Buzzing to have you on the Team, albeit I appreciate you are training for an ultra will make it somewhat of an individual pursuit, but hopefully you’ll be able to join in some sessions later in the plan and feel like you have the support of the others.

Obviously I don’t know you that well but get the impression there is real tenacity and drive to succeed at this and be the best ultra runner you can be. That really excites me as a coach and equally provides me with the challenge of just ensuring you are patient and sometimes hold back when need be.

I think especially in the first 6 weeks (the base phase) you might feel like you could do more, but that’s almost the feeling you want, holding back a little for when those back to back long runs enter the equation. All of the miles you accumulate are making you fitter and stronger.

Consistency is everything. You don’t actually need to do anything special, just train smart, make good choices and also ensure you get enough recovery. That combined over a sustained period of time of 16-17 weeks (as we have) should bring you the rewards you seek.

The plan is always adaptable. If you feel like I’m not pushing you hard enough, tell me. I’m happy to change it at any point. As long as we do it gradually it should all be fine. When you reach those peak mile weeks listen to the body as well. Sometimes rest and recovery is more important and again we can always adjust the schedule and make up for lost miles.

The second phase is where we introduce a bit of speed work to make sure we don’t neglect the fast twitch muscles fibres which might still play a part, even in an ultra. It’s good to maintain some speed and every Ultra plan I looked at, or coach I listened to included this in their runners schedule.

The final part of the plan I’ve actually put in some hiking. I think we need to remember quite a bit of this race is going to be hiking, so we can’t neglect that. It also provides the opportunity to spend more time on feet.

In terms of S&C, I’ve put something very basic together now. I’m hoping with you feedback will can find the right mix to compliment the running. Again it’s all about finding a routine which works for you.

Ignore the paces on your dashboard unless doing a specific effort session. For you it’s all about time on feet and I think ignoring pace from the start of this plan is a good approach and instead focusing on your effort level. Especially if you are doing a lot of your easy runs on hills, the pace will be effected. Talking of hills. I would say 2 in every 3 easy runs should include hills. At least 50% of your running should be done on the trails as well. Especially now they are getting runnable.