By Andy Jones-Wilkins, CTS Ultramarathon Coach Several years ago, I received an out-of-the-blue email from a team of researchers from the Psychology Department at the University of Pennsylvania. They had apparently picked up my name from Ultrarunning Magazine and were interested in having me participate in a study on something they were calling Grit. What is …
By Adam St. Pierre CTS Ultramarathon Coach Every athlete has a limiting factor. More accurately, there are a number of interconnected factors that seek to limit your ultramarathon success. Though it’s an oversimplification to say these are the only three factors limiting performance, three of the most common are: Time, Structure, and Energy. Time For …
Many times, the best questions we get come from athletes and readers. The question below, from Kate, came to us via our Contact form. If you have questions you’d like answers to, send them our way! “I’ve been following a training program for several months, but there are days when I just don’t feel like …
By Andy Jones-Wilkins CTS Ultramarathon Coach Last week, at a meeting I attended with an experienced group of educational leaders, the topic of discussion eventually centered in on a very basic essential question: “What three things — skills, attributes, temperaments, whatever — do you want your students to graduate high school with?” The facilitator, knowing …
By Jason Koop, CTS Coach Author of “Training Essentials for Ultrarunning” For many ultramarathon runners, the event season is done and lottery season has started. Buckles were earned and many gels consumed during the course of your endeavors. Even after a healthy amount of rest you have great fitness from months of spring and …
By John Fitzgerald CTS Ultramarathon Coach Data published by Ultrarunning Magazine indicates that between 2000 and 2016, the number of ultra-distance events grew exponentially and increased over 700%. Assuming the 1,473 races in 2016 fell on weekends, a person could have picked from 28 ultras on average any given weekend. Ultrarunners can race year around …
By Andy Jones-Wilkins CTS Ultramarathon Coach For most ultra runners the arrival of autumn signals the end of a long season. Perhaps the season has been culminated by a triumphant race finish or the end of an exhausting training cycle. Whatever the cause, the end of season means the sensible runner looks back and forward …
By John Fitzgerald Ultrarunning Coach Some people love running at night and others find it intimidating, but if you’re going to be an ultrarunner you at least have to get comfortable with running in the dark. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced ultramarathon veteran, here are some tips for making the most of the …
By Mara Abbott, Olympian and CTS Contributing Editor I waited two years for an interval workout. To be fair, those years were full: retiring from one sport, attempting to start a new one, injuring myself, and most of all, working on the perennial challenge of developing a mindset in which it didn’t matter if I …
A good ultramarathon pacer can be a real asset, but a bad pacer can be a pain in the… So, after asking all of our coaches for their feedback, here are the top-8 things good pacers do (and don’t do). Do: Take care of yourself If you are an ultramarathon pacer at a big event …