normal (Leadville Marathon 2011, Silver Rush 2011, Leadville Trail 100 2012, Bear 100 2014) and I typically handle it pretty well. And, the one event that I have done in the past that I think will most mimic Western States conditions is North Fork 50, my best race ever. North Fork isn't as hot as WS, but it is an exposed, dry track with overall trail conditions like what I expect. And, it is a fast, runnable course, like Western States.

4) I won't go crazy for vertical gain. When peak trail training, I typically land between 30K and 35K per month in total vertical gain. That number is comfortable for me and a reasonable estimate of what I'll be doing March - May.

5) This is TBD, but I am unlikely to do any tune-up races. There aren't a ton of good Colorado trail events prior to early June. Plus, I don't want the risk of training and preparing for more than one thing. Eye on the prize. I want to be all in on this event.

6) Nutrition continues to be an on-going experiment. I suppose that is true for everyone. I am super happy with my LCHF approach, but I need to figure out in-race nutrition for the 100 mile distance. I gave up way too early on my plan at Bear 100 and paid for it late in the race.  TOO MUCH SUGAR!!!