From 100kg to Running a 100-Mile World Record

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Aleksandr Sorokin went from weighing around 100 kilograms, smoking, drinking alcohol, and living an unhealthy lifestyle to becoming one of the greatest ultrarunners in the world.

In this episode of The Endurance Lab, Aleksandr shares how he transformed his life, lost the weight, discovered ultrarunning, and eventually broke multiple world records in his 40s.

His achievements include:
🏃 100 km world record — 6:05:35
🏃 100 mile world record — 10:51:39
🏃 6-hour world record — 98.496 km
🏃 12-hour world record — 177.410 km
🏃 24-hour world record — 319.614 km

He became the first runner to break the 11-hour barrier for 100 miles, and during that same race he also set the 12-hour world record.

What makes Alexander’s story even more remarkable is that he did not begin running seriously until around age 32. Before that, after finishing his earlier sporting career in kayaking, he says his lifestyle became unhealthy — alcohol, cigarettes, poor food choices, and his body weight climbed to around 100 kg.

Running initially started as a way to lose weight. Then he discovered ultra-running. A few years later, he was winning major races. By his early 40s, he was breaking world records.

Alexander explains how his training evolved from roughly 60–80 km per week to peak weeks around 250–300 km, why long runs of 30–50 km became the foundation of his training, how he uses interval sessions to maintain speed as he gets older, and why recovery has become increasingly important in his mid-40s.

We also discuss what runners over 40 can learn from his progression, why starting later does not necessarily mean your best running years are behind you, and how consistency, training variety, mileage and simply loving the process have shaped his career.

For masters runners, recreational runners, marathoners and ultrarunners, Alexander’s journey is a powerful example of how dramatically running performance can change even when you start later in life.

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https://open.spotify.com/episode/5sz25EZjGUHoGSaA38nHwM

00:00 From 100 kg to running
1:35 Alexander’s world records
2:50 His life before running
5:43 From weight loss to world records
7:18 Did he ever expect to become elite?
10:01 Strength training and cross-training
11:03 Starting running in his 30s
12:52 Can runners still improve after 40?
16:54 How his training volume evolved
20:56 How his speed training changed with age
24:16 Mileage vs structured training
25:29 When he reached his peak
28:46 How runners over 40 can still improve
29:39 What recreational runners can learn from him
31:21 Heart rate vs pace
33:08 What to do when your best years feel behind you