The end of the season is an ideal time to review what can be learned from the previous year. Since ultrarunning is inherently tough, it means there’s usually plenty to adjust, and there’s always some degree of failure. I...
Articles by Ian Sharman
Many people stick to their comfort zone in training. There’s an understandable bias toward focusing on your strengths since it’s fun and satisfying. Who doesn’t want to perform with skill and expertise in their comfort z...
As a coach, I’ve found three words that provide a useful, practical mantra for distance running: patience, discipline and confidence. Ultra success involves putting in the work day-by-day for a payoff that could be mo...
One of the most enjoyable aspects in any pursuit is the satisfaction from learning and improving. This is a core part of ultrarunning, but it’s not easy – just think of friends who’ve had a repetitive issue ruin race aft...
Most athletes are familiar with the main concept behind training where once a stress is placed on the body, the body then rebuilds and improves during a recovery period. However, there’s a lot of room for interpretation...
If you run, you’re a runner. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far. Being a runner is more a state of mind than some minimum athletic threshold. This applies if you’re injured and can’t currently run, or if you’re super...
Running is a basic activity, even when you add in technical trails and gear. However, I see a lot of runners struggling when they add more than necessary. Technology was designed to make things...
People who’ve lived at altitude for generations, like Tibetans and Andeans, show genetic adaptations to altitude to overcome the lower barometric pressure and corresponding lower oxygen density in the air. However, th...
In Matt Fitzgerald’s new book, The Comeback Quotient, he delves into the psychological side of sports performance. He articulates multiple core concepts needed for success in both training and racing, and I spend much...
After a year of severely reduced racing opportunities, 2021 is a chance for a fresh slate. Routines have been upended, kids are schooling at home, and there’s still plenty of time before we get back to normal. Yet, th...
It’s safe to say that the 2020 running season didn’t go as expected. However, winter is the ideal time to work on consistent speed work without the interruption of races. In some cases, it makes perfect sense to back...
There are many reasons why athletes take on ultras, whether it’s looking for a new challenge, different terrain or reading an inspirational book. One of the key components underlying all those reasons is the need for adv...
In recent years, the variety of ultra races has moved beyond just distance or time. For example, the Piece of String Fun Run in the UK is an event with a concept where the length is a mystery, along the lines of the age...
Odds are that for the really long distances, like 100 miles, almost everyone will need to power-hike at some point during a race. To put it in context, each time I won the Leadville Trail 100, I typically power-hiked aro...
Something recently happened that made me wonder how a sharp rise in stress affects running. I almost ended up in a high-speed car crash on the way to a race start, and with the pandemic causing overwhelming stress for ma...
As much as we love races, I’d like to suggest another option. Why not try running an epic route that inspires you? Ideally, a trail that may not be available as a race or an adventure relating to an event that’s very dif...
I first heard about ultrarunning in 2004 when I saw a documentary about the Marathon des Sables (MdS) in the Sahara Desert. I never thought the sport would dominate my life in every way, but it turns out that many runner...
While much of what you do each day seems like it takes deliberate thought and willpower, your habits dictate more than you realize. Daily bad habits can lead to negative cycles. While it’s tough to change these for the b...
Speak to any runner and you’ll quickly see how our sense of self is wrapped up in the sport. This is most visible when we can’t run, especially during an injury or when we simply can’t find the time to fit in a few miles...
Whether you’re new to ultras or have been running for a long time, it’s common for goals to change. One of the best things about endurance running is that it’s possible to keep improving strength and speed well beyond yo...