BOSS, the ultimate cross-training, trust the training

Yesterday, I did the last workout of my 12-week hiking training program, a one-mile walk on an inclined treadmill (10% at 2.5 mph). Over the course of this program, I did countless (it seemed!) elevation workouts with a backpack, i.e., inclined treadmill, stair stepper, step-ups, and stairs; and hikes totaling almost 90 miles, with backpack weights up to 35 lbs. Total elevation gained was over 60,000 ft. I also did some limited running (10-15 miles per week) in support.

(Just an aside and apropos nothing much: I watched/listened to the Sibelius Violin Concerto in D minor (performed by Hilary Hahn) for the first 36+ minutes of every inclined treadmill workout. Because it’s one of my favorite concertos; and because the third movement's beat is exactly the same as my pace at 2.5 mph.)

One of the best actions I took last year, after I had to leave the Boulder Outdoor Survival School (BOSS) 28-Day course early, was to engage a hiking coach. I’d already decided to take this course again this year, and I wanted to be as best prepared as I possibly could. I’ve been really fortunate to have found a terrific coach (Marcus Shapiro) with whom I’ve learned so much about hiking and how to train for it—not the same as for running (!)--and with whom I’ve been training for the past 10 months (base training before the 12-week program and parallel training for two marathons last October and this April).

So, I do feel good and positive going into the 28-Day course this year. Still, there is some anxiety, with doubts surfacing now and then. To allay these doubts, I have to remind myself to trust the training (and the coach!)—and, that I've done my homework.

When the course starts this weekend, I’ll have achieved my first milestone--getting there healthy. Well, not quite 100% healthy. About halfway through the 12-week program, while bouldering, I injured my left shoulder. A fairly minor injury but one that has been stubbornly slow to recover completely. In hindsight, of course, I should have prioritized the BOSS training and stayed off the wall. Anyway, I modified the training somewhat over the last few weeks by decreasing the intensity (backpack weight). Physical therapy also was quite helpful.

There are two other milestones. One is to complete day 1 of the first 7-day expedition in good enough condition to go on to day 2. It was at this point last year when I had to leave the course early. The other is to complete this first 7-day expedition, which would be about midway through the course. If I do that, I feel pretty confident that I can finish the rest of the course.

Will I reach these milestones? I’ll find out! BOSS courses are minimal (“Know more, carry less”), with no modern equipment of any kind (except for cameras), trying to replicate as much as possible the way of life of the Ancestral Puebloans who had lived in the Four Corners region. No headphones either (though I never run with one). But, in my head will be that Sibelius concerto beat to keep me going.

And, when doubts arise, I’ll make sure to remind myself to trust the training--and to enjoy and have fun!

30-40 miles, another update

30-40, 35-40, somewhere between 30 and 40 miles for a 7-day moving average is, for me, the threshold beyond which running becomes, once again, familiar and easy. All the body parts seem to become readjusted to each other and to smoothly fit together. There are two data points so far, one from a layoff due to an injury shortly before a marathon in 2018 and the other from the two-year hiatus in racing due to COVID-19 (2020-21).

Now, there is a third data point, though not, so far, of the change in body response to running after exceeding 30-40 miles per week, but of the body response to very little running. Currently, I’m in the last week of a 12-week Boulder Outdoor Survival School (BOSS)-specific hiking training program for the upcoming 28-Day course. During these weeks, I’ve also been running, but in support of the BOSS training. Running volume has been much lower, around 10-15 miles a week, compared with my usual marathon training volume of 40-60 miles a week.

At 10-15 miles a week, a 4-6-mile easy run no longer feels entirely “easy.” It doesn't feel exactly hard, but it's definitely not effortless. This is despite the fact that, physically, I’m probably as fit as when I’m in marathon training. Here’s a summary of my 12-week BOSS training:

There are two main groups of workouts: (1) Elevation workouts (inclined treadmill, stair stepper, step-ups, and stairs) and (2) road and trail hikes totaling almost 90 miles. All workouts were done with a backpack (modern and blanket) of increasing weights, with total elevation gain of more than 60,000 ft.

But, after three months of basically no real running, the specific parts of the body used for running have basically been out on vacation. That is because the use of muscles etc. is different between running and hiking. The human body is fascinatingly smart! So quickly does it adapt to training for specific needs.

As a result, after this BOSS course, it’ll take a while to get back above that threshold of familiarity and ease and back to running shape, before I can target the next marathon. But, on the positive side, this is yet another indication that, yes, it’s still mostly a matter of training!

BOSS, the ultimate cross-training, second thoughts – an update

I wrote in a previous post that I had second thoughts about my decision to leave last year’s Boulder Outdoor Survival School (BOSS) 28-Day course early (due to some leg muscle issues)--that I hadn’t really left everything out on the course. I noted what leaving everything out on the course looks like, which was Jasmin Paris in Barkley’24, and that rewatching the documentary of her run each time is a shot of inspiration. (Intrigued by BOSS? Here are more reflections from past courses.)

Now, there are two other sources of inspiration.

The more recent one is Rachel Entrekin’s outright win in Cocodona 250 back in May. Her record winning time of 56:09:48 is more than 2.5 hours faster than the previous course record. She had previously won Cocodona (women) in 2024 and set the women’s course record in 2025. During her entire run this year, she slept for a total of 19 minutes. But, as she said during her post-race interview, “I can sleep when I’m dead.” In another interview a few weeks later, Entrekin mentioned the mantras she’d used during the race, including "Why not you? Why not now? Why not try?"

The other inspiration is Bob Becker who in 2025 became the oldest person (80-year-old) to finish the Badwater 135, with a time of 45:00:06, well under the 48-hour time limit (45-hour starting this year). Badwater 2022 was Becker’s first attempt to set the oldest person record. He finished but missed the 48-hour time limit by just over 17 minutes in an absolutely incredible way. Because of his age, Becker’s inspiration is (just a bit) more relatable to me. In one of the post-race interviews, he said that he doesn’t think of himself as of any particular age. Which is exactly how I think—or, rather, not think—about age. For him, “if others can do it, so can I,” while being realistic regarding types of course and finishing time limits. Why not him to be the oldest person to finish Badwater.

Of course, I can’t rely just on inspiration. All endurance efforts are mostly mental, but that’s assuming one has done the homework for the physical part before the effort begins. For this year’s BOSS 28-Day course, I’m on schedule to finish my homework before arriving at Boulder (Utah). Working with a hiking coach, I’ve been training very differently from what I’d done last year, in volume, intensity, and variety of workouts. The following is a snapshot of my training.

This time, the training is BOSS-specific. I still ran, but the running was in support of the BOSS training. I did hikes with a modern-day pack for strength building (up to 35 lbs. and six miles). I also did hikes with a “blanket pack” and “versa cloth” day carrier, with a combined weight of ~30 lbs., for specificity training.

“Know more, carry less” is the BOSS motto. Shown are all the gear I had for a previous BOSS 14-Day course I took, before packing [left] and after packing [right]. During the day, the blanket becomes the “backpack.” The white “versa” cloth becomes a carrier containing stuff that likely will be needed during the day.

There is one other consideration: Though age is really just a number—and, it is still mostly a matter of (correct) training--the body does become more “brittle” with age, and recovery is slower after injuries. So, while it’s true that, as Lisa Smith Batchen (Becker’s coach) said, “you can be younger by tomorrow if you do the work,” with less than three weeks to go before the start of the course, I’m prioritizing getting to BOSS healthy.

Once the course begins, there surely will be low points mentally. When they happen, I’ll have what Paris, Entrekin, and Becker have accomplished in my mind to help with not just finishing but also to help with having a good time. As Entrekin said, “I want to make sure that I like who I am, when things are tough.” Which is true whether in sports or in life.

Once the course begins, I’ll have the mantras, "Why not you? Why not now? Why not try?" And, I’ll also have, “no second thoughts.”

The sub-12 project

No, that’s not a typo. I do mean “sub-12,” not “sub-2.” Sub-2, of course, is far better known, especially from Nike’s Breaking2 project in 2017 and other parallel projects (see Beyond the limits).

But, I am talking about sub-12, i.e., sub-12 minutes for 1.5 miles. The Cooper test is a physical fitness test that measures a person's cardiovascular endurance and can be correlated with VO₂ max (maximum rate of oxygen consumption attainable during physical exertion). The test is performed by running as far as possible in 12 minutes. Practically, though, an alternative, easier-to-administer version of the Cooper test is more often used: fix the distance, e.g., 1.5 miles, and measure the time. So, instead of 12 minutes, how far; it’s 1.5 miles, how long. The latter version of the Cooper test is an application requirement of Boulder Outdoor Survival School (BOSS) courses.

The following chart shows my Cooper test results (time in brackets, pace in parentheses) for the BOSS courses I’ve taken so far and the one coming up in August (28-Day Field Expedition, FE). My first course (7-Day FE) was in 2015. I was still working back then. COVID arrived in 2020. So, it wasn’t until 2023 that I was able to take my second course. In those eight years, I slowed down quite a bit (~15 sec/yr). Since 2023, though, the slowing down has been 5-7 sec/yr. I’m not sure why the difference. But, more interesting is the question: Is it aging or is it training?

Here’s a table of Cooper test standards for different age groups.

For my age group (55+, though I’m quite a number of years above that!), “excellent” is > 2,400 m in 12 minutes (3.33 m/sec or ~8 min/mi). 1.5 miles is ~2,414 m. So, if I could run 1.5 miles in 12 minutes or less, I’d be in the “excellent” group. My most recent time of 13:55 for 1.5 miles is ~2.89 m/sec), which is at the lower end of “above average.”

So, the question is: Could I still run 3.33 m/sec? It seems like I should be able to. 😁 My COROS 2 GPS watch prediction for 5K is 8:09 min/mi. In all these years of training for races, I’ve been training mostly for marathons and not for shorter races. So, if I do train for shorter races, could I run faster?

Thus, the sub-12 project! My 12-week training for the BOSS 28-Day FE starts in early May. Working with a hiking coach, I’ve already been base training since last November. Focus is on elevation and hiking with a pack of increasing weight. Training will still include running. But, instead of my usual between-race running schedule, I’ll take a 10-week 5K plan that I have and incorporate parts of it into the 12-week BOSS training, and add a couple of progress-check 5K races.

Will my sub-12 effort contribute to a successful completion of the 28-Day FE, a kind of reverse of BOSS, the ultimate cross-training? And, will it still be a matter of training and not of aging? TBD!

BOSS, the ultimate cross-training, second thoughts

 In my post-BOSS 28-Day course reflections last year, I wrote that, though I was second-guessing my decision to leave the course early (due to some leg muscle issues), I felt pretty comfortable that mine was not a case of Tim Noakes’ second- and lower-placed finishers accepting “their respective finishing positions and no longer choose to challenge for a higher finish."

But, I think, deep down, there was always a vague sense of unease that I’d accepted not finishing, that I didn’t choose to challenge myself to finish. This sense of unease has only become clearer over time.

Shortly after I returned home from Boulder, I called up my friend and fellow multi-course BOSS student, Kris, to talk things out and to get her perspective. During our conversation, I mentioned that I’d found a really good online hiking coach and that I’ll be working with him in preparing for my next try for the 28-Day course (coming up in August!). Because, as I’d previously found out--the hard way (!)--training for running and training for hiking are very different.

I also mentioned Jasmin Paris' incredible finish at the 2024 Barkley Marathons (~100M) and that I was nowhere close to what she must have felt, collapsing at the finish line, when I left the 28-Day course. Check out her facial expression in the photo at the finish--that's "leaving everything on the course"! (For more info, see 1, 2.) Even in Pocono 2016, where I “ran without regret” and qualified for Boston for the first time, I definitely didn’t cross the finish line with that expression—not even close. 🤣

From The Guardian, Hallucinations and no sleep: Jasmin Paris on her historic ultramarathon, 3/25/24; cropped from photograph by Jacob Zocherman.

I've watched the full documentary, The Finisher, many times already. Inspirational every time. I expect I’ll watch it a few more times before heading out to Boulder again in August. Wherever I finish the course this time—hopefully back at BOSS after 28 days (!)--I want to leave everything out there and not bring any second thoughts home.