Preparing for the Marathon Des Sables

A month after completing the Kalahari Augrabies Extreme 250km multistage race (KAEM), I am only 4 ½ months away from competing in the Marathon des Sables (MdS) in the Sahara desert. This will be the second of twenty five deserts I intend to run and I as the time grows shorter I am getting more excited. The question I ask myself is what is my race goal and objective for the MdS. I had this clearly defined and set out for the KAEM. I wanted to test my nutrition and complete the race somewhere between 50 and 70 hours. I achieved both, confirming what foods work and what foods need to be changed. I also finished the race comfortably in 59 hours and 39 minutes. So setting a realistic race goal that balances a personal challenge while enjoying the wonderful natural beauty of the desert is of paramount importance.

I ask myself, what do I need to test, what remains an uncertainty that I need to confirm? Without a doubt I would say managing core temperature. After my experience in the KAEM I realised that the information on managing a runner’s core temperature under such extreme conditions are extremely limited. Little scientific research has been done, and that which had been done was mostly done within a controlled environment.

My primary objective for the MdS is, therefore, to monitor my core temperature and heart rate and in doing so find a way to increase my performance while being in control of both my heart rate and core temperature. Heart rate and core temperature relates back to energy consumption so finding a way to control both within a hostile environment while participating in an extreme activity is central to ultra-endurance racing.

My goal is to improve my running time in the MdS with between 7 ½ and 12 ½ percent. I am therefore aiming in reducing my running time by between 4 ½ and 7 ½ hours. I ran the KAEM maintaining an average race pace of 4,2km/h. To reach my MdS goal I will have to increase my average race pace to 4,8km/h. I am of course assuming that there is some terrain similarity between the MdS and the KAEM. In theory my performance limit is around 6,6km/h[1], so a 4,8km/h performance would mean that I am performing at around 73% of my actual performance capability. During the KAEM I performed at around 64% of capability.

Reviewing my KAEM performance, however, clearly indicates the effect of extreme heat (that above 45 degrees Celsius) on my body. The upper end of my initial pre-race target was set at 4,5km/h. On day 1 I managed to maintain a 5,45km/h average, on day 2 with temperatures rising to well above 46 degree Celsius I was only able to maintain a 3,74km/h average. On day 3 I was still paying the physiological and psychological price for day 2. The physical effect of the heat on the one hand and the psychological fear as a result of it on the other hand resulted in an average of 3,16km/h running speed. Then came the long run and I recovered somewhat, I regained some confidence and with lower temperatures (in the high 30’s to low 40’s) was able to maintain an average running speed of 3,5km/h. The rest day combined with the confidence that came after the long run allowed me to run day 6 and 7 at an average of 5,7km/h and 5,5km/h.    

So what do I need to do to make this a reality?

      1.       Race Pack Weight

During the KAEM I marked all my content with seals to enable me to see what was used and what was, in reality items that can be omitted from my bag. I will be reducing my pack weight by just over 1,5kg’s (wet) which will translate into a 1kg (wet) weight reduction. The 500g difference is attributed to compulsory flair issued by the MdS organisers.

A 1 kg weight reduction will typically have a 25min running time reduction per 40km’s. I, therefore, anticipate a running time reduction of 150 minutes (02:30) over the entire distance. Hoping to shave off 7 ½ hours the 2 ½ hours afforded by the race reduction represents 33,3%. With such a small change resulting is a huge benefit I will most definitely see where else I can make meaningful weight savings.

      2.       Running Strategy

The psychological effect that comes from a physiological reaction to an extreme environment can be crippling and I needed to find a way to manage my reaction and response to severe conditions. Day’s 2 and 3 had the most impact on my overall performance. If I was able to manage my average heart rate more pro-actively on day 2 I would not have lost a 2-hour stop on CP3, due to medical concerns. The effect of this 2-hour stop was huge and brought my average running speed down from 4,6 to 4,1km/h. The, effect, however did not stop there. The impact this had on day 3 and 4 compounded the performance effect.

I will, therefore, manage my heart rate more effectively by (1) reading my terrain better, (2) adjusting my walk / run / rest relationship more pro-actively and in-line with environmental conditions and finally by adjusting mentally far quicker. Unfortunately all of this comes down to experience, which I now have more of than before the KAEM. I am encouraged by this as it means that I will perform better as I gain more experience. I hope to gain an additional 4 ½ hours through the adaptation of my running strategy.

If I am able to implement this successfully I would have reduced my overall time by 7 hours, which comes very close to my overall target.

      3.       Training

It goes without saying that I identified numerous areas in my training that was lacking. First and foremost is my lack of walk-training. I am at present still experimenting with various walking options and will post a review on this, hopefully, in early January 2013. The second area of training relates to strengthening my legs to be able to lift high. This is a necessary movement required to move in deep lose sand. My approach is to focus on using the staircase / step machine in the gym.

The hope is that by training how to walk fast and efficiently, that I will be able to improve my walking speed in those areas where the terrain does not allow me to run. The staircase / step training will hopefully make me more prepared and efficient when moving through deep lose sand. I am somewhat uncertain as to the effect this will have on my running time, but should have a much clearer picture closer to the time.

      4.       Addo Elephant 44km’s

I have also enrolled for the Addo Elephant 44km trail run in the beginning of March 2013, about a month prior to the MdS. I am running with my wonderful wife, Tanya, who is getting ready to do the KAEM 2013 with me. This will be her first ultra-distance, and for that reason I opted to do the 44km with her opposed to the 76km.

In summary, our respective training goals between 1 December 2012 and 31 March 2013 look as follows:

	Genis	Tanya
December 2012	80km/week + 3 gym sessions	60km/week + 3 gym sessions
January 2013	90km/week + 3 gym sessions	70km/week + 3 gym sessions
February 2013	100km/week + 3 gym sessions	80km/week + 3 gym sessions
March 2013	110km/week + 3 gym sessions	80km/week + 3 gym sessions

After my return from the MdS, I will fall back onto 80km/week and 3 gym sessions. Both my running schedule and Tanya’s will then align, gradually working it back up to a 100 to 110km/week average.

Logistics

Besides training there are some logistical issues that need to receive some attention during the coming months. Amongst these are (1) making my travel arrangements from South Africa to the UK, (2) dealing with my Visa application, (3) sorting gaiters, (4) concluding the required medical and (5) getting all the travel injections that is required for Morocco. Overall it seems as if this is going to be a busy 2013.

Thank you for visiting my blog,

Genis

"the desert poet"

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[1] A 6,6km/h race pace is calculated based upon 180% of my marathon pace. This takes into consideration my experience level, my marathon pace and my present fitness level, race pack weight, terrain and environmental conditions.