2017 Comrades champion Camille Herron is one of the world’s greatest endurance athletes. Here’s some of the stuff she’s learned along the way to help you on race day.

Though her name might not appear in lights as much as others, Camille Herron is arguably America’s best distance runner. The 41-year-old currently holds numerous world and American records (fastest 50 miles, 100 miles, 12 hours and 24 hours). In 2017, she became only the second American woman, after Ann Trason, to win Comrades. 

When she’s not running, Herron, who received a masters in exercise and sports science from Oregon State University in 2007, works part-time as a research assistant in bone imaging at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Centre, and also serves as secretary of the USA Track & Field Women’s Long Distance Running Committee. 

Here, Herron shares with Runner’s World some of her ultra secrets to help you conquer The Big C.

How has your training evolved over the years?
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 21 to 26km, 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 32km runs at midnight.

Ultramarathon runners are known for some unusual race food. What’s your choice?
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 near the end of the Desert Solstice 24-hour race.

You seem to race with a big smile on your face, a bit like marathon world-record-holder Eliud Kipchoge. Some people think that smiling improves running economy. What’s going on for you?
Yes, I’ve heard that smiling is supposed to keep you relaxed and economical, but for me it’s just who I am. My great-grandma nicknamed me Smiley! 

I love to run, so it comes out naturally 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 okay when they saw the smile again.

Your entire body gets exhausted, and your mind has to take over to will your legs and body forward.

How much of ultrarunning is physiological, and how much 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 60km. I think that’s the point that they get glycogen depleted, but I can switch to more fat metabolism.

But 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 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.

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