THIS STEMS FROM QUESTIONS RAISED ABOUT OUR FLEETING MENTION OF WEEKLY TRAINING IN OUR ARTICLE ON PREPARING FOR K2 USING A POINT SYSTEM WHERE WE ADVOCATE 10hrs A WEEK IN ORDER TO REALLY BE COUNTED AS PREPARATION.
CONSISTENT TRAINING OVER MONTHS & YEARS HAS A GREATER ROLE IN HIGH ALTITUDE PREPARATION THAN THE PHASE IMMEDIATELY BUILDING UP TO THE TRIP. DEDICATED PROGRAMS OF COURSE ARE VALUABLE, BUT THEY ONLY BUILD ON THE GREATER BASE THE CLIMBER ALREADY HAS, SO THE GREATER THE ACCUMULATIVE BASE, THE MORE YOU CAN GET FROM THE SPECIFIC PROGRAM. INVERSELY, NO SPECIAL PROGRAM FROM SCRATCH WILL GET YOU TO WHERE THAT SAME PROGRAM WILL WITH A BIG BASE BEHIND IT.
SADLY, THE WEEK IN. WEEK OUT BASELINE STUFF ISN’T GLAMOROUS ENOUGH TO MAKE IT INTO THE MAGAZINES AND COFFEE TABLE BOOKS, AND REALLY, IT PROBABLY DOESN’T NEED TO. BY IT’S NATURE ACCUMULATIVE BASE TRAINING WORKS THE LARGE, GENERAL SYSTEMS TO WHICH THERE ARE NO SECRETS, TRICKS, FAST TRACKS OR SPECIAL INSIGHTS.
10hrs IS GENERALLY RECOGNIZED AS THE START OF DEDICATED TRAINING, GIVING YOU 450-500hrs A YEAR WHICH IS A GENERALIZED AMOUNT FOR A REGIONAL LEVEL SPORTSPERSON, AND BREAKS DOWN NEATLY INTO SESSIONS ACROSS 5 OR 6 DAYS FOR MOST PEOPLE. LESS THAN 10hrs A WEEK IS MORE LIKE MAINTENANCE-LEVEL RATHER THAN PROGRESS, AND MORE THAN 10hrs A WEEK IS IS GOOD SO LONG AS QUALITY IS KEPT, ie RECOVERY SUFFICIENT TO KEEP STRENGTH AND ENDURANCE LEVELS. STRENGTH GAINS DON’T SEEM TO PROGRESS MUCH WITH THIS SORT OF TRAINING AFTER ABOUT 10-12hrs PER WEEK BECAUSE LONGER OR MORE ENDURANCE SESSIONS ARE WHAT MAKE UP THE ADDITIONAL TIME. WITH A DECENT BASE OF STRENGTH AND THE EFFECTS ON BODYWEIGHT OF +7hrs A WEEK YOUR STRENGTH TO WEIGHT RATIO WON’T SUFFER AND YOUR ENDURANCE WILL REALLY KICK INTO GEAR.
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THE GYM
IDEALLY, DON’T BOTHER. THE FEES OVER A YEAR OF MEMBERSHIP ARE BETTER SPENT ON THE TRIP, AND 99% OF WHAT STRENGTH CONDITIONING NEEDS TO BE ACHEIVED CAN BE DONE IN A PARK, GARAGE OR YARD WITH IMPROVISED TOOLS, AND IT CAN BE DONE BETTER.
SHORT OF REMEDIAL WORK, ANY LIFT YOU NEED TO DO IS BETTER DONE ON UNEVEN SURFACES WITH PRIMITIVE AND IRREGULAR LOADS LIKE STONES, SANDBAGS OR LOGS BECAUSE IT’S CAPABILITY YOU ARE DEVELOPING, NOT ABSOLUTE STRENGTH. UPPER BODY IS BEST TRAINED WITH RINGS, A BAR AND THE FLOOR – ALL CLOSE TO THE ACTUAL MOVEMENTS OF CLIMBING, ALL RELIANT ON BEING INTEGRATED WITH THE TORSO AND ALL EASILY ADVANCED BY LOADING WEIGHT ACTUALLY ONTO THE BODY WHERE FOR CLIMBING IT MATTERS.
LEG WORK DESERVES ATTENTION – SO LONG AS IT FITS IN WITH YOUR ENDURANCE MILEAGE. SINGLE LEG STUFF TRANSFERS BEST, DONE IN LONGER SETS OF AROUND THE 20 REPS MARK. LEG INTEGRITY HAS HUGE ADVANTAGES IN WEARING CRAMPONS AS THE CALVES ARE LARGE OXYGEN CONSUMERS, SO DO AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE ON A LEDGE WITH HEELS LOW, THEN RAISING FOR FULL EXTENSION ONTO THE TOES. THIS WILL ALSO BUILD A LOT OF LEG STABILITY.
FOR THE TIME AND ENERGY AVAILABLE, SAY 90 MINUTES A SESSION AT MOST, SPENDING THAT ON MAX LIFTS OF CONTRIVED MOVEMENTS LIKE BENCH PRESSES AND DEAD LIFTS IS A POOR USE OF TIME. MAYBE IN A LATE PHASE TWEAKING FOR A FINAL TUNE UP, BUT OVER TENS IF NOT HUNDREDS OF SESSIONS THE GAINS ARE TOO MINIMAL.
2 SESSIONS A WEEK MAXIMUM
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THE OPEN ROAD
THE FUNCTIONAL THRESHOLD FOR ABSOLUTE STRENGTH IS SOMETHING WE ALMOST ALWAYS SEE OVERSHOT – THE DEMAND TO CRANK BODYWEIGHT+100% UPPER BODY MOVEMENTS JUST ISN’T THAT CALLED FOR IN BIG ALPINISM, BUT WE ARE YET TO SEE ANYONE WHO THINKS THEY HAVE ENOUGH ENDURANCE, EVERYONE KNOWS THEY WANT MORE, AND THE RESULTS ON THE MOUNTAIN ARE VERY REAL. PEOPLE DON’T FLAIL OFTEN REGRETTING THEY DIDN’T DO MORE BENCH PRESSES – IT’S TIME ON THEIR FEET THAT LETS THEM DOWN.
HILLS, ROADS, FLAT OR DIRT, WHATEVER LETS YOU GET AROUND 60% OF YOUR TIME IN WILL WORK. GET OUT AND RUN; NOT FAST, BUT LONG, CONSISTENTLY AND AT A RATE WHERE YOU CAN DO IT AGAIN TOMORROW. INCREASE IN SMALL INCREMENTS, OSCILLATING BETWEEN MORE RUNS AND LONGER ONES TO STAVE OFF INJURY. SOME OF THAT MONEY SAVED FROM THE GYM CAN GO TOWARDS PROPER SHOES AS THAT’S A BIG SOURCE OF INJURIES.
THE ACCEPTED GOAL FOR DECENTLY FINISHING A 100km ULTRA IS BASING OF 60-80km A WEEK, AND HAVING DONE BOTH AND SEEN THE FEELING IS ABOUT THE SAME AS A SUMMIT PUSH WE THINK IS A GOOD ROUGH MILEAGE TO AIM FOR AND IS DOABLE OVER A WEEK TO ALLOW OTHER TRAINING. FIND WHAT IT TAKES TO GET THE VOLUME ON EASY TERRAIN, THEN REGARDLESS OF MILES KEEP IT WHETHER YOU ARE ON HILLS, HARDER TRAILS OR WITH A PACK; WHAT MATTERS IS TIME ON FEET AND VARIETY HELPS.
DO SOME LONG SESSIONS, PREFERABLY BURNING INTO YOU SLEEP PATTERN. APPARENTLY YOU CAN’T ‘ACCLIMATE’ TO SLEEP DEPRIVATION, BUT EXPERIENCE IN THE ALTERED STATES THAT COMES WITH IT HELPS WITH THE INEVITABLE DOSE OF IT YOU WILL GET.
3-4 SESSIONS
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CLIMBING
TREAT ANY CLIMBING YOU DO AS EXTRA. REST AFTER, THEN EASE BACK INTO TRAINING. COUNTER-INTUITIVELY, LOTS OF CLIMBING DOESN’T HELP. SPECIFIC CLIMBING IS WHAT HELPS AND A DAY A WEEK OR A NIGHT AFTER WORK DOESN’T MAKE UP MUCH OF THE ACCUMULATIVE VOLUME UNLESS YOU’RE VERY SERIOUS OR A GUIDE.
IDEALLY, CLIMB OBJECTIVES AND IN A WAY THAT CONTRIBUTES TO YOUR MAIN OBJECTIVE. TEST GEAR, REFINE SYSTEMS, SEARCH FOR WEAKNESSES – PHYSICALLY, MENTALLY, STRATEGICALLY & CHARACTER-WISE. PRACTICE GETTING THINGS WRONG IN ENVIRONMENTS THAT ARE TOLERANT. BETTER TO HAVE A RESUME OF GNARLY FAILURES THAN A PRISTINE TICK LIST OF FAIRWEATHER TRIPS.
PRIORITISE GETTING NIGHTS IN THE MOUNTAINS. THIS WILL INCLUDE THE DAYS AROUND THEM AND GET YOU USED TO THE 50% OF EXPEDITION TIME THAT IS GETTING THROUGH THE NIGHT. IT ALSO IMPLIES THE GEAR CARRIED AND USED AND A CERTAIN CHARACTER THAT COMES FROM PICKING A GOOD CAMP, CHOPPING LEDGES AND THE TYPE 2 FUN THAT ALPINISM IS MADE OF. THE POLISH SAY THAT THE POETRY IN ALPINISM COMES OUT DURING THE NIGHTS. IT’S WHAT SETS YOU APART FROM THE DAYTRIPPERS.
AS OFTEN AS PROGRESS ALLOWS
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REST & RECOVERY
AS THIS IS A ROLLING BASELINE THE IDEA OF HAVING TO FIT DEDICATED REST DAYS INTO A SCHEDULE ISN’T VITAL – JUST MAKE SURE YOU GET ENOUGH TO KEEP PROGRESSING.
IT’S IMPORTANT TO REALIZE THAT ‘REST’ IS THE BLOCK OF TIME AWAY FROM TRAINING, AND ‘RECOVERY’ IS WHAT YOU DO IN IT. THIS CAN BE MEASURED IN HOURS OR DAYS. THE DEGREE YOU DISENGAGE FROM THE TRAINING CONTINUUM IS THE DEGREE TO WHCH YOU RECOVER BECAUSE CEASING TO DO THE THING THAT CAUSES THE STRESS YOU ARE ADAPTING TO IS THE ONLY WAY TO ACHIEVE IT. SLEEP MORE, EAT MORE & BETTER, HYDRATE MORE & BETTER, REBOOT YOUR BRAIN AND NERVOUS SYSTEM AWAY FROM THE PINGS OF TRAINING FEEDBACK. THE DEEPER YOU RELAX THE HARD YOU CAN WORK.
MAKE SURE YOU REST ENOUGH TO BE TRAINING AT A SIGNIFICANT LEVEL. TRAINING SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE OF YOUR ABILITY DUE TO BEING OVERWORKED IS WASTING YOUR TIME. IF YOU CAN’T AFFORD THE REST YOU WON’T EARN THE SESSION.
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FOOD
DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE, EAT PROPERLY AND DON’T RELY ON SUPPLEMENTS. BY NOW EVERYONE KNOWS WHAT EATING PROPERLY MEANS AND THE LIMITATIONS OF SPECIALIST DIETS. A BASIC APPROXIMATION OF YOUR CALORIE EXPENDITURE WILL INFORM YOU AS TO WHAT YOU NEED TO CONSUME AND HUNGER WILL BE KEY. AVOID JUNK AND THAT INCLUDES JUNK DISGUISED AS SUPPLEMENTS. IF YOU NEED MORE PROTEIN TO STAVE OFF SORE MUSCLES, EAT THE REAL THING IF YOU CAN.
RECOVERY IS AS MUCH ABOUT WHAT YOU GO INTO A SESSION HAVING ALREADY CONSUMED, ie WHAT YOU ATE AND DRANK BEFORE. THINKING YOU CAN EAT YOUR WAY OUT OF A HARD SESSION WHEN THERE WAS NOTHING FORTIFYING YOU IN THE FIRST PLACE IS UNREALISTIC’
FASTED TRAINING IS SPECIFICALLY THAT, NOT JUST ‘UNFED’ TRAINING. WHETHER IT ACTUALLY DOES ANYTHING OR IS JUST A TREND IS UP FOR DEBATE, BUT IF IT DOESN’T IT ALSO DOESN’T APPEAR TO BE DETRIMENTAL.
WHATEVER TRAINING YOU DO YOU WILL SOON ADAPT TO THE CALORIE DEMAND AND WHAT INITIALLY LEAVES YOU EATING NON-STOP WILL NORMALIZE AGAIN, SO ADJUST YOUR DIET. THERE’S NO NEED TO EAT LIKE A BODY BUILDER IF YOU’RE NOT TRAINING LIKE ONE. PEOPLE THE WORLD OVER DO HARD MANUAL LABOR SUNRISE TO SUNSET ONLY A CALORIE INTAKE AND NUTRIENT RATIO THOUGHT IMPOSSIBLE BY COMFORTABLE WESTERN STANDARDS, THEY HAVE SIMPLY ADAPTED TO IT.
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OVER ALL
PRIORITIZE MILEAGE OVER ALL ELSE AS THAT’S WHAT YOU CAN NEVER HAVE ENOUGH OF AND WITHOUT DOUBT WILL ALWAYS WISH YOU HAD MORE. IT TAKES TIME TO BUILD AND LASTS AS WELL AS THE TIME YOU’VE TAKEN TO BUILD IT. IT’S ALSO THE PLACE TO LEARN ABOUT HYDRATION AND CALORIE INTAKE AND IS WHERE YOU ADAPT TO DIFFERENT ENERGY SOURCES.
DON’T BUILD MUSCLE. IT EATS TOO MUCH OXYGEN. THE FINEST ALPINISTS HAVE ALMOST ALWAYS BEEN RAKE THIN, WITH WHAT MASS THEY CARRY BEING STRONG, BECAUSE STRENGTH-TO-WEIGHT RATIO MEANS EVERYTHING. BEING STACKED ENOUGH TO YOMP THE HEAVY PACKS IS A SIMPLE PROCESS, BEING RIPPED ENOUGH TO BE EFFICIENT AT IT TAKES MORE.
DON’T STRESS OVER MISSING SESSIONS. CALL IT EXTRA REST. IT’S THE HOURS OVER MONTHS AND YEARS THAT MATTER AND A SESSION HERE AND THERE DON’T MEAN MUCH OVERALL. ‘MAKING UP’ FOR A MISSED SESSION ALSO IS A MISUNDERSTOOD CONCEPT. CONSIDER YOURSELF EXTRA RESTED (UNLESS YOU’VE MISSED DUE TO INJURY OR ILLNESS).
INJURY & ILLNESS NEED TO PRIORITIZE GETTING BETTER AND ASIDE FROM THE PSYCHOLOGICAL VALUE THAT COMES WITH SPECIFIC REHABILITATION, THERE’S MORE TO BE GAINED FROM LETTING YOURSELF BET BETTER THAN SCRAPING LOW GRADE SESSIONS OUT THAT MAY ONLY PROLONG YOUR AILMENT.
MAKE IT FUN BY MAKING THINGS CREATIVE. KEEP YOUR BODY GUESSING BY TRYING NEW STUFF. STAY AWAY FROM THE MACHO STUFF THAT IS OFTEN BEGUILING. IF YOU’RE AROUND A LIFESTYLE CROWD THAT DOEN’T GET THAT YOU DON’T WANT TO ‘GET BIG’ WEAR A CLIMBING BRAND LOGO SHIRT AND THEY’LL BE SATISFIED, AND YOU CAN GO BACK TO YOUR WEIGHTED RING DIPS.
