tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post7077124365932217479..comments2023-08-02T06:51:14.573-07:00Comments on Yitka Winn: Is ultrarunning—or any other great passion in life—sustainable?Yitkahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03254861852047017889noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-25844774258771120012016-04-17T18:45:59.464-07:002016-04-17T18:45:59.464-07:00I thought this was a very thoughtful and thought-p...I thought this was a very thoughtful and thought-provoking blog. Personally, I found doing ultras unsustainable due to the physical toll the events took on my body. I have been chronically oft-injured and have decided that I enjoy running and would prefer to stay as "uninjured" as possible so that I can continue to enjoy the activity. TO do this, I need to run lower weekly mileage and fewer days per week. I would be unable to complete the longer ultras on this amount of training. I would imagine many other ultrarunners have run into this same problem and it stops us from competing.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06554518625838067360noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-87350807676197706682015-04-15T11:31:57.592-07:002015-04-15T11:31:57.592-07:00To me, passion itself is unsustainable. There come...To me, passion itself is unsustainable. There comes a point where the fire dwindles and whatever you're doing relies on work ethic & persistence. No matter how much you love something, that loving feeling hits rough patches and we fall back on commitment to make it through. We burn out when we make too many commitments in our fleeting fits of passion. Maybe any activity can be sustainable if we are intentional about the commitments we make to it, to relationships, to ourselves. To summarize this and all other comments: even our extremes require balance.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17254391962610020439noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-15285491633245480362014-09-22T16:37:24.336-07:002014-09-22T16:37:24.336-07:00I love running long-distances in the mountains, bu...I love running long-distances in the mountains, but I am still undecided about how much I love competition. I could easily see myself not racing and simply running in the mountains as much as possible. I frequently run ultra-distance trails on my days off work because I enjoy long days out in beautiful places. <br /><br />Yes, I like the adrenaline that appears on race day, but I have no patience for a taper or recovery. I also find that many of the most scenic trails are not included in any race courses due to permitting issues.<br /><br />I wonder if some of the runners who have disappeared from ultrasignup simply have decided to run for joy instead of for competition.<br /><br />Good luck at The Bear. I've heard it's a fantastic course.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-85618431303009825102014-09-12T15:38:42.886-07:002014-09-12T15:38:42.886-07:00Yitka, good luck and have a great time at The Bear...Yitka, good luck and have a great time at The Bear - from everyone back up in the NW.<br />(Not quite burned out yet, only been running "long" for four years. The first 50 years of running didn't count)Brucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07021060059486755103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-14454019127902081042014-09-11T08:00:08.369-07:002014-09-11T08:00:08.369-07:00The idea that trail/ultra running is synonymous wi...The idea that trail/ultra running is synonymous with one-hundred miles as it seems to be in today's world of ultramarathons will be a major part of a runner deciding to do other things. I enjoyed a trail marathon this past Saturday, a mere 26.2 miles on some beautiful trails in the Olympic peninsula of Washington. It was just as enjoyable as many longer runs.John Morelockhttp://www.rungentlyoutthere.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-70674160483961886932014-09-10T14:51:43.142-07:002014-09-10T14:51:43.142-07:00Great post, something I've been thinking about...Great post, something I've been thinking about a lot recently. <br /><br />Enjoy the Bear. I used to live in Logan and it's a great race. Make sure to take in the views. Jon Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10550264057212165804noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-51584868959996756552014-09-10T13:38:51.144-07:002014-09-10T13:38:51.144-07:00Hi Yitka,
Glad to have found your blog! I've ...Hi Yitka,<br /><br />Glad to have found your blog! I've read a few posts and find great writing and interesting viewpoints that resonate.<br /><br />I do not think that ultrarunning (trail or road) is any different than other endeavors with respect to "sustainability". They are all sustainable for some.<br /><br />This includes both physical and intellectual activities. People come and go in all activities- passion can wax and wane depending on a myriad of details. There are those few, and oft cited, individuals who maintain their passion for decades whether it be for road marathoning, cross country ski racing, stamp collecting, chess, quantum physics- you name it. Just the fact that there are ultrarunners who have been consistently racing and training for decades is proof in and of itself. <br /><br />The perceived large time commitment is often brought up as a reason that many "move on" to other activities and foci. But it is often the case that these same people end up spending just as much time on a new endeavor (and sometimes even more) than they did with ultrarunning (or whatever passion is the subject). Goals can be accomplished, new ones can be not as interesting and then a set of experiences can bring one to a new world of exploration; in other words you might "move on" to something else. It is common and healthy for many. And ultrarunning is not particularly different as it concerns the magnitude of time commitment- many other sports (certainly all of the endurance sports) require similar time commitments for the pursuit of individual excellence. On the physical side, there are many long time competitive marathoners who run 1.5-2 times as many miles as a majority of elite trail ultrarunners, and many of these miles are on the road, a more punishing environment than trails. Yet these individuals seem to "sustain" for decades both physically and mentally.<br /><br />As far as the elite athletes, having been one and being married to one for over 30 years, it is typical that such athletes will take some time off after their "career" comes to it's end. But many of these athletes come back to either their primary sport or some similar one and continue to compete throughout their lives. It is hard to extinguish the "fire" that made these individuals so competitive in the first place and it does, generally, endure. So these people pop-up again, sometimes in different sports (Aish is an example in ultrarunning), and usually in sufficient shape to be competitive (like Simon Gutierrez at Pikes Peak and Jonie Benoit at Boston). <br /><br />So I would posit, with confidence, that ultrarunning is "sustainable"... for some- those who find continued growth (either physically or intellectually or both) and a continued sense of exploration in the endeavor.<br /><br />Hope to see you at The Bear.... my first 100!Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06436369413077288572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-36761245924072433582014-09-10T10:13:41.199-07:002014-09-10T10:13:41.199-07:00Are running 100's sustainable? For most of us,...Are running 100's sustainable? For most of us, probably not (whether we are considering limits of physiology or time commitment). I would be really interested to know what the Bear 100 folks did in place of racing ultras. Although racing ultras for decades may not be feasible, the core of what ultrarunning means to many IS sustainable- community, adventure, exploring, spending time in nature. <br /><br />I love your point about winter. If we want the best chance to be a part of ultras for years to come (and still enjoy it), we should take advantage of the other sports snow in the mountains affords us. I know I'm doing something right, when I feel a bit undertrained & have a fire in my belly. Good luck at the Bear!Rebeccahttp://fitgeek.weebly.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-60559566032532742752014-09-10T09:37:51.384-07:002014-09-10T09:37:51.384-07:00Also, best of luck with the Bear 100Also, best of luck with the Bear 100Charlienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-67035536099890188062014-09-10T09:36:38.266-07:002014-09-10T09:36:38.266-07:00Firstly I really enjoyed reading that blog, so tha...Firstly I really enjoyed reading that blog, so thank you very much.<br /><br />It's a really interesting point and it's one I'd never really considered before!<br /><br />I'm living in Chamonix at the moment and was around for both the UTMB (168k) and the Mt Blanc 80k earlier in the Summer and whilst the UTMB competitors were mostly under 40 there were a huge amount of 50+ for the 80k.<br /><br />But like the first poster said maybe it's just those that push themselves so hard to win the events might burn out earlier because ultrarunning stops being a distraction from stress and life because it's a full time job, maybe making it the cause of stress?<br /><br />What does an runner do to unwind if running is the cause of the stress?Charlienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-61404177127027241902014-09-10T08:53:00.724-07:002014-09-10T08:53:00.724-07:00Thanks for taking the time to read this! I'd l...Thanks for taking the time to read this! I'd love to hear others' feedback, especially on the points you bring up here.<br /><br />My personal impression on your first point is that training hard, as elite runners do, probably puts folks more at risk longterm for sheer physical burnout such as chronic injuries or adrenal fatigue ... whereas for midpack runners like myself, burnout is perhaps more likely to be related to the sheer time commitment that invariably takes away from the rest of life. As an example, I run/hike 40-70 miles a week in the mountains, which is perhaps fewer overall miles than the typical elite ultrarunner--but my miles take close to twice as many hours for me to cover than they do an elite runner, since I'm usually moving at a 12-14-min/mile pace. <br /><br />I think more general mental burnout from competing can happen to anyone, though, whether we're elites competing against others and for prize money, or whether we're mid/back-of-the-pack runners competing primarily against our own expectations for ourselves or, say, a race's time cutoffs. <br /><br />Personally, I prefer to leave the GPS watch at home when I run, so that my regular running doesn't get infused with any kind of competition--I save that adrenaline rush for the few times per year that I opt to run in an official race, and try to preserve the rest of my time in the mountains as a respite away from all that :)Yitkahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03254861852047017889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2471809147594894771.post-18274122876875925012014-09-10T07:30:23.420-07:002014-09-10T07:30:23.420-07:00Very interesting post and something good for us al...Very interesting post and something good for us all to ponder. A couple thoughts:<br />1) Are the elites -- those winning races, those training extra hard -- more likely to burn out and not return to the sport than mid-packers?<br />2) Is ultrarunning different than other endurance sports in this regard? Are the winners of marathons also less likely to still be running competitively later in life?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com