The Foundations of Successful Ultramarathon Training

Preparing for an ultramarathon is about far more than following a training plan. It's not uncommon for athletes, and even other coaches, to ask me for the perfect training structure. However, when I look at their training history, I often realise that very few stop to ask a much simpler question: have I actually built the foundations that make those decisions matter?

But first, I'd like to introduce myself. I'm Irene Molina-Gonzalez, a UESCA certified running and ultrarunning coach. I have a PhD in Biomedicine and an MSc in Sport and Exercise Science and Medicine. I have several years of coaching experience and I'm an ultrarunner myself, so I understand the demands of the sport from both a scientific and practical perspective. If you're looking for personalised support, you can learn more about my Running & Ultrarunning Coaching services here.

A lot of athletes spend their time searching for the perfect workout or trying to put together the perfect training week, thinking that's what will make them successful on race day. In reality, successful ultramarathon runners are rarely the ones doing the most complicated training. They're the ones who consistently get the basics right, week after week, month after month.

One of my favourite concepts in endurance coaching is Stephen Seiler's Hierarchy of Endurance Training Needs, later adapted by Jason Koop specifically for ultramarathon runners (Figure 1). Although I've slightly simplified and adapted the terminology in this article to reflect how I apply these principles in practice, the underlying message remains the same: if you haven't mastered the foundations, stop worrying about the things at the bottom.

Before you start periodising your training, planning an altitude camp or deciding whether to include more VO₂max work, make sure you've built the foundations that allow those strategies to work in the first place.

the hierarchy of ultramarathon training needs

Figure: Hierarchy of training needs adapted from Jason Koop

Consistent workload comes before complexity:

The foundation of the hierarchy is total training workload. In practice, however, workload is accumulated through consistency. One big week won't make you a better ultrarunner, but months of consistent training will.

The physiological adaptations that underpin endurance performance—such as improvements in aerobic capacity, mitochondrial density and musculoskeletal resilience—take time to develop. They don't happen because of one exceptional long run or one huge training week. They happen because you repeatedly expose your body to an appropriate training stimulus, recover from it and gradually build upon it.

The key to becoming successful in ultramarathons isn't one epic long run or one huge training week—it's building training load week after week, month after month. That accumulated workload will almost always have a greater impact on your performance than any single workout.

Recovery allows adaptation:

I like very much this addition from Jason Koop in relation to Seiler's hierarchy. To become consistent, you need adequate recovery. Recovery is where adaptation happens. It's what allows you to absorb one training session before moving on to the next. Without enough recovery, training simply becomes accumulated fatigue rather than productive stress.

Nutrition is part of training: 

Adequate nutrition is another fundamental pillar of 100-mile ultramarathon training. Your body cannot adapt properly without sufficient energy availability. It's not simply about eating enough calories; it's about consuming the nutrients required to recover, adapt and continue progressing. Carbohydrates play a central role in endurance performance, and an underfuelled athlete will never reach their full potential.

Build fitness before chasing intensity: 

Once these foundations are in place, high-intensity training becomes much more productive. Adding intervals before you've established consistency, recovery and adequate nutrition is unlikely to produce the adaptations you're looking for. Rather than simply adding more intensity, focus on using the right amount at the right time.

Build the right support team:

Training for an ultramarathon is a significant undertaking. From working with athletes over the years, I've seen how many runners become injured simply because they didn't have the right guidance. Whenever possible, work with an experienced ultramarathon coach. If that's not an option, having a good physiotherapist who understands endurance athletes can make a huge difference in helping you stay healthy throughout your training.

Train your gut as much as your legs:

Gut training should be treated like any other part of your programme. Gastrointestinal distress remains one of the leading causes of DNFs in ultramarathons, yet many runners leave practising their race nutrition until the final weeks before the event. Learning to tolerate the foods and carbohydrate intake you'll use on race day is just as important as completing your long runs.

Train for your race, not someone else's: 

I often say that two 100-mile races can be completely different worlds. The demands of UTMB are very different from those of a flatter, faster 100-mile race. Your training should reflect the specific demands of your event. If you're preparing for a mountainous race but don't have access to mountains, your strength training should help prepare your legs for the repeated climbing and descending they'll face on race day.

Mental preparation matters: 

Successful ultramarathon runners also develop mental resilience. You need to become comfortable being uncomfortable—running when you're tired, training in poor weather, making decisions under fatigue and completing sessions when motivation is low. Those experiences prepare you for the inevitable low points you'll experience during a 100-mile race.

Training Periodisation:

Interestingly, periodisation sits near the top of Jason Koop's hierarchy. I've also incorporated tapering and training stimulus enhancement within this level, as both are tools used to optimise an already well-structured training programme rather than foundations of performance. Periodisation is the process of organising training into different phases to target specific adaptations at the right time. However, without consistency, recovery, adequate nutrition, fitness and race-specific preparation already in place, debating whether to focus on a VO₂max block or threshold block, planning an altitude training camp or fine-tuning your taper is unlikely to produce meaningful improvements.

The hierarchy doesn't tell you what to do. It tells you what matters most

The purpose of this hierarchy isn't to tell every runner exactly how to train. Two athletes preparing for the same 100-mile ultramarathon may follow very different programmes depending on their experience, injury history, available training time and the demands of their target race.

Instead, the hierarchy provides a framework for prioritising your training decisions. It reminds us that sophisticated interventions only become valuable once the foundations beneath them are in place.

It's tempting to believe that performance comes from the latest training trend, recovery device or perfectly timed VO₂max block. In reality, the biggest improvements usually come from consistently applying the fundamentals over long periods of time.

If you're preparing for your first ultramarathon race or aiming to perform at your best, personalised coaching can help you train more effectively and arrive on the start line with confidence. You can find out more about my Running & Ultrarunning Coaching services here.