UltraMental: An unconventional approach to training for endurance events on a few hours a week (or less)

Book Synopsis: This book is not intended to replace training that works. It is not designed to argue that tried and true methods of preparing for endurance events should be abandoned. It does not describe a shortcut to fitness, nor does it suggest an easy route to success in ultra-endurance efforts. What it does do is build a case for an idea that application of consistent high intensity training can provide a level of fitness from which a mentally tough athlete can approach, succeed at, and enjoy endurance sports. This claim is based on years of personal experience (with detailed training logs) as well as documented research into high intensity training. It is not science, however. The theories it contains rather attempt to connect the dots and offer a reasonable, logically derived explanation for the results of my N=1 experiment carried out over the past half decade. During that time the author has competed in and finished in the top third of the field or better in more than a dozen major races including ultra-marathons, ultra-distance bike races, triathlons, and multi-day stage and adventure races. These 5 years have also seen a decrease in his weekly training hours from three down to a current volume (at the time of publication) of only 30 minutes a week. The success of this experiment has been startling and while it may not change the endurance training landscape, it does offer powerful encouragement to time strapped athletes to reconsider their belief that the number of training hours available is a critical consideration in a decision whether to participate in an endurance event—regardless of its magnitude. Put simply, it is possible to take on, finish, and do reasonably well in even the most difficult events on the planet on only a fraction of the training time that conventional wisdom demands, and this book elaborates on that possibility.