[PeakEndurance]

Hi,

Next year in july i want to run my first 60km ultra, but the 80/20 ultra plans are for 50 mile or 100k events. Any recommendations on which plan i should choose?

[David Warden]

Peak,

In these cases, we recommend an 80/20 50 mile plan and “level down.” If you would normally get a Level 2 50-mile plan, get a Level 1 instead.

Frankly, I can’t fully endorse this solution. I just don’t know how this will work. I’ve made the recommendation many times for 60, 65, 70K races, but no one has ever come back to say “you suck!” or “it worked great!” I think that the best option might be to find a competitor’s dedicated 60K plan and adjust the intensity to 80/20 ratios. It would be disingenuous of me to claim that my “level down” idea would be superior.

David

[PeakEndurance]

Hi David,

Thank you for your honest answer. What is the recommended training block time for an ultra (60K) for someone who finished two marathons in 3:50 hours? I’m considering to purchase a custom plan from you, because i really love the 80/20 method.

Raoul.

[David Warden]

Raoul,

I’d say 18 weeks averaging 7 hours a week would be a solid minimum commitment for a successful 60K event. For someone who can run a 3:50 and has 2 marathons completed already, maybe 6 hours a week average, but still 18 weeks. So for you the 50M Level 0 or Level 1 plan would work just fine for a 60K, and I’d start with the Level 0.

An 80/20 custom plan is a good idea. Matt would provide that and does an incredible job. It’s just a bit expensive, and I think you could get 90% of the benefit from leveling down on a 50M plan.

David

[theboss]

Digging up this old post from 2020 with a Custom Plan question.

I’m looking at a 6 hour race this fall. I’ve run it twice. One time I got about 60k, the next year I got just over a 50k (interestingly enough, I cut back on my easy workouts that season and amped up my threshold runs…). Ideally, I’ll get a 60K again this year. I’m considering the custom plan option. If I go that route, does it become a Lifelong Plan in my Training Peaks account that I could use over and over?

[David Warden]

Boss,

Best of luck to you this year! I’m rooting for 65K. Yes, custom plans from 80/20 are permanent, and you can use them over and over again.

David

[theboss]

Thanks, David!

I’m going through the 50 miler plan right now (my first 50 miler, and my first 80/20 plan). Once that race is over, I’ll order a custom plan and hopefully be able to talk about what went right with the plan and what parts I want to keep.

[Author]

Posts