MAY 2019 RUNNERSWORLD.COM/UK 073TRAINING
who was a great swimmer and
synchronised swimmer.’How has your training evolved
through the years?
‘I enjoyed cross-country from the first
day in eighth grade [aged 13]. I loved
how my body felt running over the
hills and in nature. But then I grew
nine inches in high school, and had
seven stress fractures in high school
and college. Those were tough years.
‘Fortunately, in 2001, I met my
husband, Conor, a marathoner who
ran 2:18:17 in the 2004 US Olympic
Marathon Trials, and I credit him for
inspiring me and resurrecting my
running career. Frank Shorter [winnerof the marathon in the 1972 Olympics]
once signed a poster for me that
said, “Run for stress release.” That
helped me gain a more relaxed
outlook on running. And Patti Dillon
[four-time winner of the Honolulu
Marathon] told me to run as many
100-mile weeks as possible for the
marathon, which really lit a fire. I’ve
now gone 12-plus years of averaging
over 100 miles per week.
‘I’ve learned how to structure and
balance my training. Early in my ultra
career, I tried to increase mileage and
long runs, but that didn’t feel good.
So I turned back to more typical
marathon training. My normal long
runs are 18-22 miles and I do most
of my training on roads, which keeps
my legs strong and snappy.
‘We train on a two-week cycle that
includes all types of speedwork,
regular strides and drills, and hard
hill workouts. I take two to three
recovery days between harder efforts.
I’m not a morning person at all, so
I often run at lunch and then again
in the evening. I do the bulk of my
training between 8pm and midnight.
I’ve even done 20-milers at midnight.’Ultramarathon runners are known
for having some unusual diets.
How about you?
‘I grew up on a wholesome, Southern
comfort-food diet. My mom had a
deep-fryer, so we’d fry up catfish,
seafood and chicken, and eat that
with freshly baked bread with butter
and sweet tea. I drank a glass of milk
at every meal and we would have
doughnuts on Sundays.
‘Since I grew up without any food
restrictions, that’s the mindset I’ve
carried into adulthood. At home
now, we often eat steak, hamburgers
or pasta with meat sauce. I rarely
eat salad (too much risk of food
poisoning), but I get plenty of cooked
veggies and avocados in my diet.
‘During races, I’ll have a gel with
water every 30 minutes and sips of
a sports drink in between. I switch
up gel flavours and drinks, including
Coke and ginger beer. I’ll even drink
some real beer as a nice treat. I don’t
normally eat solid foods when I run,
but I did have a taco from Taco Bell
near the end of the Desert Solstice
24-hour race.’You seem to race with a big smile
on your face. What’s going on?
‘I’ve heard that smiling is supposed to
keep you relaxed and economical,
but for me it’s just who I am. My
great-grandmother nicknamed me
Smiley. I love to run, so it naturallycomes out when I run ultras. In the
24-hour race, my friends got worried
about me when I hit a bad patch and
stopped smiling, but they knew I’d
come through it OK when they saw
the smile again.’You have a science background,
and it’s said you enjoy using
science in your running. How so?
‘I love statistics and use them to
predict what I’m capable of. Most
women’s world records are 10 per
cent slower than the men’s records,
so that’s what I aim for. If Yiannis
Kouros [men’s world record holder
for distance covered over 24 hours]
could run 188 miles in 24 hours, I
should be able to do 170. That’s what
I was aiming for at Desert Solstice,
which was my first 24-hour race. I
believe I can reach 170 miles at the
next 24-hour World Championships.’How much of ultrarunning is
physiological and how much
of it is mental?
‘There’s definitely a physiological
side to it. It’s probably an advantage
to have a high percentage of slow-
twitch muscle fibres and to be good
at fat-burning. In ultras, I start to
catch runners who are much faster
than me after about 40 miles. I think
that’s the point that they become
glycogen depleted, but I can switch
to more fat metabolism.
‘The further you run, the more
it also becomes mental. Your entire
body gets exhausted, and your mind
has to take over to will your legs
and body forward. During the tough
spots, I think about those people who
inspire me and how I felt in my big
workouts and great races. I also think
about the people who doubt me –
they add fuel to my fire, since I want
to prove them wrong.’What are your long-term goals
in ultrarunning?
‘I feel really good, have healthy joints
and I believe I can compete at a high
level in ultras 15 and 20 years from
now. This excites me and opens
many possibilities. I want to break
seven hours for 100km, 170 miles
for 24 hours and be the first woman
to reach 600 miles in six days. I also
want to chase wins and course
records in the most iconic ultras,
such as Comrades, Western States,
Leadville, Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc,
Badwater, Spartathlon, Marathon des
Sables and the Self-Transcendence
3,100 miles. And it would be really
cool to win a major 100-mile event
outright, beating the men.’Name Camille Herron
Age 37
Born Oklahoma, US
Events Marathon and
ultramarathons
Selected milestones
World records: 50
miles (road), 5:38:41;
100 miles (road),
12:42:40; 100 miles
(track), 13:25:00;
12 hours (track), 92.66
miles; 24 hours (track,)
162.919 miles; 2015
50km and 100km
world champion;
2017 Comrades
Marathon champion;
Guinness World
Record holder for the
fastest marathon in a
superhero costume –
2:48:51, while dressed
as Spiderman, in 2012TAKING THE
LONG VIEW
Camille Herron
is right on trackWO
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