Ultra-endurance competition is defined as events that exceed than 6 hours in duration.

The longer events rely on long term preparation, sufficient nutrition, accommodation of environmental stressors and psychological toughness.

Successful ultra-endurance performance is characterized by the ability to sustain a higher absolute speed for a given distance than other competitors.

This can be achieved through a periodized training plan and by following key principles of training.

Periodization is an organization of training into large, medium and small training blocks which are referred to as macro-, meso-, and microcycles respectively.

When the sequencing of training is correctly applied, athletes can achieve a high state of competition readiness and during the months of hard training, avoid the overtraining syndrome.

A plan is executed in accordance with the following principles of training: all-around development, overload, specificity, individualization, consistent training, and structural tolerance.

Training relies heavily on the athlete's tolerance to repetitive strain. Today's ultra-endurance athlete must also follow appropriate nutritional practices in order to recover and prepare for daily training and remain injury free and healthy.

Rehydration after exercise, together with the timing and method of increased food intake to cope with heavy training, are essential for optimal performance. Furthermore, the treatment of soft tissue after training or racing is necessary to control inflammation.
Introduction
Current trends in endurance participation now include much longer athletic events. Some events, such as the 90-km Comrades ultra- endurance running race founded in 1925, have stood the test of time. Others, including Ironman triathlons, have increased in availability and popularity. Furthermore, new events have been created to appeal to those athletes who still seek longer more grueling pastimes. These include adventure racing, the 3000-mile Race Across America cycling race, multistage events (Marathon Des Sables), and Ultraman Triathlons.
Defining Ultra-Endurance
Some investigators identify the term ultra-endurance as exertion greater than 4 hours. However, a definition of ultra-endurance could be based on physiologic or psychologic reasoning. For example, the 26.2-mile marathon is an event that is completed on average near 4 hours, and it has become popular in its association with fundraising and societies.

Physiologically the marathon can be labeled as ultra-endurance, but relative to the vast number of events that exceed this duration, a marathon might be classified simply as a long-distance race. For the purpose of this article, it is proposed that ultra-endurance events refer to those that are greater than 6 hours in duration.

These longer events rely more on adequate exercise management and long term preparation, optimal rate of movement, sufficient nutrition to accommodate environmental stressors, and psychological toughness. Generally, the longer the event, the more important preparation becomes in successfully finishing with functional health.
Variables of Training
There are many variables that affect the outcome of an ultra-endurance event. These variables can be considered as characteristics of preparation.

The successful execution of an ultra-endurance event is dependent on preparation and attention given to nutritional requirements, injury prevention, tissue regeneration and avoidance of acute tissue trauma and overtraining.

The training required for ultra-endurance events is no different than that required for other sports with respect to underlying principles; successive stresses must be applied to the body over time in order to provide a stimulus to initiate an adaptation so that subsequent training or performance is accomplished at a higher absolute intensity or for a longer period of time.

Successful ultra-endurance performance is characterized by the ability to sustain a higher absolute speed for a given distance than other competitors. From a holistic point of view, the athlete should be considered as a living psycho-social-physiologic system.

This holistic approach can be expanded into five areas that, when combined, culminate in an integrated view of performance: physiology, biomechanics, psychology, tactics, and health/lifestyle.

All these components need to be functioning at near optimal levels in order to achieve a successful performance or a maximum training adaptation.