Ammar Sabbah’s Ultra-Running Odyssey

For Ammar Sabbah, running 250km across the Sahara desert wasn’t about glory—it was about fun.

“I love the desert and camping,” says the 57-year-old Abu Dhabi-based ultra-runner. “When I heard about the Marathon des Sables—250km, self-supported, sleeping in tents, carrying everything on your back—I thought, why not?”

That casual decision has since led to nine finishes in “the world’s toughest footrace,” with a tenth on the horizon. For Sabbah, running is more than a sport—it’s a lifelong meditation. “Running saved my life,” he says. “Twice.”

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Finding Clarity in the Desert

The Marathon des Sables, held annually in Morocco, is no ordinary race. It’s a grueling week-long ultra-marathon through scorching sand dunes, where competitors carry all their food and gear. There are only water stations along the way.

“It’s not just physical,” Sabbah explains. “It’s mental. Emotional. Spiritual. It pushes you to your limits.” During particularly long stages, Sabbah often finds himself in a meditative state. “Your brain goes places.

I’ve had full conversations with loved ones who’ve passed away, like my late mother and uncle,” he recalls. “It sometimes feels like I’m dreaming with my eyes open.”

These trance-like states have also been creatively productive for Sabbah. “I get poetry ideas, business concepts—some stay with me, some are lost to the sand.”

Triumphs and Trials

Sabbah’s approach has never been about competition. “I never trained to win,” he says. “My aim was to crack the top 150 just once. My best was 242 out of 1,200, and I was thrilled.”

But in 2016, his performance began to decline. “I wasn’t getting faster,” he says. “I chalked it up to my ACL tear or my age.”

Then came the Al Marmoom Ultra Marathon in Dubai, another 250km race. To enter, participants needed clearance from a cardiologist, which revealed that Sabbah had over 90% blockage in a major artery.

“I was one heartbeat away from collapse,” he says. Urgent surgery followed, saving his life for the first time.

Training in Sand and Resilience

Sabbah’s training routines are not about excess. “Daily runs are never more than 10km; on weekends, we might go 30km. Before big races, we do a five-day desert camp—morning runs, rest, evening runs,” he explains.

Now based in Abu Dhabi, Sabbah trains at Al Wathba’s artificial mountains, finding his footing in heavy sand or on steep gravel trails.

“It’s more about mental strength than legs,” he says. However, he admits he sometimes overdid it, running back-to-back ultras in different countries—a strategy he no longer advises.

A Second Brush with Death

Years after his first surgery, Sabbah faced another health scare. Feeling fatigued again, tests revealed his aortic valve was severely calcified, opening only 20-25%. Open-heart surgery in September 2023 replaced the valve. “I told the doctor, ‘Fix it properly.

I can’t lose my performance gradually.’”

Remarkably, one year later, he was running a 250km trail race in Jordan. “My performance wasn’t great—I was still in rehab. But emotionally? It meant everything. It felt like coming home.”

Redefining Endurance Fuel

Sabbah has overhauled his approach to nutrition, moving from high-carb fueling to a low-carb, fat-burning strategy. “Years ago, it was all energy gels and pasta loading,” he reflects. “Now I run without sugar or gels.” However, he’s cautious about extremes.

“I’m not fully keto, and I think the new trends may repeat old mistakes. You have to find what works for you.”

Words of Wisdom

Today, Sabbah runs Arena Fitness in Abu Dhabi, blending his ultra-running expertise with his biochemistry and nutrition background.

Despite his incredible achievements, he cautions against glorifying overachievement. “If you’re doing ultra-marathons for LinkedIn posts, that’s not it,” he says. “Do this only if you love it. Without passion, the pain won’t be worth it.

But if you love it—there’s nothing more beautiful.”

Sabbah hasn’t chosen his next race yet, but he has his eye on a tenth Marathon des Sables for the event’s 40th anniversary. “I’m not sure I’m ready,” he says with a smile. “But I might just go anyway.”

Source: khaleejtimes

The opinions shared in the GymNation blog articles are solely those of the respective authors and may not represent the perspectives of GymNation or any member of the GymNation team.