10 tips for getting started in trail running

By aanimal01/04/2023

Do you come from the road, or from another sport, and are you attracted by a less codified, more playful and more natural way of running? The trail reaches out to you! But what should you do in training to start trail running? Here are 10 tips to properly prepare for your first trail run.

Tip No. 1: choose an ambitious but reasonable goal

Don't overestimate yourself, and start trail running with a short trail with an affordable drop. 100 m of elevation roughly corresponds to 1 km of extra effort time. So 1000m of elevation increase your event by 10 virtual km. In addition, the technical nature of the terrain can further add to the difficulty. A distance of 20 to 30 km for an elevation of 500 to 1000m is already a nice challenge for beginners in trail running. To be able to achieve this goal, you will need at least 2 months of preparation.

Trailing advice N°2: specific training

You don't have to train more to compete in trails, but you have to train differently to face the constraints of this type of event. What are these constraints? The variable nature of the terrain, the elevation, the scarcity of supplies, the absence of mileage indications and the technicality of certain passages. 3 sessions per week therefore represent a minimum to serenely approach trails not exceeding the distance of the marathon.

These sessions can be carried out on varied terrain (climbs, descents, stones, mud, single track, etc.) in order to prepare your body for all types of events. In trail running, the glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps (muscles in the front and back of the thighs) are greatly solicited and often subject to cramps. Only adequate preparation will prevent you from these inconveniences for as long as possible.

Unlike the road, which allows a regular pace, trail running is characterized by incessant changes in pace, a greater amplitude of the heart rate and significant and changing musculotendinous and joint stresses.

However, the work must remain qualitative and varied with sessions of VMA, threshold, specific intensity, fundamental endurance, but also technical sessions (hills, descents), muscle strengthening, and training. cross-training with another aerobic activity (cycling, cross-country skiing in winter, etc.)

Tip N°3: specific equipment

The first piece of equipment to acquire is a pair of trail shoes. A pair of shoes is chosen according to its type of foot, stride, its sporting past... You have to test your shoes in training on all terrains and never baptize them on race day! To ensure his own supplies, another essential difference with the road, the runner must carry a bottle-holder belt or a backpack with a camelbak©-type water pocket. You can also place solid supplies there.

Here too, you have to test the equipment, especially for beginners in trail running. Beware of the movements of the bottle at the back, the pressure of the belt on the abdomen and the friction of the backpack, small inconveniences which become hell over a few hours of racing.

For textiles, choose technical jerseys that wick away perspiration. There are also trail shorts, quite long and wide, which protect the upper thighs against the many plant obstacles that you will find on the trails, but classic shorts or cycling shorts do the job just fine. Finally, wearing a cap or a scarf in case of intense sun can be wise.