Max Keith

My first trail marathon nearly broke me. And I was fit. Here’s everything I wish I’d known before that race, from training to gear to why pace stops making sense the moment you hit a climb.We’re really serious about asking yourself these two things, because it’s actually pretty common for ultrarunners to feel obligated to try to tackle this distance before they’re ready. And while on one hand it can be good to have some “motivators” while training for or racing a 100 miler, the reality is that if you undertake this huge goal for the wrong reasons, it’s going to be much harder to actually achieve.

The 100k is a different animal. This guide covers the full specific training block for a 100k ultramarathon — intensity control, Mountain Index, power hiking, night running, crew strategy, and race day execution. Written by Vert.run coach Max Keith.
We’re really serious about asking yourself these two things, because it’s actually pretty common for ultrarunners to feel obligated to try to tackle this distance before they’re ready. And while on one hand it can be good to have some “motivators” while training for or racing a 100 miler, the reality is that if you undertake this huge goal for the wrong reasons, it’s going to be much harder to actually achieve.

Ok, so let’s start off by stating the obvious: running a 100 miler is HARD. (And we mean very, very hard indeed.) Training for and running 100 miles is just about as hard as it gets in the sport of trail running, actually, so if you’re thinking about running a 100 miler, you should first ask yourself these two questions: 1.) Do I want to run a 100 miles because I really want to? Or am I doing it because I feel like I’m “supposed” to as an ultrarunner? 2.) Do I have a friend or someone else who is pushing me to take on training for a 100 miler before I’m ready to?

We’re really serious about asking yourself these two things, because it’s actually pretty common for ultrarunners to feel obligated to try to tackle this distance before they’re ready. And while on one hand it can be good to have some “motivators” while training for or racing a 100 miler, the reality is that if you undertake this huge goal for the wrong reasons, it’s going to be much harder to actually achieve.