How long should my ultra taper be — 2 weeks or 3?
For a 50K, 2 weeks is plenty. For 100K, 2–3 weeks. For 100-mile or longer, 3 weeks of meaningful volume reduction. The longer the race, the more important deep recovery becomes.
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Ultra / Trail · 14–21 day taper
Ultra race week is less about peaking and more about not screwing up logistics. You can't add fitness in two weeks; you can lose a 100-mile race by packing the wrong shoes, mismanaging calories, or going out too fast on the first climb.
This is the day-by-day plan we run inside CoachUpFit for ultra and trail athletes. Most of the work this week is prep, not training. Volume drops 40–60% but frequency stays — short hikes count as 'training' in the final 7 days.
T-7
Sunday before race-Sunday
Final long effort. 2–3 hours on terrain similar to race terrain. Wear race shoes, race pack, race vest. Practise drinking and eating on the move. Don't bonk-test — finish with gas in the tank.
T-6
Monday
Optional easy jog or full rest. Sleep priority. Hydrate normally. If you have any nagging niggles, see your physio NOW — not on Friday.
T-5
Tuesday
Easy 45 min, ideally on terrain that mimics the race surface (rocky, root-y, climbing). Carry your race pack with race-day weight. Test poles if you'll use them.
T-4
Wednesday
Optional short climbing repeats to keep climbing legs alive without volume. Run uphill 5 min hard, jog back down, repeat 4 times. Then 20 min flat easy.
T-3
Thursday
Easy 30-minute run. After the run, the real work: lay out drop-bag contents per checkpoint. Headlamp + batteries. Spare socks, second pair of shoes if you'll change, extra calories at every drop. Test headlamp NOW, not on race night.
T-2
Friday — travel/check-in day for most
20 min easy jog at race venue if possible, or rest. Carb-leaning meals. Final drop-bag check. Pack the day-of pack list (mandatory gear per race rules).
T-1
Saturday — race eve
Very short shakeout (10 min easy). Race briefing if mandatory. Big lunch (carb-rich, normal foods). Light dinner before 6 PM. Lay out morning kit. Phone alarm + backup alarm. In bed by 9 PM.
Race
Race day
Wake 3 h before start if possible. Breakfast: 2 g/kg carbs + caffeine. 60 min before start: 30 g carbs. Start at perceived-easy effort — the first 20% of an ultra should feel embarrassingly conservative. Plan: 60–90 g carbs per hour from the start, 500 ml fluid per hour, electrolytes 500–700 mg/hr in heat. Eat solid foods at aid stations 4+ hours in.
Calories (per drop): 600–1000 kcal — gels, bars, real food (rice cakes, peanut butter wraps, salt potatoes). Mix sweet and savoury.
Hydration: spare bottles of mix, plain salt tabs, electrolyte tabs. Caffeinated gels for night sections only.
Clothing: dry shirt and socks. Buff for sweat/wind. Light rain shell if forecast looks unstable.
Lights (for races crossing nightfall): headlamp + waist torch is the gold standard. Spare batteries IN their packaging. Test the headlamp before packing.
Medical: blister kit, anti-chafe stick, ibuprofen IF you've trained with it (don't try NSAIDs for the first time in a race), Imodium for GI emergencies.
Recovery (at finish drop): clean clothes, warm jacket, sandals, a salty snack.
Gels work for the first 4–6 hours. After that, most stomachs revolt against pure sugar. Plan to switch to real food: rice balls, potato chunks, peanut butter wraps, salted boiled potatoes, broth, soup.
Caffeine: save it for the second half. A 100 mg caffeine pill or strong gel at the start of a long downhill section in the final third lifts pace and mood. Don't front-load caffeine — you'll crash mid-race.
Electrolytes: 500–700 mg sodium per hour in moderate weather, 1000 mg/hr in heat. Plain salt tabs are cheap and effective. Severe under-fueling of sodium causes the muscle cramps people blame on dehydration.
Night running: lower caffeine effectiveness, blunted appetite. Force yourself to eat on a timer (every 30 min) — don't wait for hunger, which dies at 2 AM.
The biggest pacing error in ultras is going out at marathon-effort because that's what feels 'normal' and your competition is doing it. Your race is 4–24 hours. Your competition's race ends at hour 6 for half the field.
Concrete rule: in the first 20% of the race (the first 20K of a 100K, the first 32 km of a 100-miler), you should be running at an effort that feels 'easier than it should'. If you can't hold a conversation, you're already in trouble.
Walk every uphill of more than 6% grade from the start. Walk-eat at every aid station. Don't try to bank time on the front half — that bank goes bust in the second half of every ultra ever run.
For a 50K, 2 weeks is plenty. For 100K, 2–3 weeks. For 100-mile or longer, 3 weeks of meaningful volume reduction. The longer the race, the more important deep recovery becomes.
No. Back-to-back long runs (the classic ultra training prescription) belong in the build phase, not race week. The last big back-to-back should be T-21 or earlier. After that, recover.
Some — particularly uphill technique with poles if you'll use them. A 30-minute power-hike with race poles on T-5 or T-4 is good. Just don't make it your main session.
Adjust gear, not race plan. Have a rain shell ready if there's a chance of weather. Pack a thermal layer for night sections regardless of forecast. Tape your shoe seams if heavy rain is expected. Don't change pacing strategy because of weather — adapt during the race.
No. Race-week insomnia is universal. What matters is sleep banked in the 2 weeks BEFORE race week. Two solid weeks of 8+ hours per night pre-race, then a couple of restless nights in race week, is normal and won't ruin your race.
CoachUpFit watches HRV, sleep, and Body Battery — and shifts the schedule when accumulated fatigue from your build hasn't cleared. Start free for 7 days.