Three weeks into my Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) 2030 journey, I’m grinding through Dubai’s heat and a packed schedule. Week 3 was tough but productive - 60.48km, back-to-back long runs, and a HIIT session kept me moving forward. Here’s the honest breakdown of my week, plus what’s next as I head back home to London.
Training Breakdown: 60.48km
I aimed for 60-65km over 5-6 sessions, focusing on Zone 2 (115-134 bpm) to build my aerobic base and practicing ultra fueling (200-300 kcal/hr). Dubai’s flat roads and treadmills meant almost no elevation, so I prioritized time on feet. Here’s what I managed:
- Tuesday (April 29): 6.48km fartlek (target 8km), 7:07 min/km, 139 bpm, 0m gain. Treadmill session with 8 x 1.5 min at 134-150 bpm (5:30-6:06 min/km). Started okay but didn’t rest enough between intervals, so pace slipped.
- Wednesday (April 30): HIIT with stretching, no distance run. Need that strength work for flat terrain. Felt solid enough, annoying my watch did not record heart rate accurately for the Fight A Bear workout as was likely around 150bpm.
- Thursday (May 1): 10km easy (on target), 7:48 min/km, 132 bpm, 0m gain. Treadmill run went well. Started at 7:20 min/km, slowed later. Difficult to tell cause of fatigue.
- Friday (May 2): 10km easy (target 9km), 7:56 min/km, 130 bpm, 0m gain. Much better pacing than the previous day, same treadmill and probably warmer in the gym.
- Saturday (May 3): 18km long run (on target), 8:16 min/km, 132 bpm, 3m gain. Ran outside with a 2L hydration pack. Slowed toward the end but logged 2.5 hours. Used gels (500 kcal), 1200ml water. This run felt much better than last week's long run, which was along the same route.
- Sunday (May 4): 16km long run (target 13km), 8:00 min/km, 131 bpm, 0m gain. Treadmill in cool air felt great - could’ve kept going. Fueled with 500 kcal, 1000ml water. Date night with champagne, draughts, and shisha was fun but not ideal for a perfect run.
Elevation gain was only 3m (Dubai’s flat as a pancake). Hit 60.48km, over my adjusted goal, with back-to-back long runs (34km total) as the week’s core.
Challenges and Wins
Challenges: I really wanted to trail run as we were visiting Fujairah which is very mountainous, but finding close enough trails I could get to without sacrificing too much family time was difficult. The runs themselves were fine, but found I needed to get more volume.
Wins: Back-to-back long runs (18km + 16km) were huge for ultra prep, straight out of Hal Koerner’s playbook. HIIT session felt good, and tweaking my hydration vest made long runs easier. Form (TSB) trending up means progress.
A Focus On TSB
I will probably do a separate post on this, but I have started tracking in detail my TSB score. This score is from Training Peaks (more here) but basically tells you if you are taking it too easy, maintaining fitness, getting more fit, or overdoing it. Looking back over the past few weeks I saw I was never actually getting in to the "getting fit" zone which is -10 to -30. So, because I can't increase my exertion I must increase my time on feet. I added in a 10km run which should've been on a rest day, and finally got my score to -13. I have upped next week's volume too to try and keep it in this sweet spot. During the recovery week, it should then only go above -10. Hopefully this will result in a lot more noticeable progress.
Looking Ahead: Week 4 and London Trails
Week 4 targets 70km, 5 runs, and a 22km long run. I’ll focus on volume and fueling. By May 11, I’m in London, hitting Hampstead Heath and Richmond Park for ~500m weekly elevation - real UTMB training starts. Stronger focus on HIIT and some pace work which I am looking forward to.
Join the Journey
Week 3 was great and really loving these long runs - staying smoke-free also has me fired up. Follow my runs on Strava or gear updates on Instagram. Check my intro post for the full UTMB 2030 plan.
Happy trails,
Kyle
