Your first 100-miler doesn’t have to be a guessing game. In this episode, I break down the complete blueprint for going from marathon finisher to 100-mile finisher. It covers everything I learned through years of trial and error, plus great coaching, across multiple 100- and 200-mile races, starting with a homemade 52-mile loop around my college campus.

• Why you should give yourself 12–18 months to train, and why a marathon is the starting line
• How to pick your race: excitement first, then elevation gain, terrain, temperature, cutoff times, and date
• Building up the distance ladder: marathon → 50K → 50 miler or 100K → 100 miles
• The three key training blocks: VO2 max, lactate threshold, and endurance, with example workouts and RPE targets for each
• Minimum peak volume to shoot for: 6 hrs/week for 50K–50 mile races, 9 hrs/week for 100K–100 mile races (from Jason Koop)
• The rule of specificity, and a simple formula for matching your weekly elevation gain to your race
• Why consistency and deload weeks beat big, unsustainable training weeks
• Treating long runs as race-day rehearsals, including carb, hydration, and sodium targets
• Essential gear: two pairs of shoes, toe socks, a hydration vest, a long-battery GPS watch, a headlamp, and chafe balm
• Building your crew and pacers, plus how to taper the right way
• Race-day execution: fuel early and often, mix in whole foods, and enjoy what you’ve earned

You’ve put in the work. Go out and run your race.

New episodes drop every week, with actionable training tips, race strategies, and stories from people doing extraordinary things. Subscribe so you don’t miss one. And if you’re ready to train with a plan built around YOUR race, send a DM to @pierceshowe on Instagram to learn more about coaching, or check out www.runyourrace.com.