If we look Yannis and his ways it seems that he goes against most conventional wisdom for training, physique and lifestyle but he has the best records.
Physique: built like an 800m runner not a marathoner
Sleep: slept a few hours a night not eight
Diet: consisted of very little fat, ate mostly carbohydrates
Injuries: ran straight through injuries in training
Training: trained low mileage with multiple runs per day
Discus.
It's not surprising that Pheidippides was also greek, presumably built like Yiannas or a warrior. A small runner with slight stature would have a harder time running themselves until they die. A runner with lots of muscles and efficiency could go much longer.
lol 100% heel striker
George 123 wrote:
lol 100% heel striker
Heel striking FTW!!!
Perhaps his success at records was just his ability to constantly fuel. It's suggested his caloric intake could be greater than his caloric burn during ultras. He was a feaster.
The following excerpts are taken from Dr. Tim Noakes' "Lore of Running" pages 352 and 353 where he discusses Kouros' 1985 960km Sydney to Melbourne race ( which he won ).
His daily energy expenditure ranged from 15,367 Kcal on the first day to 7,736 Kcal on the fifth day, and his daily energy intake varied from 13,770 Kcal on the first day to 7,800 Kcal on the fifth day. Overall, his total estimated energy intake ( 55,970 Kcal ) exceeded his energy expenditure ( 55,079 Kcal ).
To maintain this high rate of energy consumption, Kouros ate every 15 minutes...
Carbohydrates provided 96% of his total energy intake.
Clearly, two factors contribute most significantly to Kouros' success. First, he has a remarkable ability to go without sleep for prolonged periods. Second, he has a capacity to maintain a high rate of energy consumption during these races. This parallels findings in cyclists competing in the formidable Tour de France. Only those cyclists whose rates of daily energy consumption equal their rates of energy utilization are able to finish the race."
Gretchen wrote:
If we look Yannis and his ways it seems that he goes against most conventional wisdom for training, physique and lifestyle but he has the best records.
Physique: built like an 800m runner not a marathoner
Sleep: slept a few hours a night not eight
Diet: consisted of very little fat, ate mostly carbohydrates
Injuries: ran straight through injuries in training
Training: trained low mileage with multiple runs per day
Discus.
Cool story bro...who cares about this nobody
MightyOakes wrote:
Perhaps his success at records was just his ability to constantly fuel. It's suggested his caloric intake could be greater than his caloric burn during ultras. He was a feaster.
The following excerpts are taken from Dr. Tim Noakes' "Lore of Running" pages 352 and 353 where he discusses Kouros' 1985 960km Sydney to Melbourne race ( which he won ).
His daily energy expenditure ranged from 15,367 Kcal on the first day to 7,736 Kcal on the fifth day, and his daily energy intake varied from 13,770 Kcal on the first day to 7,800 Kcal on the fifth day. Overall, his total estimated energy intake ( 55,970 Kcal ) exceeded his energy expenditure ( 55,079 Kcal ).
To maintain this high rate of energy consumption, Kouros ate every 15 minutes...
Carbohydrates provided 96% of his total energy intake.
Clearly, two factors contribute most significantly to Kouros' success. First, he has a remarkable ability to go without sleep for prolonged periods. Second, he has a capacity to maintain a high rate of energy consumption during these races. This parallels findings in cyclists competing in the formidable Tour de France. Only those cyclists whose rates of daily energy consumption equal their rates of energy utilization are able to finish the race."
Almost 100 calories per mile!
Kyle_S_ wrote:
Gretchen wrote:
If we look Yannis and his ways it seems that he goes against most conventional wisdom for training, physique and lifestyle but he has the best records.
Physique: built like an 800m runner not a marathoner
Sleep: slept a few hours a night not eight
Diet: consisted of very little fat, ate mostly carbohydrates
Injuries: ran straight through injuries in training
Training: trained low mileage with multiple runs per day
Discus.
Cool story bro...who cares about this nobody
We care more about him than anyone in this world care about you.
The guy's iron stomach and sleep-hardiness made him a genuine genetic freak, like Usain in sprinting. I once read that he broke a six-day record and gained a pound in the process!
I think a diet of mostly carbs is quite normal among distance runners. Especially for ultrarunners since they need to get so much energy during races.
Agree on the other points. He's a legend.
A diet of "mostly carbs" is quite normal amongst the general world's population. Eat your fruits and veggies (and whole grains) kids. I believe he was also a vegetarian (correct me if I am wrong). Made the most out of his 2:24 marathon "speed" to become a GOAT ultrarunner....at least for road ultras and events over 24 hours. I am doubting the consistent lack of sleep though....sleep seems pretty important for any type of training/health. I can imagine that maybe he was used to "sleep deprivation" stints and operating on a crazy schedule to set multi-day records like he did.... But one can only go so long in chronic sleep debt.
czxcz wrote:
I think a diet of mostly carbs is quite normal among distance runners. Especially for ultrarunners since they need to get so much energy during races.
Agree on the other points. He's a legend.
S. Canaday wrote:
A diet of "mostly carbs" is quite normal amongst the general world's population. Eat your fruits and veggies (and whole grains) kids.
I believe he was also a vegetarian (correct me if I am wrong).
Made the most out of his 2:24 marathon "speed" to become a GOAT ultrarunner....at least for road ultras and events over 24 hours.
I am doubting the consistent lack of sleep though....sleep seems pretty important for any type of training/health. I can imagine that maybe he was used to "sleep deprivation" stints and operating on a crazy schedule to set multi-day records like he did.... But one can only go so long in chronic sleep debt.
czxcz wrote:
I think a diet of mostly carbs is quite normal among distance runners. Especially for ultrarunners since they need to get so much energy during races.
Agree on the other points. He's a legend.
There are people who require different amounts of sleep to function. Most people are 7-9 hours. Some are 10+ and some are 4-5 hours. It’s likely that on a normal day he may have only needed 4-5 hours, making it easier for him to sleep less during multi-day ultras.
What was he eating to maintain the 15 minute intervals and be able to digest the food?? Also, he must’ve had to go to the bathroom constantly if he was eating that much. Did he have regular bathroom access and breaks during his record runs??
MightyOakes wrote:
Perhaps his success at records was just his ability to constantly fuel. It's suggested his caloric intake could be greater than his caloric burn during ultras. He was a feaster.
The following excerpts are taken from Dr. Tim Noakes' "Lore of Running" pages 352 and 353 where he discusses Kouros' 1985 960km Sydney to Melbourne race ( which he won ).
His daily energy expenditure ranged from 15,367 Kcal on the first day to 7,736 Kcal on the fifth day, and his daily energy intake varied from 13,770 Kcal on the first day to 7,800 Kcal on the fifth day. Overall, his total estimated energy intake ( 55,970 Kcal ) exceeded his energy expenditure ( 55,079 Kcal ).
To maintain this high rate of energy consumption, Kouros ate every 15 minutes...
Carbohydrates provided 96% of his total energy intake.
Clearly, two factors contribute most significantly to Kouros' success. First, he has a remarkable ability to go without sleep for prolonged periods. Second, he has a capacity to maintain a high rate of energy consumption during these races. This parallels findings in cyclists competing in the formidable Tour de France. Only those cyclists whose rates of daily energy consumption equal their rates of energy utilization are able to finish the race."
No. Use Morceli's logic. He was simply tougher than everyone else.
The longer races is much about being able to eat enough while running and muscles will help to keep his posture. I believe he is even using his shoulders to propel him forward when tired. He may also be actn3xx so his muscles doesn’t affect his running as much as this with rr or rx
FinnJ wrote:
The longer races is much about being able to eat enough while running and muscles will help to keep his posture. I believe he is even using his shoulders to propel him forward when tired. He may also be actn3xx so his muscles doesn’t affect his running as much as this with rr or rx
Sorry I don't speak robot
Yannis Poopoorous wrote:
What was he eating to maintain the 15 minute intervals and be able to digest the food??
Also, he must’ve had to go to the bathroom constantly if he was eating that much. Did he have regular bathroom access and breaks during his record runs??
MightyOakes wrote:
Perhaps his success at records was just his ability to constantly fuel. It's suggested his caloric intake could be greater than his caloric burn during ultras. He was a feaster.
The following excerpts are taken from Dr. Tim Noakes' "Lore of Running" pages 352 and 353 where he discusses Kouros' 1985 960km Sydney to Melbourne race ( which he won ).
His daily energy expenditure ranged from 15,367 Kcal on the first day to 7,736 Kcal on the fifth day, and his daily energy intake varied from 13,770 Kcal on the first day to 7,800 Kcal on the fifth day. Overall, his total estimated energy intake ( 55,970 Kcal ) exceeded his energy expenditure ( 55,079 Kcal ).
To maintain this high rate of energy consumption, Kouros ate every 15 minutes...
Carbohydrates provided 96% of his total energy intake.
Clearly, two factors contribute most significantly to Kouros' success. First, he has a remarkable ability to go without sleep for prolonged periods. Second, he has a capacity to maintain a high rate of energy consumption during these races. This parallels findings in cyclists competing in the formidable Tour de France. Only those cyclists whose rates of daily energy consumption equal their rates of energy utilization are able to finish the race."
His race diet during the Sidney-Melbourne race in 1989 (1011K in 5 days, 2 hours) consisted of carbohydrates like chocolate cake and biscuits, lots of fruit and fluids.
“The organizers were copying my diet as they thought the secret to be in my practice or in my diet. One of the crew, a triathlete, was to try out secretly whatever I had.”
Nevertheless Kouros still finished the next year 28 hours ahead.
Yiannis had a long-standing goal to run 300K (186 miles) in 24 hours and was frustrated several times
coming up short. In 1997 he would finally reach his goal. His achievement came at Sri Chinmoy 24-hours
at Adelaide, Australia on a 400-meter track. Yiannis went for it, not holding back. He hit the marathon mark
in 2:59, 100K in 7:15, 100 miles in 11:57, and 200K in 15:10, a new World Record. He was beginning to
feel the pain but pushed on. By 17 hours he had covered 138 miles. At 20 hours, he had a “bad patch” and
his laps started to slow, so he stopped talking and was very focused. His crew continued to help, putting
small pieces of food in his mouth as he passed each lap. When dawn arrived, he felt revived. He began
shouting at his crew for more fuel.
That photo is of the Sri Chinmoy 24-Hour Race in 1985 in Queens, New York City when he ran in hurricane weather. He told me "When my legs get tired, I run with my arms, and when my arms get tired I run with my mind." There's a write-up about that race somewhere online.
