Blog author ASEA Athlete Billy Richards is an ultramarathon runner who carries the American flag in all of his races. He is a veteran of the armed forces, serving four years in the United States Marine Corps, and three years with the United States Army as a paratrooper. He has finished 28 marathons and 99 ultramarathons, winning the Frozen Hell Hole Hundred, New Jersey Trail Series 100, Peak Bloodroot Ultra, and taking 2nd in the SkyDive Ultra 100 in 2019. He has received 13 personal awards including congressional awards, the 2016 Veteran of the Year Award from 9-1-1 Veterans, and the 2017 Kings of Long Island Champion Service Award.
I’m a different type of competitor. I compete in a variety of sports, but my main emphasis is ultramarathons. I run carrying the American flag in every race I participate in. In races with a distance of 50k or less, I run with a 45-pound ruck, symbolic of the mental and physical weight and struggles that our active and retired military personnel and veterans endure.
When running any ultra/endurance type event, the biggest elements of success are strategy, physical conditioning, and recovery.*
After last year’s world record attempt at running the most 100s in a year, I started using ASEA products to recover, and it has been helping me get back out there and train. Strategy is what gets you through a race. All the events generally have a website that describes the event. The site will tell you things like terrain and elevation, how many aid stations are on course (if there are any), the distances between aid stations, typical weather, etc. Based on the information, it’s best to figure out what my strategy will be. Typically for flat courses, to avoid overuse, I take a walk break at the top of every mile, treating the miles like sets in the gym to save my legs. For the races with varying terrain, I power-hike the hills and run the downhills and flats. For races less than 100 miles, I’ll usually run aid station to aid station, and take walk breaks while eating food, so I stay on the move.
For physical training, the biggest thing is coming up with a plan and tapering up the mileage before the race. I’ll typically bring up my mileage slowly week by week, and if doing a really long race, I’ll schedule some shorter races leading up to the bigger event. There’s no better way to train for a race in excess of 100 miles than using the race environment, and figuring out what works best.
In between races and training, recovery is very important. I make sure to get the appropriate amount of macronutrients to replenish my energy stores, and the right amount of protein to heal my body. In addition to that, taking products like ASEA REDOX and the ASEA VIA line aid in the recovery process by getting my cells talking to each other again, and by providing vitamins and supplements that may be missing from my diet.* The ASEA VIA line helps me make sure I’m getting all the extra nutrients I need that my food intake may not have covered. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished and I have ASEA products to thank for playing a role in my success.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease
Unless otherwise noted, this person may have received compensation through the receipt of material goods or remuneration. Results may vary. Consumers of ASEA products do so as part of maintaining an already healthy lifestyle. This material is intended only for the US market.
