Changes

Below are some selected ultramarathon training plans for [[A brief guide to ultramarathon distances| various ultramarathon distances]]. I have not used any of these plans, but I have selected them on the basis of having a reasonable level of detail and some credibility. {| class="wikitable"! Plan! Distance! Max Long Run! Back To Back! Peak Weekly ! Length (weeks)! Days/Week! Speedwork! Time/Distance! Level Of Detail! Notes|-| [http://www.amazon.com/Relentless-Forward-Progress-Running-Ultramarathons/dp/1891369903 Relentless Forward Progress] 100 miles on 50 MPW| 100 Miles| 50 miles| 24+14 miles| 58 miles| 24| 5| Yes| Distance| Complete book| See Below|-| [http://www.amazon.com/Relentless-Forward-Progress-Running-Ultramarathons/dp/1891369903 Relentless Forward Progress] 100 miles on 70 MPW| 100 Miles| 50 miles| 24+20 miles| 70 miles| 24 | 5| Yes| Distance| Complete book| See Below|-| [http://www.trailrunevents.com/ul/schedule-100m.asp Ultraladies 100 Mile Plan]| 100 Miles| 30 miles| 30+20 miles| 75 miles| 26| 5| No| Distance| Detailed plan giving daily runs | No details on paces It's important to realize that there is little known about training for training runsultras, just distance|-| [http://www.umstead100.org/First%20100.pdf Umstead 100 Mile Plan]| 100 Miles| 35-40 miles| No| 60-70 miles| | 5 + 1 day speed walking| Suggested| N/A| Rough guide to each day of and while the week, but no weekly or daily details| Written for books have the Umstead 100most detail, but some useful advice for other races. |-| [http://wwwthere's still a paucity of experience that backs them up.erunningguide.com/running/100-mile-ultramarathon-training-program-first-timers eRunningGuide.com 100 Mile Plan]| 100 Mile| 30 miles| 25 + 30 miles| 73 miles| 24| 3-4| No| Distance| Detailed plan giving daily runs.| No details on paces for training runsFor those wanting a high level summary, just distance|-| [http://www.amazon.com/Koerners-Field-Guide-Ultrarunning-Ultramarathon/dp/1937715221 Hal Koernerhere's 100 Mile Plan] | 100 Mile| 35 miles| 35 + 20 miles| 76 miles| 20| 6 (including twice/day runs)| Tempo, Hills, Fartlek| Distance| Complete book| See below for caveats|-| [httpmy recommendations://www.amazon.com/Relentless-Forward-Progress-Running-Ultramarathons/dp/1891369903 Relentless Forward Progress] 40 miles to 100K on 50 MPW| 40 miles to 100K| 31 miles| 18 + 10 miles| 51 miles| 24| 5| Yes| Distance| Complete book| See Below|-| [http://www.amazon.com/* Read both "Relentless-Forward-Progress-Running-Ultramarathons/dp/1891369903 Relentless Forward Progress] 40 miles to 100K on 70 MPW| 40 miles to 100K| 31 miles| 25 + 12 miles| 69 miles| 24| 5| Yes| Distance| Complete book| See Below|-| [http://www.amazon.com/Koerners-" and the "Field-Guide-to Ultrarunning-Ultramarathon/dp/1937715221 Hal Koerner" as these books have good information and reading both gives you some balance.* Consider Wolfgang's 50 Mile "Ultra Marathon Training", but only in addition to 100K Plan] | 50 miles to 100K| 30 miles| 25 + 25 miles| 76 miles| 16| 6 (including twice/day runs)| Tempo, Hills, Fartlek| Distance| Complete book| See below for caveats|-| [http://ultrarunningthe two books mentioned above.co.nz/content/100km-training-programme Ultrarunning New Zealand 100Km Plan]| * Read the Umstead 100 Km| 5 hours (45 Km/28 miles)| 4 hours+5 hours| | 16| 5| Intervals + MP| Mixed| Detailed plan giving daily runs.| Specifies each runguide; it's free, it's short, with and it has some indication pace, but no other outstanding advicefor any ultra.|-| [http://www.trailrunevents.com/ul/schedule-50m.asp Ultraladies 50 Mile Plan]| 50 Mile| 28 miles| 28 + 12 miles| 62 miles| 20| 5| No| Distance| Detailed plan giving daily runs.| No details on paces for training runs, just distance|-| [http://www.runnersworld.com/ultra-marathons/ultimate-ultramarathon-training-plan * Consider the Runner's World 50 Mile Plan]| 50 Mile| 5 hours (27-29 miles)| 4 hours + 5 hours| | 16| 5| Intervals + MP| Mixed| Detailed mile plan giving daily runs.| Some indication paces|-| [http://www.amazon.com/Relentless-Forward-Progress-Running-Ultramarathons/dp/1891369903 Relentless Forward Progress] 50K on 50 MPW| 50K| 26 miles| 20 + 14 miles| 50 miles| 24| 5| Yes| Distance| Complete book| See Below|-| [http://www.amazon.com/Relentless-Forward-Progress-Running-Ultramarathons/dp/1891369903 Relentless Forward Progress] 50K on 70 MPW| 50K| 26 miles| 24 + 16 miles| 69 miles| 24| 5| Yes| Distance| Complete book| See Below|-| [http://running.competitor.com/files/2012/11/46_nat_r1.pdf Competitor Magazines First 50K Plan] (pdf)| 50 Km| 26 miles| 26 miles + 1 Hour| | 16| 5-6| No| Mixed| Detailed plan giving daily runs.| Specifies each run, with some indication pace, but no think of the other adviceonline plans as input to creating your own plan rather than as a complete plan.|-| * Read my advice around [[http://www.trailrunevents.com/ul/schedule-50k.asp Ultraladies 50K PlanUltrarunning]]| 50 Km| 26 miles| 26 + 10 miles| 56 miles| 20| 5| No| Distance| Detailed plan giving daily runs.| No details on paces for training runs, just distance|-| [http{{://www.amazon.com/KoernersUltramarathon Training Plans-Field-Guide-Ultrarunning-Ultramarathon/dp/1937715221 Hal Koerner's 50K Plan] | 50K| 30 miles| 25 + 15 miles| 66 miles| 16| 6 (including twice/day runs)| Tempo, Hills, Fartlek| Distance| Complete book| See below for caveats|table}}=Notes=

The book does contain three training plans, for the 50K, 50 miles to 100K, and 100 miles. These plans feel a little like an afterthought, tucked in the back of the book almost like an appendix. The plans that do include fartlek, hill repeats, and tempo runs but the details seem lacking. Hal mentions that the tempo run should be at 10K pace, but does not indicate how much of the 6-20 mile tempo run should be at that 10K pace. The 50 K plan includes a 30 mile long run, which seems a little excessive, as does the 25+15 back to back long runs.<br style="clear: both" /> =Wolfgang Olbrich's Ultra Marathon Training=[[File:WolfgangUltraMarathonTraining.jpg|right|thumb|200px|The cover of [http://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Marathon-Training-Wolfgang-Olbrich/dp/1841263621 Ultra Marathon Training].]]There are quite a few plans in 'Ultra Marathon Training', and these are the main reason for buying the book in my opinion. (<jfs id="1841263621" n="" nonl="t"/>.) * There are plans for 50K and 100K which you'd expect, but it's unusual to see plans for timed events at 6, 12, & 24 hours, as well as multiday events. * The 50K & 100K distances have multiple plans for target finishing times. These plans are based on your marathon performance which allows the plans to include specific training paces, something that's rare for ultras. * There is a 100 mile training plan, which oddly is specifically intended for the Western States 100. * The plans are quite short, covering just 8 weeks, with two of those weeks for taper. This seems overly short to me, even for a marathon or half marathon, let alone a 100 mile race.* The book is European, so there are no plans for 50 mile races, but you could use the 100K plans. * The training plans are mostly in Km, with just a few mile equivalents included. I had to continually do the conversions as I don't think in metric distances. This is compounded because the tables use colors that are hard to read. Wolfgang's book contains a huge breadth of information, but because it touches on so many subjects is has little depth in any of them. Overall, I get the impression that Wolfgang is trying too hard to be all encompassing. It's hard to know if he genuinely thinks all these topics are appropriate, or if he's just pulling in material for the sake of it. * Wolfgang includes a brief overview of the history of ultrarunning. This is one section where the lack of depth works well, providing a pleasant synopsis of the origin of the sport. * There are a few short profiles of some great ultrarunners, providing a few tidbits of insight. * There are similar profiles of some of the famous ultras like Western States, Comrades, & West Highland Way.* Only a brief overview of the types of training is included. These types are things like intensive endurance or extensive endurance, and they're defined in terms of Heart Rate. This is the main area where a lot more detail would be useful. I found far more useful advice on the long run in the free Umstead 100 training guide than this book!* Wolfgang mentions a few tests, such as a lactic acid test or the Conconi test, which I've rarely seen with recreational athletes. I'm a little surprised by their inclusion, especially as their value even in elite athletes seems a little dubious. * The section on [[Stretching]] is a little strange. Wolfgang starts off correctly stating that the current research indicates that stretching has no clear benefit and can be detrimental, but then provides several pages of stretches. * There are sections on strength training (using body weight) and running drills. I'm not convinced by the benefit of strength training in runners, other than maximum strength training which is not covered in the book. * I found the section on nutrition a little confusing, but it does cover carbohydrate loading and recovery nutrition. * The advice on hydration includes the recommendation to take 1g of sodium per liter in hot conditions. That's 1g of salt in a sports drink that contains 600mg/L, or 1-2g of salt per liter of water. That fits in with what I've found from [[The Science Of Hydration]]. * The chapter on [[Running and Lower GI Problems]] provides some insight into the problem, but has little advice on what to do. * The only part of the book that seems a little long is the author's race reports that come at the end of the book. * Sometimes the language seems slightly cumbersome. It's not what you'd typically see with a bad translation, but it does make the book harder to read, and occasionally I'd struggle to understand a critical sentence. <br style="clear: both" /> =Umstead 100 Training Plan=This plan is obviously focused on the Umstead 100 race, but is valuable for all ultrarunners. This is really a starting point for you to create your own plan, and it provides an outline of a typical week rather than a week by week guide. However, it provides rather more useful advice on things like the long run and night runs than I've seen in many other places. I would recommend anyone training for any ultramarathon that's longer than 50K read this guide. Blake's deep experience from not only running ultras but organizing the Umstead 100 shows in this guide. Blake knows what it takes to succeed, but more importantly he knows the reasons why people fail. =Runner's World 50 Mile Plan=This plan is more detailed than most, giving training paces for each run and some general training advice. The plan is intended to take you from a marathon finish to a 50 miler in 16 weeks, which is quite reasonable. This is the best freely available plan I've come across and it's well worth considering. =Ultraladies=These plans are available online for 50K, 50 miles and 100 miles. The plans appear to have been developed by Nancy Shura-Dervin, a coach and ultramarathon runner. The plans include the distances for each week, and a few paragraphs of general information, but not much else. Each longer plan is intended to follow on from the shorter distance plan, so the 50 mile plan recommends you completed the 50K plan and race, followed by a 4-6 weeks of recovery. I would consider these plans as a starting point for developing your own training program rather than a complete solution. =eRunningGuide's 100 Mile Plan=It's hard to know how much experience and credibility to give this 100 mile training plan. There are a few introductory notes, then the table of training runs, but no details of the author or their background. The plan consists of gradually increasing mileage, with two or three back-to-back long runs on alternating weeks (the peak week is 15/25/30 miles on consecutive days.) Consider this as input to creating your own training plan rather than a finished product. =Competitor Magazines First 50K Plan=This guide provides details on each workout and is intended to take you from a marathon to a 50K in 16 weeks. In addition to the plan itself, there is a bit of general advice, though I found it rather dubious at best. I think the hydration recommendations are downright dangerous, and I didn't like the nutrition advice of "You want to find out the maximum amount you can take in without getting sick." The plan is worth a cautious look.