What does this effort—whether it’s your off-track weightlifting or mile 34 of a 50-mile race—exist in your larger plan? Remembering the big picture helps ultramarathoners push past present discomfort toward a greater good. It sounds obvious, but there’s as much pre-planning and strategy in any ultramarathon as there are sweaty hours of running. Sylvia Nordskar, a Norwegian trail runner and Hoka spokesperson, says “I always try to stay focused on the important things, which is what matters in terms of the goal and what I can control in the moment. During tough workouts, it would be to focus on the objective of the workout like pace, technique, fueling and recovery. At races, I usually have already made a plan on how I want to run the course and therefore I try to focus on that strategy.”
Csillag agrees: “It’s a long run. It’s not one step. I might fail at one step but if I want and I am ready to put the work in and I am persistent, I won’t fail in the long run. One workout does not do miracles, many do. One race won’t say everything about you, many will do,” she explains.