Easy as one, two, three?

Runner's World recently posted an interesting and helpful guide to running your first ultramarathon. Calling on the expertise of several ultra veterns, the RW article offers some great tips on planning, training, nutrition, race day, and recovery. Although Greg and I may be violating one or two of their tips (picking a race close to home is for WIMPS!), by and large it sounds like we're on track. This spring and summer we'll both be working on steadily building up our training to a fall marathon, peppering our calendars with several half-marathons and shorter races. While neither of us are entirely injury free currently, we've played it pretty smart by cutting back mileage, crosstraining, and stretching like crazy. So hopefully we won't end up like this Comrades runner...

The plethora of how-to ultra guides and advice columns are definitely great, don't get me wrong, but it still doesn't diminish the fact that running an ultra is downright intimidating. A quick peek at the training plans posted on the Comrades' website offers a glimpse of what fall and next spring holds. 60K long runs on the weekend, three or more four hour runs a week - no big deal, right? Ha. I hear my social life dying a slow, painful death. I think the massive time commitment demanded by ultra training will be the most difficult aspect of the process for me, you know besides running 56 miles straight. As the old adage goes, New York City never sleeps and there's always a million new restaurants to try, neighborhoods to explore, free open bars to find, or cooking classes to take. I'll have to put some of my other adventures on the back burner in the latter half of the year with my fingers crossed that the Comrades experience will be everything I've built it up to be.

In the meanwhile, eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow I'll be running my face off!