Tools
Khadakwasla Ultra training plan
The full ten-week block for the 25K, 35K and 55K at Khadakwasla on 22 November 2026 — every session, the pace zones, the fuelling, and what to do on race morning.
Distance
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Donje → the full parikrama → Donje. Target: sub-7:00.
22 November 2026 · Krushnai Resort, Donje, Pune · ten-week block, 14 Sep – 22 Nov 2026
How the block builds
The calendar
Five runs a week from week 2: Tuesday quality, Thursday medium-long, Saturday easy, Sunday long, plus an optional Wednesday shakeout. Monday always off. Both strength days stay.
W0114–20 SepRe-entry at volume — four runs, all easy46km
NoteHigher weekday volume than the shorter plans from day one — that's what makes the 45 supportable later.
W0221–27 SepHills in, five runs54km
NoteHill reps by effort, not pace.
W0328 Sep – 4 OctOnly pure tempo of the block62km
Note62 km is a big week by any measure. Protect sleep.
W045–11 OctRecovery week · downhill introduced43km
NoteDownhill reps in a recovery week — the soreness has somewhere to go.
W0512–18 OctCourse recce · 36 km · full fuelling71km
NoteBiggest week before the peak, and the recce is the point.
W0619–25 OctDown week — sharpen into the 4558km
NoteArrive at the 45 fresh. Don't make the week up.
W0726 Oct – 1 NovPeak · the 45 km dress rehearsal78km
Note82 % of race distance. Go slower than race pace — this is time on feet and a fuelling rehearsal. Bail at 36 km if it's going badly.
W082–8 NovRecovery week — Diwali45km
NotePays off the 45. Diwali mid-week — eat the food, move the runs.
W099–15 NovSharpen · final course section60km
NoteFrom here everything is subtraction. It will feel wrong. That's the taper.
W1016–22 NovTaper · race Sunday20km
NoteDown 74 % from peak. You'll feel sluggish around Thursday. Every taper feels like that.
Pace zones
Anchored to a threshold of 5:09/km and a VO2max near 50 — the fitness this block was written for. Heart rate wins over pace on hills and hot mornings.
| Zone | Pace | Heart rate | Where it shows up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recovery | 8:00–8:45 | < 128 | Saturday, day after a long run |
| Easy | 7:00–7:45 | 130–142 | Most of your weekly volume |
| Long | 6:45–7:20 | 138–148 | Sunday, first two-thirds |
| Race effort | 7:10–7:30 | 142–150 | Closing kms of long runs |
| Steady | 6:20–6:45 | 150–158 | Blocks inside the long run |
| Tempo | 5:20–5:45 | 160–170 | Once a fortnight, not weekly |
| Hill / VO2 | 4:50–5:15 equiv. | 170+ | 90-second uphill reps |
Fuelling
A GU Energy Gel is 22 g of carbohydrate. One every 30 minutes tops out near 44 g/hr — short of the 60–70 g/hr a seven-hour effort wants. Build to race density across the block.
| Wk | Long run | Est. time | Gels | Salt tabs | Carbs/hr | Rehearsing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 km | 2:25 | 3 | 5 | 27 g/hr | Re-establish the habit. 0:45 / 1:30 / 2:10. |
| 2 | 24 km | 2:51 | 4 | 6 | 31 g/hr | Fixed 40-min interval. |
| 3 | 29 km | 3:30 | 6 | 7 | 38 g/hr | Tighten to 35 min. First real gut test. |
| 4 | 18 km | 2:10 | 2 | 4 | 20 g/hr | Recovery week. Try one unfamiliar flavour. |
| 5 | 36 km | 4:20 | 8 | 9 | 41 g/hr | 30-min cadence. Flask and aid food both in. |
| 6 | 26 km | 3:05 | 6 | 6 | 43 g/hr | Full rate on a short run. Down week. |
| 7 | 45 km | 5:49 | 11 | 12 | 42 g/hr | Dress rehearsal, incl. restock at 30 km. |
| 8 | 20 km | 2:30 | 3 | 5 | 26 g/hr | Deliberate reset. Nothing to prove. |
| 9 | 26 km | 3:10 | 7 | 6 | 49 g/hr | 25-min cadence. Final stress test. |
| Race | 55 km | 7:00 | 14 | 14 | 44 g/hr | Carry 9+8. Restock 5+6 at the 35 km bag. |
Race day
Pacing — 6:54 with a stop budget
- 0–15 km · 7:25/km. Deliberately, uncomfortably slow. HR under 145. Reach 15 km at 1:51.
- 15–35 km · 7:10/km. Settle in. 35 km at 4:14 — 46 min inside the cutoff.
- 35–48 km · 7:30/km. The grind. Aid every 2–3 km now.
- 48–55 km · 7:45/km. Home at 6:46 moving.
- Stop budget: 8 min. Twelve stops at 40 s. That's what turns 6:46 into 6:54.
- Hills: from km 30, power-hike anything you'd run slower than 8:30/km.
Kit
- Mandatory: headlamp, hydration gear, basic first aid, phone.
- Race shoes need 100–200 km of break-in. Max-cushion road shoe for 44 km of tar.
- Rotate two pairs through the block.
- Test socks and anti-chafe on every run over 30 km. Seven hours finds every seam.
- Register before 31 October.
Recce the course. Week 5's 36 km should be on the actual loop, and week 9's 26 km should cover the closing section so the last 20 km holds no surprises.
This is one runner's training block for one race, published as it was written — the paces are anchored to the fitness it was built around, not to yours. Read them as the shape of the block rather than as targets, and adjust to your own threshold. It is not coaching, and it knows nothing about your injury history: talk to a professional before starting a new block.