Road to Tor des Geants 2024 - Part 2

I intended to post about my Tor des Geants training leading up to the race, but it turned out I was too busy training to do so. Spoiler alert, but I managed to hit my A-goal of sub 100 hours, running 98h18min. While there is always room for improvement, training went very well in the 8 months leading up to the race. Here is what made the difference and led to a significant improvement from my 2022 Tor:

Consistent strength training:

With 220 rugged miles and 85,000 feet of vertical, muscular breakdown is one of the biggest challenges at Tor. It almost took me out of the race in 2022 when I had a calf strain that became a significant issue at mile 180.

I remember looking around at the end of the 2022 Tor – everyone was covered in KT tape. I felt like we were all held together by duct tape and glue. To hit my sub 100 hour goal, I knew that I had to make myself more resilient. I needed to be bulletproof.

In May of 2023, I brought on Neil Mclean-Martin as a strength coach to up my game. For 16 months, I consistently did a significant amount of strength work, usually two hard sessions a week.

2X WEEKLY HARD STRENGTH WORKOUTS

This included classic lifts such as squats and deadlifts, now with more precise set / rep / rest frameworks that would vary based on the training intent. We did tons of single leg work. We also worked on the important smaller muscle groups, such as hip flexors and adductors. Later in the cycle, we added more dynamic movements.

SQUATS, DEADLIFTS, LUNGES, RDLs, WEIGHTED STEP UPS, AND MORE!!!

This time around, my muscles held up remarkably well right up until the end. Sure, it still got hard, and I slowed down in the late stages. But I stayed strong and resilient.

Vert specificity:

In 2022, I started the year with more focus on speed and gradually ramped up vert.

At the end of 2023, I put in a big speed block. With that foundation, I decided to turn the dial more towards vert than 2022. I did 565,000 feet of vert between Jan 1 and Tor, about 23% more than 2022.

565,000 FEET OF VERT IN 8 MONTHS LEADING TO TOR

While vert was a key focus, I believe in the benefits of high-end fitness even for a race like Tor, so I made sure to sprinkle in plenty of Vo2 Max and threshold work.

Training volume:

In 2024 my overall training volume was 17% more than 2022. I believe this made a difference in the later stages of Tor, and there were more sections I was able to run.

Volume wasn’t my main focus, and this was probably more a byproduct of what it took to hit the vert target. I should also note that the ideal volume varies greatly across people. I respond well to volume and generally am injury resistant as long as I’m careful with the amount of high intensity work.

74 MILES PER WEEK IN THE 8 MONTHS LEADING TO TOR

It also helped that a decent chunk of volume came from uphill doubles (see below), which has lower biomechanical stress.

Stair Stepper & Uphill Treadmill

These were key ingredients to hitting vert targets and building my uphill efficiency and power. Most weeks, I would do two uphill doubles on Tuesday and Thursday.

2X WEEKLY UPHILL DOUBLES

In addition, I would regularly add some uphill miles on the treadmill at the end of runs, particularly when I wasn’t in the mountains. David Roche has talked extensively about this as an ingredient to setting the Leadville course record.

REGULARLY ADDED UPHILL TREADMILL TO THE END OF RUNS

While I have used uphill treadmill workouts for many years, the stair stepper was new. I felt it was specific to the extreme steepness of Tor. The slower pace also allowed me to incorporate a weight vest, simulating pack weight and building strength.

Terrain Specificity

It is difficult to appreciate how steep Tor is. There are LOTS of miles at 30-40%+ grade, both climbing and descending. The Tor course is also technical, much more so than UTMB, for example.

The Shenandoahs may not be the biggest mountains, but they are plenty of steep and technical. I put in serious time on the gnarliest trails in the Park. And hey, as a side benefit, I came away with some shiny KOMs.

Ah, Leading Ridge. The steepest trail in the Shenandoah National Park.

SIGNIFICANT TIME ON THE GNARLIEST, STEEPEST TRAILS

I was also fortunate the spend 3 weeks training in Chamonix while on vacation with my family. I spent time on the lesser-known trails that mimic Tor better – steep, rugged, and technical. I was able to get on the Tor course and ran the 4th and 5th stage in a big 21-hour push. It was a great training stimulus and confidence boost.

Summary and Takeaways

This is not meant to be a blueprint. Everyone responds differently to training.

The principles are consistent though – strength training, vert, volume, and terrain specificity. Tor is a tough race to finish. With athletes I coach, I set the expectation to be prepared to train 15-20+ hours a week for significant blocks of time. So if you are training for Tor, grab those poles and get out in the mountains!