What can we Learn from Max King?

8:00 miles through hilly trails is not all that slow, especially with mileage consistently over 100-120 up to 200. The treadmill runs are probably for quick tempo without pavement impact.

8:00 X 22 = 176 minutes

Compare that with 2:18 guys running 21 miles at 6:00 pace, which equates to a 126 minute LR

So he is running 40% longer, that is to say his body is accustomed to going that much further.

Very few elites, and even more casual runners, do over distance training for the marathon, but it seems to work for him.

Not too different than some of Canova's guys doing 45km long runs about 45-60 seconds off race pace.

Steady--not easy--runs over hilly terrain yield a good base of fitness, which can be quickly honed to meet a specific task. We can learn that from Max, to the extent that we keep forgetting it.

Have fun and don't take running or yourself too seriously. Words to live by.

To me, Max King is like Chuck Norris. He's stuff legends are made of.

There's several of us in ultras who are doing it right- racing and training on a variety of surfaces and distances. I really think it's important to stay in touch with basic leg speed. I was ripping off 90 second repeats a lot, leading up to the 100K World Champs, to go along with maintaining 120-130 miles per week (mostly LSD) and lots of long progression runs. I don't have the hilly trails like Max and other ultra runners, but I make up for it with running steady over the hilliest roads/bridges where I live (plus strength training). I think for the most part you can continue to train like a marathoner for ultras, with some amount of specificity to match the terrain.

jaguar1 wrote:

There's several of us in ultras who are doing it right- racing and training on a variety of surfaces and distances. I really think it's important to stay in touch with basic leg speed. I was ripping off 90 second repeats a lot, leading up to the 100K World Champs, to go along with maintaining 120-130 miles per week (mostly LSD) and lots of long progression runs. I don't have the hilly trails like Max and other ultra runners, but I make up for it with running steady over the hilliest roads/bridges where I live (plus strength training). I think for the most part you can continue to train like a marathoner for ultras, with some amount of specificity to match the terrain.

Really interesting. How does your body handle the 90-second repeats on top of the heavy mileage? More than anything, I think it would be taxing on your CNS.

Camille, as long as we have you here, any insight as to why the ultra folks (aside from Max) struggled in LA? Heat acclimation? Thanks and continued good luck in your ultra pursuits. I am also a huge fan of your advice on your website. You have unique insight as a researcher as well as a competitor.

jaguar1 wrote:

There's several of us in ultras who are doing it right- racing and training on a variety of surfaces and distances. I really think it's important to stay in touch with basic leg speed. I was ripping off 90 second repeats a lot, leading up to the 100K World Champs, to go along with maintaining 120-130 miles per week (mostly LSD) and lots of long progression runs. I don't have the hilly trails like Max and other ultra runners, but I make up for it with running steady over the hilliest roads/bridges where I live (plus strength training). I think for the most part you can continue to train like a marathoner for ultras, with some amount of specificity to match the terrain.

Hi Racerator,

I really don't know the circumstances of all the ultra runners who competed. I know some of them have health issues (DNFed), got last minute qualifiers, found out at the last minute they qualified, etc.. Maybe some overtrained, heat was a struggle, or the motivation wasn't there to keep pushing hard. I personally felt I needed a break after the 50K World Champs and not be getting back to the grind for a peak marathon. It's a long year ahead!

Thanks for being a fan and glad to offer insight when I have some time!