More than ever, tough and beautiful races are at the forefront of ultrarunning: UTMB, Broken Arrow, Hardrock and Grand Raid de la Réunion. These are big mountain races with a ton of vert and technical terrain. Photos and videos can have you dreaming of running these events, but if you live in a city or an area with little to no hills, it can feel impossible. While it can be more challenging to train for tough races in these environments, it is possible.

Take Advantage of Location

Small hills can usually be found, so make the most it. One of my coaching clients did 45-minute workouts that included 20 repeats up and down one small hill and managed to get 1,100 feet of vert in 2 miles. Sure, it’s not quite the same as hour-long climbs in the Alps, but something is always better than nothing. Plug in a podcast or find a buddy and hit those small hills on repeat.

Man-Made “Hills”

Downhill prep is equally as important as uphill prep, and stairs allow you to get longer and steeper continued descents that you might not otherwise have access to. Find the tallest accessible building(s) and just like outdoor small hills, start doing repeats. Also consider options such as bridges with walkways and parking garage ramps.

The Treadmill Is Your Friend

Almost all of my coaching clients who have minimal access to hilly terrain use the treadmill for uphill training. Most treadmills go to 15% incline (some go up to 40%) and the amount of time you can spend at that grade is limitless. Set the treadmill to as steep of an incline as you can hike without having to hold onto the handrails. This is a hiking workout (not a running one). Some treadmills also have a modest decline, which can also be useful.

Mix Up Your Surfaces

It’s not just the vert that makes mountain races tough. The technicality of terrain is also important to train for – if you’re used to smooth sidewalks and the treadmill, you’re probably not practicing your agility when traversing roots and rocks or conditioning your stabilizer muscles for unstable and uneven surfaces. Find some non-paved surfaces – this might mean running back and forth on a stretch of sandy beach, hopping off the sidewalk and onto the grass or even running laps on a football field. Get creative to condition your muscles for uneven terrain and to learn how to react to obstacles on the trail.

Join a Gym

Strength work can effectively condition your muscles for the rigors of mountainous trails. Always warm up properly, build up gradually from one session to the next and if you’re a gym newbie, invest in a few personal training sessions. Over time, build up to heavy lower body strength work – deadlifts, single-leg squats, Bulgarian split squats, reverse lunges, single-leg calf raises and more. Most exercises should include four to eight challenging reps – this is more effective than high reps at lighter weights. Consider adding some plyometric exercises such as box jumps, broad jumps, skater hops – even skipping and agility ladder drills are useful. For most runners, two 30-60-minute strength sessions per week is about right, and be sure to incorporate them with your run schedule.

Add a Pack

One of the challenges of living in a flat area is that you’ll likely be running too fast to get enough time on feet to adequately prepare for a mountain ultra. Consider adding a weight vest or loaded pack to some of your runs, treadmill hikes or stair workouts. Work your way up with how much weight you carry but build up to an amount that adds noticeable difficulty to the workout. Also consider adding bonus walks – carry groceries back from the store or walk to your workplace a few days a week – all time on feet adds up.

Training Camp Weekends

If possible, carve out the time and money to travel to similar training locations a few times before your race. It’s amazing how beneficial a few days of mountain and technical training can be. On these weekends, don’t run based on distance. Instead, focus on time on feet, getting as much vert as possible (that’s suitable for your race) and prioritize time on tough terrain. This is also an opportunity to finally try out your new running poles and trail shoes. Ideally, trips like this should be one to four months pre-race – close enough to be useful, but not so close you won’t recover before race day.

So, if you spy a tough race that really appeals but don’t feel like you can train for it, think again. With a little bit of creativity and determination it’s possible to train for almost all types of races, and it can be fun to try new training techniques along the way.