[Run92]

I am following the 50 miler plan. My race has >9000ft elevation of rocky terrain, and I’m doing the race terrain on the endurance runs. I’m wondering hows best to manage the time vs distance for the endurance runs – 3 hours in the hills only gets me to 14-15miles, compared to 20 on roads/less hilly/rocky trails. Is it best to try and do the miles I would do on a flat but in the hills or just stick to time even if i’m not covering long enough distance?

[David Warden]

Run92, thanks for posting. This is always a tough decision. It all depends on your ability to recover.

Most athletes have a very difficult time recovering in 7 days from a 3+ hour run. So, if we have you run 4-5 hours to cover more miles, you just digging a hole. For some athletes it’s 4 hours, for some it’s 2 hours. We just have to make our best guess for a “typical” Level 1, 2, 3 athlete on how fast they can recover, and for your plan it’s 3 hours.

So, just ask yourself this: what’s the longest I can run and still be able to effectively train the next week?

Regarding your direct question, road or trails (20 miles or 15 miles) that depends on where you are in the plan. With less than 8 weeks to go, I’d go trails. If more than 8 weeks, I’d go road.

David

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