Ash Daniels | Coach Journey2Ultra

“I just want to finish the race,” is a common comment I hear when chatting to

people about their trail running goals. I always challenge them on this with

“Yes, and you can run faster as well!” No one ever says no.

We all know trail running is different to our cousins running on the road, where those

climbs can hurt, both the ups and downs, and technical terrain can turn the fastest

runner into a cautious hiker. So, how do you get faster on the trails? Here are some

principles to apply to your training.

Consistency and Volume

First, let’s keep it simple; it's all about being consistent and running more.

If there’s one thing that trumps all the others, it's consistency. Running regularly,

week in and week out, regardless of the type of sessions, is going to have a big

impact on your performance. Saving yourself for that one mega weekend run or the

intermittent weeks and months is slowing you down. “I’ll start training in a few

weeks.” There’s no need to wait for an arbitrary date, the sooner you start, the better.

Volume goes hand in hand with consistency. We know from the research that very

simply, the more you run, the better (faster) you become. We need to gradually

increase the amount of time we spend on our feet, both as a cumulative total and by

increasing our weekly long run.

It takes time to build your endurance, give yourself the best chance by starting

sooner, rather than later. You can’t cram training for a race!

Specificity for your Race

Every trail race is different, and it is the beauty of our sport that attracts us. We can

run everything from flowy, undulating fire trails to steep, technical climbing,

sometimes in the same race. Which is why we can't take a plan for a road marathon

and apply it to a trail race. Specificity in your training matters and is the secret

sauce.

Vert – The course climbing and descending, how much does the course have, and

how can you simulate that in training? An easy way is to average the vert out over

10km. A 100km course with 4,500m of climbing averages out at 450m vert per

10km. We can then apply that same formula to our long runs. This ensures we are

getting a similar amount of climbing/descending in training as we will encounter on

race day. As with volume, we need to gradually increase this to allow our bodies to

adapt.

The good thing about practising climbing is that we get to practice descending as

well.  Descending is especially hard on your quads, so we need to condition them to

handle the types of descent we might encounter on race day, allowing us to keep

running and not turn our race into a slow hobble to the finish.  Smashed quads from

descending is one of the key things that slows us down later in the race.

As part of the training for hills, don’t neglect practising your hiking. We can do this

on our long runs, especially where the vert is comparable to race day. Additionally,

we can also add a session a week, specifically for this. Either by cranking the

treadmill up to a steep incline or finding that super steep local hill and hiking it

multiple times.

Ignore your Strava! You're going to hike sections of your trail race, and if you are

going to use poles, it's a great opportunity to practice with them. Don’t avoid those

more technical trails. By spending time practising, we are going to become more

proficient (faster) as a trail runner. It's not all about fast Strava times!

The Long Run

One of the key sessions of any trail running plan. It's not just about the obvious

physical adaptations we gain. We also want to practice other trail running skills.

Nutrition and gut training for race day. The long run is the opportunity you get to test

out race day nutrition and gradually increase the amount of carbs your body can

absorb. Train the gut like your legs to help with running at the back end of races.

Get on the course. What better way to prepare for your trail race than running

different sections of the course, meaning no surprises on race day. It adds to the

confidence you take to the start line.

How long is long enough? A hotly debated topic, and in reality, there are no hard or

fast rules regarding the time on feet or the distance your long run should be. There

are some guidelines we can use.

Recovery time, if you are not back into your normal training routine a day or 2 after

your long run, it's too far. Consistency, ties in with recovery to a degree and you

need to be running your long runs consistently, as we know it's the key workout of

the week. If you are going too long and it impacts your consistency both during the

week and subsequent longer runs, it's too long.

A Final Word

There are no magic workouts that are going to make you run faster. Keep it simple,

improving your trail running isn’t about shortcuts. It’s about showing up consistently,

building volume gradually, training specifically for your terrain, and practising the

skills that matter. Add in smart fuelling and a sprinkle of speed work, and you’ll see

progress.

Most importantly, enjoy the process. Trail running is about more than pace, and if

you are ever unsure, reach out to me as a coach.