FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
Our Walking Friend Choon Huat Lua from Singapore suggested to put topics discussed on the webpage. I think that's a great idea, as some of you may be interested in these things. I would also very much appreciate input from other walkers - and of course runners as well on general issues.
STATEMENTS APPLY TO THE AUTHORS OF IT AND MAY NOT APPLY TO OTHERS.

This "collection of thoughts" is somewhat unsorted, but I think you will get the picture. There are also some redundancies as input comes from different discussions.

Ultras affecting body:

Many participants of ultras already contemplated about how doing these events affect the body. But it affects every body in a different way. Here are some rules that apply to most runners/walkers:

Give the body time to rest

Do other sports as well ("cross-training")

Don't take every event serious, respectively don't always go to your limit

Walking is less stressful on your knees, especially when going downhill

Extreme distances are always dangerous. Learn about yourself, learn from others. Most times when you are feeling bad, you will feel better again after a while - but the bad valleys are getting deeper every time, the highs are getting lower and shorter.

Mind:

Mind over body - in a war with an enemy chasing you, you can walk till you die, as you have a very strong motivation. The same may apply to some walkers without an enemy as a motivation
It is not possible to avoid blisters and a lot of other pain. The greatest challenge for most people is to keep going when their mind is telling them "enough is enough", when they think they reached their limit (although they didn't actually).
Some people's minds are so strong they can go till they die. It is extremely difficult for you as well as doctors to decide the actual health status of a walker - some people look good till it's too late, some look bad after a few hours already but are doing fine actually.
If you like what you are doing, you are getting some strength from internally or from the nature (especially in the mountains). In some way it's a dangerous sport. Some people get addicted, do it too often and burn out fast, respectively get injuries
Usually we hit mental limits (willpower not strong enough anymore) to keep us going and pain limits (feet looking like "mashed potatoes") before we hit physical limits. 90% of all participants dropping out of a race do so because of a "mental limit" - of course there are usually problems with blisters, stomach, etc.. But these are things you can go on with if you are motivated and dedicated enough - and taking the risk of a long recovery period.
As very long distances are done more by your mind than by your body, you have to keep the mind busy. That begins with being motivated (different for everybody), having to pay attention (e.g. course specific), music (walkman), short term goals (aid stations), specific food you are looking forward to, etc..

Participants:

No they are not masochists. Things would be sometimes much easier being one …
I (Ulli) found and experienced over the last years, that the average age of participants when going over 24 hours or at least 100 miles in most cases is 50-55.
The % of women is relatively high here in the US - it can be up to around 30%. In Europe it's much less.

Training:

It is also helpful to train for speed (racewalking) on shorter distances. Then it's easier for the body walking more slowly in longer events.
A good training opportunity is also participating in a 24 hour running race as a walker, if it's on loops. If you are steady, you will find out, that after several hours you are not at the end of the pack anymore.
Doing loops is (for me, Ulli) a little bit "stupid". But it's good mental training.
Different people have different talents - someone is more "built" for doing extreme sports.
It helps to do other sports as well, like swimming, cycling, ... .
Personally, after going for example 180 km in 30 hours I (Ulli) would not do anything similar for 2-3 months, but I would do another 120 km in 30 hours maybe 6 weeks later. I walked twice 100 km on a weekend and 100 miles under 24 hours the weekend after - it's been tough

Dress:

Very important are well cushioned and wide enough shoes.

With socks it's worth experimenting, because some feel similar when buying them, but react differently on your feet

Feet / wet feet:

Some people get blisters more easily with wet feet, others (like me - Ulli) get less blisters

Especially when it is hot, getting wet feet, which usually means cooling them down, reduces their size and they fit more easily in shoes again.

I (Ulli) am always using duct tape (= band aid) before the start to cover my heels and little toes. The problem is to find a tape that's easy to take off again, but on the other side stays on the foot all the time.

Pain:

I (Ulli) had all kinds of pain and lots of it in 38 years of ultras. There is pain on the outside of the body, like blisters, chafing etc.. Although it may slow you down and it may be really severe, it usually is not serious, as it will heal in a matter of weeks again. More serious is pain inside the body. Things like stomach pain etc. will disappear in most cases without problems - during the race after eating and/or drinking the right things (which may be difficult to decide what is right). Pain of kidneys and other "interior parts" have to be taken very serious. I (Ulli) never take pain tablets, as I want to be able to analyze what problems exist and try to take care of it as good as possible.

Muscles - in most cases normal. Usually minerals (not too much salt !), Coke (1 can helps for about 1 hour), or just slowing down for a while will help. Of course when going more than 50 miles the pain will never completely disappear.

Tendons - usually overuse, wrong shoe form (good insoles sometimes help). To be treated seriously and need enough time to heal, otherwise the end of an "ultra career" will be soon.

Bones - Once a bone shifted in my (Ulli's) leg and cut a nerve during a 24 hour race ... really painful. It happened once and never again. No idea why.

Take pain killers only in case of an emergency! They can shut down your kidney or have other serious impact! Pain is normal in ultras. Someone who can't handle it, should not do such events.

Sleep deprivation:

Some people can walk extremely long without sleep and without having serious problems after they stop walking. But this ability is different for everybody.
You can train for walking without sleep. I (Ulli) walked in my "ultra career" 123 complete nights (as per March 2002) without sleep. Just do it again and again, starting with shorter events. I am climbing with friends mountains at night with the goal of being in the office at 9 a.m. for a 8-10 hour workday. We either get up at around 3 a.m. or even hike through full nights.

Nutrition:

Eat more or less just what you want. To eat is also mental, and if you like something, than it's good.

Never too much at a time. Nothing too heavy. Try to find a book about how long it takes to digest food, repectively how many hours it takes till the body gets the benefit of what you eat.

After 24 hours you have to force your body to eat.

Some sugar helps, but never too much!

Coffee doesn't work for me (Ulli). It tries to get something out of the body without giving anything back. Coke is better, as it is just 1/6th as strong as a regular coffee and as it gives a lot of fluids as well as sugar (although sugar is a separate complicated topic).

Oranges and apples help you stay awake (Choon Huat).

Bananas are good (Ulli), as they have lots of calories and are easy to digest

Orange juice has a very high % of patassium

Recovery:

It depends very much on how well you are trained, how strenuous an event was (climb, speed, distance, surface, weather, ...). It also depends on injuries of course - starting with blisters, etc..

Don't forget that the correct food during and after an event has a great influence on recovery

Organizers:

Take a cell phone with you when you go these long distances - you may have to call an ambulance.

As an organizer you are responsible, whatever waiver participants sign (at least in the US and Europe).

Summary:

Just learn from one event for the next what's good for you.
Challenge yourself, but make sure not to overdo it and to have enough fun to be able to keep going for many years.
When a problem exists give it time to heal. Maybe do other sports for a while.
You have to learn about it by doing these events again and again. How do you feel this time compared to last time, why, etc..