Am I Ready to Move Up in Distance? (And Should I Practice Walking?)

Ready for your next ultra distance? Maybe. In this episode, we tackle the question of when to move up from the 50K to the 50 mile, 100K, 100 mile, and beyond, and why the "ladder" framing might be steering you wrong. Distance alone doesn't say much about what a race demands. A mountainous 50K can ask more of you than a runnable 50 miler, so we talk about how to size up a race by duration, terrain, and your own capacity. We start with a listener question: should you practice run-walking during ultra training, especially on tired legs in high-volume weeks? We explain why power hiking is a race skill, why fixed run-walk ratios work well in training but poorly in races, and why extra walking can be stress without much stimulus. From there, we cover how to identify your real weaknesses. That means separating a bad day from a pattern, finding root causes instead of symptoms, and deciding which limiters to address first. Spoiler: it's often fueling and hydration. We share practical approaches for improving speed, climbing, descending, durability, and your gut. We finish with the signs you're ready to move up, what does and doesn't change in training as races get longer, the special demands of 200 milers, and when it's better to wait. Plus, meet Microcosm coach Kylee Van Horn: nearly 20 years of coaching across road, track, and trail, a registered dietitian's lens on fueling, and a hot take about why you can't cross-train your way to a 100 miler. In this episode: - Kylee Van Horn coach spotlight - Listener question: should you practice run-walking? - Power hiking vs. walking, and why fixed ratios fail on race day - "Stress, not stimulus": the hidden cost of extra walking volume - Why the ultra distance "ladder" is a myth - How to find your weaknesses and root causes - Prioritizing limiters: low-hanging fruit first - Training for speed, climbing, descending, durability, and GI tolerance - Signs you're ready to move up in distance - Why 50K and 100 mile training look more similar than you think - What makes 200 milers different - When not to move up, and the six-year test Want to work with Kylee or another Microcosm coach? We have roster spots available. Email [microcosmcoaching@gmail.com](mailto:microcosmcoaching@gmail.com) or visit microcosm-coaching.com. If you liked this episode, subscribe, follow, and leave us a review. We read all four of them.