Training Newsletter, (Week 7)

Monday, March 17th, 2025

Hi Runners,

We’re heading into Week 7 of training, continuing our peak training phase. This is where the work starts to pay off, and staying consistent with both workouts and recovery will be key. This week, we’ll tackle a structured hill session on Wednesday and a long run at Channel Drive on Saturday, with options for various distances. These sessions will help build the strength and endurance necessary for race day.

A few important updates:

Both Wednesday’s workout and Saturday’s long run will meet at Channel Drive.
Normal times again this week. Wednesday at 5:45 PM and Saturday at 7:30 AM.
A simple aid station will be set up at the start for water refills and basic fuel for Saturday.

The Ascend Trail Running Team

This Week’s Group Runs

Wednesday, March 12 – Quality Session

Location: Channel Drive Parking Lot (Annadel)
Time: 5:45 PM
Parking: Free parking available

Workout:Come Hill or High Water

Warm-up: 1.5-2 mile jog + drills
Main Set: 1, 3, 5, 10, 5, 3, 1-minute hills (downhill jog recovery)
Cooldown: 1.5-2 mile jog

Rodrigo’s Workout Notes:

Channel Drive is a great place to do workouts since there is a nice flat area to warm up for a few miles before hitting some serious hills on Richardson. This trail is a bit less technical, allowing us to more comfortably push our pace as we climb up (and avoid tripping on the way down). For this workout, we are playing with a longer interval. The 10-minute length will challenge your self-control (don’t start out too fast—keep a sustained-hard but manageable effort) and mental toughness. Your efforts can either be consistently at threshold effort like we have been practicing, or alternatively, you can play with some different paces if you are feeling strong..

Bonus:

Run the shorter intervals faster to simulate more fatigue (and get some VO2 max stimulus) prior to and after the 10-minute climb. For the 1- and 3-minute climbs, run at a 5k effort (stay relaxed). Walk the first part of your cooldown, then jog once you catch your breath (you should feel pretty out of breath—this is a hard effort). The recovery on this one is important as we don’t want to blow up later in the workout, so take your time getting back down.

Tip:

Benefits of VO2 max: This is basically your gas pedal to the floor, but not truly sprinting—a hard effort. Race-wise, this is approximately 3-5k pace (2-3 miles in 🇺🇸🦅 units). Feeling-wise, it’s like you are redlining for 15-20 minutes. Mentally, it’s quite difficult to maintain for long intervals outside of the race setting (adrenaline is one hell of a drug). Thankfully, you don’t need a ton of it to reap some significant benefits. Some runners/coaches will say otherwise. I’d argue all day against them. Try doing 1-2 sessions with some VO2 max stuff before a goal race to sharpen up the last few weeks of your build. The key to reaping these benefits is a strong base of basic speed (strides and hill sprints), weekly easy miles and a weekly long run, and threshold work. That’s all it is. That’s the secret. 🤫

Saturday, March 22 – Long Run

Location: Channel Drive Parking Lot (Annadel)
Parking: Street parking available
Time: 7:30 AM

Race Distance	Map
Half Marathon Group	Week 7 – Half Marathon Group (~11.1 miles)
Marathon & 50K Group	Week 7 – Marathon / 50K Group (~19.6 miles)
50 Mile Group	Week 7 – 50 Mile Group (~23.3 miles)

A Few Notes on this week’s long run

This is week 2/3 of peak training, so weekend mileage remains high. The varied distance options allow you to tailor the run to your training plan.

Looking ahead, next Saturday’s long run will be at Lake Sonoma for a course preview with HRC. This is the perfect time to test out your fueling, hydration, and any new gear in race-like conditions.

Coach’s Notes: Pacing Plans

f you haven’t started thinking about your race pacing strategy, now is the time. A great resource for this is UltraPacer, a website that allows you to create a detailed pacing plan for race day.

With UltraPacer, you can:

Find existing race profiles or upload your own custom course.
Adjust aid station stop durations.
Account for pace changes due to elevation, terrain, and weather.
Add notes for yourself or your crew.

Whether you are targeting a specific finish time or just want a realistic projection of how your race might unfold, UltraPacer.com is a great tool. Try playing around with different pacing strategies to see what works best for you. For a more in depth look at UltraPacer, check out our full post on it here.

Looking Ahead: Lake Sonoma Course Preview

Next Saturday, we will be at Lake Sonoma for our final long run of peak training. This will be a great opportunity for a course preview with HRC, where you can get a feel for the race terrain and test your fueling and hydration strategies in real conditions. Plan to bring everything you’ll use on race day, and take note of how your body responds to different elements of the course.

See you out there!

—The Ascend Trail Running Team