Climbing (Ascending)

• It’s ok to hike the uphills! There’s a lot of hiking that can be involved in ultrarunning, even with the pro’s! It is often better energy conservation to hike the uphills in a race and save your energy for a powerful finish rather than trying to push and run up every uphill. 
  • Often more efficient to hike vs run after certain gradients
• Running uphill (to a certain point) will do less muscle damage in a race compared to running downhill
  • It’s easier on your muscles and joints, you are often more efficient and have better form than running on flat ground
• Break down the ascents with chunking like we talked about in the mental strategy event. Pick waypoints throughout the climb to push towards and then give yourself a short break once you reach them.
  • Trees, bushes, a race flag, a trail marker, a log, etc.
• Use poles to help aid you and take strain off the legs during ascents
• Take smaller steps & utilize those BIG muscles - glutes & hamstrings - to power yourself up the hill
• Very steep sections you may find yourself more on your forefoot and utilizing your calf muscles 
• Use your hands to push your legs as you climb, can be especially helpful on steeper terrain - you’ll see a lot of european runners doing this
• Hiking uphills also provides a break of sorts - muscles are utilized differently and you generally slow your pace. some text
  • Sometimes an uphill hike can be a good opportunity to eat, as long as your HR and effort aren’t too high
• Don’t think about pace on the uphills. Pace will ALWAYS slow. Think about your effort level instead. Try to keep your effort the same on the uphill as it is on the flats. 
• Sometimes helpful to not look ahead at how much is left, but instead put your focus on the ground and your feet in front of you just keep taking one step at a time and grind through it. Can be helpful when you’re especially tired, the hill is very long or steep, or you’re late in a race/run and not in the best mental space. 
• Don’t forget about false summits! They can be demoralizing, so knowing they’re a possibility is half the battle!

Descending

• Think about effectiveness, not speed on downhills in ultras
• Hard downhill running damages the muscles quickly (much more so than running uphill) which can result in feeling fatigued and trashed much sooner, and result in a quicker slowing of overall pace and effort later in the race.some text
  • For this reason, you’re less likely to make up time on downhills from a previous slower portion of your race. Remember, you’re playing the long game, saving your quads early can help you maintain overall effort and pace late into your race.  
• Practice “quiet running” lighter footfall = more efficient downhill running
• Take smaller quick steps, think quick feet and less time each foot is on the groundsome text
  • Smaller steps mean less time in the air so you are in more control
• Lift head up and look further down the trail - try to set up flags or way points on the downhill so folks can practice (3 flags in field of vision at all times)
• Don’t overanalyze trying to pick the best line. If you’re keeping your steps short and light, you will bound over everything. 
• On very steep terrain, slick mud, or loose rocks it can help to turn yourself slightly sideways to make your way down the hill 
• Spread your arms to help with stability, but you don’t want to be flailing out of control down the hill. 
• Remember to have fun!

Running with Trekking Poles

• Steep uphill - plant 2 poles firmly simultaneously and use this to help propel yourself up. This can really help with fatigued legs. 
  • Choke up on the grip of your poles. You essentially want a slightly shorter pole for uphills
  • Let the straps or hand lock assist you
• Objects in the path - plant 2 poles and use them to vault yourself over the object
• Flatter terrain/downhill - poles move with your arms and steps follow in between - think “pole, pole, step, step, step”
• Downhill
  • Can also utilize the double pole plant, esp on steeper terrain
  • Helps with stability, slippery terrain or poor footing
  • Relieves some of the strain on your quads, esp helpful late in a race
  • Place hands closer to the top or on the very top of your poles to give yourself more length on the downhills
• Biggest thing is practice, practice, practice! If you have a race where you’re considering using poles the sooner you start using them in training runs, the better off you’ll be!
• Stowing poles - options with bungees on packs, options built into some shorts!, and pole quivers from Salomon
• Different types of handles (pros & cons of each)some text
  • Leki lock mechanism
  • Straps

Falling

• No matter how good a trail runner we are, we’ve all fallen and all will continue to fall! It’s ok! Falls are normal. Give yourself grace here. Remember some of the mental strategies we talked about during the last event, use these to help calm yourself after a fall and get yourself back on the trail and confidently! 
• Change your mindset after a fallsome text
  • Don’t let the fall discourage you or make you think you’re not good at running or not good at running xxx (wherever it was you fell). Even the pros fall! 
  • I like to think when I fall it means I’m pushing hard and really going for it!
• After a fall, assess for any clear injury and walk for a bit to calm yourself down and ease back into running. 
• Now, if you’ve fallen and think you are injured, that’s a different story. Highlight the importance of having a spot tracker for long runs with lots of time between aid stations, using a Strava Beacon if running solo, emphasize running with friends, etc. If anything, try to stay put and wait for a sweeper in the race. 
• But, we hope these tips can help you fall less or at least feel a little more confident out on the trails!

Types of Technical Terrain

• Loose rocks and roots - very typical of East Coast trails
• Sand - Pine Barrens in NJ, deserts out west
• Water crossings - how to handle them (pros and cons of taking off shoes, letting feet get wet, how quickly will they dry? How soon to another water crossing?), some water crossings have guidelines and some even have small boats to take you across!
• Scree - very small rocks on the slope of a mountain
• Dirt, dirt, and lots of dirt! (talk about gaiters here - I’ll plan to wear some to demo as well)

Why to Wear Trail Shoes:

• Lugs on the bottom
• Tackier rubber on the sole
• Increased drainability 
• Water protection at the very tip
• Gore-Tex outer layers - talk about pros and cons of this

Running at Altitude

• Here in Philly we live at Sea Level - but what if you want to run a mountainous race?
• It’s not that there’s “less oxygen” at higher elevations, but rather it’s that it’s harder to get oxygen into your lungs and therefore into your circulatory system. This is due to the reduced partial pressure of oxygen in the air an athlete is breathing. This equates to fewer oxygen molecules in each lungful of air.
• Heart and respiration rates increase at appx 5,000 ft above sea level
• Pace will slow, use RPE as a guide!
• In terms of how to prepare for running a race at altitude, there’s not much you can do at sea level (as opposed to something like heat training for a race in warmer conditions), unless you’re planning on buying an altitude tent or something. However, what's recommended primarily is really thinking about when to arrive at a race. Altitude acclimatization is worst 24-72 hours after arriving at a higher elevation. Therefore, if possible it’s recommended to arrive at a race either 1 week or more beforehand or the night before. 
• General overall fitness is also helpful for running at altitude. Aside from purchasing an altitude tent and arriving at the race a week early, improving your fitness level is something you have the greatest control over and will benefit you on race day. 
• Common symptoms of altitude sickness include: 
  • Headaches, dizziness, light-headedness
  • Nausea
  • Excessive shortness of breath or fatigue
  • Bloody nose