Ep 69 Winner of the Waterville Trail Running Festival three-day stage race, Sean Meehan
· Trail Running Ireland Podcast
Sean Meehan of Cherry Orchard Running Club won the three-day stage race at the Waterville Trail Running Festival in Co Kerry in 13:23:26, just over three minutes ahead of Laura O'Driscoll. He tells Eoin Flynn about the weekend, his unusual route into ultra running, and his dream of an Irish vest. First, René Borg of Running Coach Ireland looks at whether it's better to train in the morning or the evening.
Eoin opens with the Waterville results. Robert Pim won the 130 km race, and Mairéad O'Keeffe was the only female finisher. Nick Hogan and Kate Carty won the 43 km race. In the three-day stage race, Sean Meehan finished just ahead of Laura O'Driscoll.
René explains how the time of day affects training. Morning sessions suit easy aerobic running, may disturb sleep less, and support fat burning, but be careful with fasted running and calorie restriction. Higher body temperature and lower cortisol make the afternoon or early evening better for high-intensity work. He also discusses chronotypes, practising at your target race's start time, the traditional easy-morning, hard-afternoon pattern, and why consistency matters most. Eoin explains how 5:30am alarms nearly wrecked his season.