Event programsRunningStrength

50 Miles / 100K Trail Ultra: 20 weeks, peaks at ~12 h.

80–100 km on trail with 2,000–5,000 m of climbing, usually into the night: Endurance-capped first half, 200–400 kcal/h, caffeine after halfway. That's the intermediate plan; beginner runs 24, advanced runs 16 weeks.

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Written for where you are.

Beginner

24 weeks, 4–5 runs a week plus strength: long runs to 4½ h, back-to-backs, night rehearsals and dress rehearsals up to 6 h.Shortest runway 13 weeks · research minimum 18 · 5 sources

24 wk

3.5-10 h a week

Intermediate

20 weeks, 5–6 sessions a week: VO2 first, then vert, tempo, downhill and loaded-uphill work, back-to-backs to 7½ h and a 6-h rehearsal into the dark.Shortest runway 12 weeks · research minimum 15 · 6 sources

20 wk

4-12 h a week

Advanced

16 weeks, 6–7 sessions a week: two quality sessions, full-load uphill work, a 50K tune-up and back-to-backs to ~80 km.Shortest runway 10 weeks · research minimum 13 · 6 sources

16 wk

6-13 h a week

The checklist comes with it.

T-14Bank sleep: extend sleep over the 1–2 weeks before the race (UTMB runners who did finished faster).

T-14Heat: if the race is hot, 7–10 consecutive days of heat exposure, then every third day (adaptation decays ~2.5%/day after 48 h).

T-7Mandatory gear laid out against the race list and packed in the vest you trained with: phone with safety numbers, cup ≥ 150 mL, ≥ 1 L water, 2 headlamps (≥ 200 lumens main) with spare batteries, ~800 kcal reserve, hooded waterproof, hat or buff, survival blanket, whistle.

T-7Poles decided in training (at least 6 EU3 poles sessions). If you use them, carry them from the start — they can't go in drop bags.

T-3Drop bags, one per allowed station: food for the next segment (hours × g/h), a lamp and batteries at the last drop before dusk with a 1–2 h slow buffer, warm layer, spare socks, lube, blister kit, meds.

T-3Crew sheet: fast / target / slow pace chart with arrival times at each crew station, a handoff list, and a rule that any sit-down stop over 5 min needs a reason.

T-2Carb-load about 10 g/kg/day for 48 h, low-fibre foods the day before.

race morningStart eating within 30 min; hike the climbs from the start; hold the effort cap for the first half.

T-7Headlamp fully charged, one spare set per expected night hour-block, tested on a night run (EU8).

Every plan cites its homework.

Ultra tapers, back-to-back shares and finish-time bands are expert opinion (dossier U3, U6, U8); Koop's figures come from search snippets of his book. Trail km depend on climbing — the plans are time-first.

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