IN THE WORDS OF MORE THAN ONE PHYSICIAN, ‘IF YOU’RE STILL DOING IT AFTER 35 YOU PROBABLY CAN KEEP DOING IT FOR ANOTHER 20 YEARS’
THERE’S A LOT OF NOISE AROUND ABOUT SPECIFIC CLIMBING TRAINING, WITH A LOT OF TIME DEVOTED TO THE DETAILS OF ACTUAL MIXED ALPINE CLIMBING LIKE ‘STRENGTH’ AND ‘POWER’. IN PASSING, THERE’S ALSO A LOT OF MENTION OF HAVING A ‘BASE’ OF TRAINING, OFTEN SHOWN AS THE BOTTOM 2/3 OF A PYRAMID OR THE PART OF AN ICEBERG BELOW THE WATER.
WHAT OFTEN GETS ONLY PASSING ATTENTION THOUGH IS WHAT AN EXPEDITION-GRADE BASE OF TRAINING ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE. PLENTY OF MENTION IS MADE OF A FOUNDATION FORGED OVER SOMETHING LIKE A 20 WEEK PROGRAM – BUT THAT’S NOT REALLY A BASE, WITH 20 WEEKS NOT BEING NEARLY ENOUGH TO COUNT AS ANY SORT OF BASE-LEVEL OF ABILITY. SIMPLY PUT, YOU BASE IS WHAT YOU HAVE SANS ANY SORT OF SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT.
YOUR TRUE BASE IS THE SUM TOTAL OF METABOLIC CAPACITY YOU HAVE ACCUMULATED OVER A LIFE OF ACTIVITY. THE MORE YOU HAVE DONE THE MORE GAINS YOU CAN MAKE WHEN YOU UNDERTAKE SOME KIND OF TRAINING REGIMEN. IT ACCOUNTS FOR THE FITNESS, HEALTH AND CONDITION YOU HAVE, AND THE EFFECTS OF ANY INJURIES AND/OR LIFESTYLE CHOICES. IT’S A BIG SHIP TO STEER – SOMETHING THAT TAKES MORE THAN A 6 MONTH PROGRAM TO REALLY PULL INTO SHAPE – AND IS SOMETHING THAT IS QUANTIFIED OVER YEARS RATHER THAN BLOCKS OF WEEKS, AND IS SET AGAINST YOU AGE; A CLIMBER OF 50 WHO HAS DECADES OF ACCUMULATED CONDITIONING BEHIND THEM HAS A MORE FUNCTIONAL BASE TO DRAW FROM THAN THE CLIMBER AT THE PEAK OF FITNESS AT 25 WHO HAS ONLY BEEN IN CONDITION SINCE HIGH SCHOOL WHEN IT COMES TO EXPEDITION CLIMBING.
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THE MOVING PARTS
‘BASE’ IS MADE UP OF ALL SORTS OF ELEMENTS AS DIVERSE AS GENETICS, VO2 MAX, JOINT MOBILITY, STRESS THRESHOLD, POSTURE AND MAXIMAL STRENGTH PLUS MANY OTHERS, AND HAS MORE TO DO WITH THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN IT ALL THAN ANY PARTICULAR FACTOR. THE QUALITY OF ANYONES BASE ISN’T MEASURED EASILY BY ANY SPECIAL TEST, BUT IS VERY EASILY SEEN VIEWED THROUGH THE LENSES OF ADAPTABILITY, DURABILITY AND PHYSICAL INTEGRITY.
CLIMBERS WITH A GOOD BASE HAVE A SOLID ENOUGH GROUNDING IN THE MANY COMPONENTS OF CAPACITY TO SHARE THE LOAD OF AN EXPEDITION ACROSS A WIDE SPECTRUM OF SYSTEMS. CLIMBERS WITH AN UNDEVELOPED BASE DON’T, SHOULDERING THE DIVERSE STRESSES OF AN EXPEDITION ON ONLY A FEW, OFTEN MORE SUPERFICIAL ONES LIKE MUSCULAR STRENGTH, BASIC TECHNIQUE AND VO2.
MUCH OF YOUR BASE COMES FROM THE CHOICES YOU’VE MADE OVER A LIFETIME, MOST NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO CLIMBING. INDEED DEVOTION TO DOESN’T NECESSARILY RENDER A GOOD BASE UNLESS IT COVERS OTHER LIFESTYLE CHOICES, WITH LOTS OF CLIMBING BUT BAD OR IRRELEVANT LIFE CHOICES POTENTIALLY BEING A STEP BACKWARDS.
PRIMARY ELEMENTS OF BASE QUALITY THAT RESULT IN OPTIMAL UPTAKE FROM A CLIMBING-SPECIFIC TRAINING PROGRAM INCLUDE DIET, ACTIVE-REST BALANCE, TYPE OF ACTIVITY, QUALITY OF DOWNTIME AND AVOIDANCE OF INJURY. THE HEALTHY EATING CONSTRUCTION WORKER OR POLE DANCER WHO GETS 40hrs OF MULTI-DIRECTIONAL LOW INTENSITY ACTIVITY A WEEK PROBABLY HAS A BETTER BASE TO WORK WITH THAN THE WEEKEND CROSSFIT FANATIC. WHILST AN ACUTE GRAPH OF TRAINING AND REST MATTERS A LOT WITH SPECIFIC CLIMBING TRAINING, WHEN IT COMES TO FORGING A BASELINE OF CAPACITY OVER SEVERAL YEARS THE ONLY WAY TO GET THE ACCUMULATED TIME IS WITH ACTIVITY AT A PHYSCAL LEVEL WAY BELOW THRESHOLD.
BASE-LEVEL CONDITION ALSO ISN’T SOMETHING THAT’S LOST FROM A WEEK OF INACTIVITY, USUALLY REQUIRING A TANGENT IN LIFESTYLE TO BEGIN DEGRADING. BASE FITNESS CAN ALMOST BE SEEN AS HOMEOSTATIC – THE REQUIRED FUNCTIONING OF THE CLIMBER BELOW WHICH ALARM BELLS GO OFF THAT INDICATE DROPPING BELOW A CERTAIN LEVEL OF FITNESS.
DAY TO DAY, BASE FITNESS IS GUAGED BY THE AMOUNT AND QUALITY OF ACTIVITY YOU DO, PLUS YOUR CAPACITY TO RECOVER FROM IT TO KEEP A SUSTAINABLE UPWARD CURVE. PLOTTED OVER A MONTH THINGS LOOK LIKE A FLAT LINE, BUT OVER A YEAR OR MORE AN OBVIOUS UPWARD TREND IS OBSERVABLE. PLOTTED LIKE THIS EVEN SPECIFIC BLOCKS OF TRAINING BARELY MAKE A DIFFERENCE, ACTING MORE AS SHARPENING AN ABILITY RATHER THAN INCREASING IT. ASIDE FROM A SPIKE JUST BEFORE, AND THE EXPEDITION ITSELF, CLIMBERS WITH A GOOD BASE GET VERY SIMILAR AMOUNTS OF ACTIVITY LOGGED WHETHER THEY ARE IN EXPEDITION-TRAINING PHASES OR NOT.
THERE’S NO ‘FEAST OR FAMINE’ FLUCTUATION TO THE TIMELINE OF A WELL BASED CLIMBERS LIFE CHOICES, MEANING THERE’S NO REAL SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM WHEN A SOLID TRAINING PROGRAM IS STARTED. EVEN DOUBLING THE WEEKLY AMOUNT OF ACTIVITY, WHILST NOT ADVISED TO BE DONE TOO RAPIDLY, MAKES LITTLE DIFFERENCE OVER THE YEARLY CURVE. THE CLIMBER LIVING LIKE THIS EVENTUALLY ACCUMULATES A HUGE BASE OF CAPACITY, AS SEEN BY THE GENERATIONS HITTING THEIR 50’s OVER THE LAST FEW DECADES WHO CLIMBED CONSISTENTLY FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY AND ARE PUTTING OUT SUPREME EFFORTS.
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HOW DO YOU GET A BASE?
YOU GET A BASE BY BEING ACTIVE ACROSS MULTIPLE PLANES OF MOVEMENTS AND SYSTEMS. JUST RUNNING WON’T DO IT. JUST CROSSFIT WON’T DO IT. THE GYM WON’T DO IT. JUST YOGA WON’T DO IT, NOR GYMNASTICS, FOOTBALL OR EVEN CLIMBING. WHAT WILL GET IT IS A SELECTION OF ACTIVITIES DONE AT A MEANINGFUL AMOUNT THAT PULLS TOGETHER THE REST OF YOUR LIFESTYLE TO SUSTAIN.
ACTUAL AMOUNT OF ACTIVITY IS USUALLY RESTRICTED MORE BY RECOVERY, DIET AND VARIATION THAN BY TIME. A WELL DESIGNED TIMELINE THAT SWINGS THROUGH MULTIPLE MODALITIES OF ACTIVITY WILL EASILY ALLOW SURPRISINGLY LARGE NUMBERS OF HOURS SO LONG AS IT’S PROGRAMMED WELL AND YOU GET THE RECOVERY AND NUTRITION IN. IT’S ONLY WHEN THINGS GET SPECIFIC – TOO MUCH STRENGTH, TOO MUCH ENDURANCE, TOO LITTLE VARIATION – THAT SYSTEMS GET OVERDRIVEN AND UNDER-RECOVERY BECOMES A LIMITING FACTOR. WITHOUT TOO MUCH COMPLEXITY WEEKS OF >12hrs AVERAGE WITH A FOCUS ON EXPEDITION ENDURANCE ARE NOT TOO DIFFICULT TO SUSTAIN NEAR-INDEFINITELY ACROSS YEARS. THIS MEANS AN ACCUMULATIVE 600hrs A YEAR THAT IF IT WERE FOCUSED INTO A SINGLE DISCIPLINE WOULD BE GETTING TOWARDS STATE OR NATIONAL LEVEL FOR SOME ENDURANCE SPORTS.
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A GOOD BASE IS MADE FROM AS MUCH AEROBIC, MULTIDIRECTIONAL STRENGTH, GENERAL POWER OUTPUT AND STRUCTURAL CONDITIONING AS YOUR LIFE CHOICES LIKE SLEEP. ROUTINE, LOCATION AND HABITS WILL SUPPORT. UNLIKE SPECIFIC SPORT OR EVENT TRAINING, BASE CONDITIONING DOESN’T OFTEN BENEFIT FROM INTENSITY AS THAT COMPROMISES THE VOLUME THAT BASE TRAINING IS ALL ABOUT.
OF ALL THE THINGS A BASE IS BUILT OF AEROBIC/CARDIO CAPACITY AND STRUCTURAL CONDITION TAKE THE LONGEST TO DEVELOP BUT ALSO, UNSURPRISINGLY, GIVE THE BIGGEST ADVANTAGES; AEROBIC/CARDIO BEING THE OVERALL CONDITION OF OXYGEN UPTAKE AND STRUCTURAL CONDITION – WHICH INCLUDES CO-ORDINATION, JOINT MOBILITY AND CONNECTIVE TISSUE STRENGTH – BEING WHAT HOLDS YOU TOGETHER. THESE ELEMENTS RESPOND TO INCREMENTAL CHANGE AND VARIATION, AND WHEN DEVELOPED PROPERLY, ie SLOW AND STEADY, CAN BUILD REMARKABLE CAPACITY OVER ENOUGH TIME. EXAMPLES BEING GYMNASTS AND ULTRARUNNERS, NEITHER OF WHICH REACH GOOD CONDITION OVER A PROGRAM OF A FEW MONTHS.
INTENSITY, FOR AS LUCRATIVE AS IT CAN BE ACCORDING TO THOSE WHO SELL IT, ISN’T THE STAPLE OF BASE TRAINING MANY WANT TO THINK IT IS. FOR ALL IT’S ROLE IS IN SPECIFIC CONDITIONING – AND EVEN THEN AT A VERY SPECIFIC DEGREE – INTENSITY IN BASE CONDITIONING SERVES AS AN OCCASIONAL AND INTENTIONAL INDICATOR TO DETERMINE A NEED FOR CHANGE.
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OF COURSE NO ONE CAN REACH AN ABSOLUTE PEAK CONDITION IN MORE THAN ONE ELEMENT – DEVELOPING MULTIPLE SYSTEMS WILL ALWAYS COMPROMISE EACH ONE TO SOME DEGREE – BUT, THE SUM OF THE TOTAL OF SEVERAL WELL DEVELOPED SYSTEMS PRIORITIZING THOSE THAT CONTRIBUTE MOST TO CLIMBING MAKES FOR A GREATER WHOLE OVERALL. HAVING SEVERAL ENERGY AND STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS DEVELOPED TO A GOOD, SUSTAINABLE LEVEL MAKES IT STRAIGHTFORD WHEN IT COMES TIME ORIENT YOUR TRAINING TOWARDS SOMETHING SPECIFIC.
THE GOAL OF BASE TRAINING IS SUSTAIN A ROLLING LEVEL OF ENDURANCE, STRENGTH-MOBILITY, MOVEMENT CO-ORDINATION AND POWER OUTPUT THAT IS FAIRLY GENERAL, NOT NEEDING TO BE BROKEN DOWN INTO MORE SPECIFIC ELEMENTS UNLESS NEEDED TO OVERCOME SOME SPECIFIC LIMITATION. AT THIS LEVEL YOU DON’T NEED COMPLICATED INTERVALS, STRICT NUMBERS OF REPS, PRECISE HEART RATES etc – ALL THINGS THAT COME WITH SPECIFIC TRAINING WHEN IT’S TURN COMES (OFTEN ON A YEARLY CYCLE). BASE SESSIONS ARE PROGRAMMED ALONG BIGGER PICTURE LINES LIKE INCREASING VOLUME (EITHER STRENGTH OR AEROBIC), INCREASING JOINT DURABILITY, DEVELOPING MUSCULAR SYSTEMS LIKE POSTERIOR CHAIN, TRAINING COMPLEX MOVEMENTS AND JUST GENERAL EXPERIMENTATION TO FIND NEW WAYS FOR TRIGGERING DEVELOPMENT OF WEAKNESSES.
THESE SYSTEMS NEED NOT BE TRAINED SINGULARLY. FOCUS AND PRIORITY IS REQUIRED, BUT ANY ONE TRAINING SESSION CAN INCLUDE SECONDARY AND TERTIARY ELEMENTS THAT KEEP THAT ELEMENT TRIGGERED FREQUENTLY ENOUGH TO KEEP REPRESENTED ON THE RADAR. STRENGTH CONDITIONING CAN INCLUDE AN AEROBIC ELEMENT, ENDURANCE CAN INCLUDE MOBILITY, MOBILITY CAN INCLUDE STRENGTH etc. ONCE VIEWED THIS WAY ENDLESS VARIATIONS ARISE TO KEEP THE BODY FROM OVER-ADAPTING IN ANY ONE DISCIPLINE.
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FOR ALL THE TALK OF ENDLESS LOW-LEVEL CONDITIONING THE ENEMY OF BASE TRAINING IS LACK OF VARIATION. BY BEING ABOUT BASE ANIMAL CONDITION, BASE TRAINING NEEDS TO STIMULATE AS BROAD A RANGE OF TRIGGERS AS IS RELEVANT, AND TO MINIMIZE THE BODY GETTING TOO ATHLETICALLY SPECIFIC. AEROBIC CAPACITY ACROSS A WIDE SPECTRUM OF MOVEMENT IS NOTORIOUSLY LACKING IN MOST CLIMBERS, WHO FOCUS MASSIVELY ON LEGS DURING THEIR SPECIFIC TRAINING FOR OBVIOUS REASONS.
BECAUSE TIME IS USUALLY THE LIMITING FACTOR DURING SPECIFIC TRAINING, BASE TRAINING IS THE ONLY REAL OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS ELEMENTS OUTSIDE OF THE SPECIFICITY-TUNNEL, WITH GOOD RESULTS WHEN SPECIFIC TRAINING KICKS IN, ESPECIALLY WITH ENDURANCE. BEING HEAVILY RELATED TO AEROBIC AND CARDIOVASCULAR CONDITION, BASE TRAINING DEVOTED TO UPPER AND CORE ENDURANCE GOES ON TO INCREASE THE EFFICIENCY OF THE WHOLE IN BOTH ABILITY AND AS A FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENT IN STRENGTH TRAINING.
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WHAT’S IT LOOK LIKE?
YEAR ROUND ‘OFF SEASON’ BASE CONDITIONING IN THE ORDER OF 10-13hrs PER WEEK LOOKS SOMETHING LIKE
- 3 X AEROBIC SESSIONS (LEGS) 2.5hrs EACH
- 1 X AEROBIC SESSIONS (UPPER BODY) 2.5hrs
- 1 X STRENGTH-MOBILITY SESSION 1.5hrs
- 1 X MOVEMENT-MOBILITY SESSION 1.5hrs
- 1 X REST/RECOVERY
NO SESSIONS ARE DONE AT THRESHOLDS ABOVE AROUND 60% OTHER THAN OCCASIONAL AND INTENTIONAL EFFORTS FOR THINGS LIKE CALISTHETIC REPS, STEEP HILLS AND OCCASIONALLY LIFTS. SESSIONS ARE PROGRAMMED IN BOTH CONTENT AND SEQUENCE SO AS NOT TO COMPROMISE THE FOLLOWING DAYS ABILITY TO TRAIN AT A MEANINGFUL LEVEL NEITHER TOO HARD TO DEMAND MORE RECOVERY THAN IS POSSIBLE DUE TO LIFESTYLE, NOR TOO EASY WHERE JUST REST WOULD HAVE ACHEIVED MORE.
REST DAYS ARE ABOUT BREAKING THE BODY’S LOOP OF TRAINING THAT LULL IT INTO A STATE OF THINKING THAT REGULARITY EQUATES TO PROGRESS. CONTINUITY IS A VITAL ASPECT OF DEVELOPMENT OF COURSE – BUT MISTAKING REPETITION FOR PROGRESS CAN LEAD TO THE COMPLACENCY THAT LEADS TO OVER-ADAPTION. CORRECT AND EFFECTIVE CHOICES MEAN YOU SHOULD HAVE ADEQUATE REST & RECOVERY IN THE +/-22hrs YOU SPEND EACH DAY NOT TRAINING, THE DAY WITHOUT A PROGRAMMED SESSION BEING USED TO PRIME THE BODY, AND THAT SHOULD FEEL THE DISTINCT ITCH TO TRAIN THAT IS THE SIGN OF A SYSTEM RECEPTIVE TO THE TRAINING STIMULUS.
SESSIONS AND EXERCISES SHOULD BE CHOSEN FOR VARIETY ACROSS MULTIPLE PLANES. THIS IS NOT SPECIFIC TRAINING SO DOESN’T REQUIRE SPECIFIC INDICATORS OF PROGRESS, MEANING SO LONG AS THE GOALS OF BASE TRAINING – VOLUME, MOBILITY, MOVEMENT etc – ARE MET THE CONTENT CAN BE AS VARIED AS IS USEFUL. THIS IS THE TIME TO TRY NEW METHODS, NEW EQUIPMENT, NEW MOVEMENTS, NEW LOCATIONS AND REINTERPRETATTIONS. IDEALLY EVERY SESSION INCLUDES ABOUT 10% DIVERSION FROM THE STANDARD. RANDOMISATION AS PER OLD SCHOOL CROSSFIT ISN’T THE GOAL EITHER AS PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT IS NEEDED FOR THE BULK ACTIVITY OF AEROBIC CAPACITY AND REFINING MOVEMENTS, ESPECIALLY AND INTENTIONALLY TO AVOID INJURY, BUT ENOUGH LEE WAY NEEDS TO BE BUILT INTO EACH SESSION TO KEEP THINGS FRESH AND AVOID THE BRAIN MISTAKING REPETITION FOR PROGRESS.
BUILDING A SPECIFIC CLIMBING PROGRAM ONTO THIS TO PREPARE FOR AN EXPEDITION IS SIMPLE BECAUSE THE VOLUME OF TIME AND BASICS OF EACH SYSTEM IS THERE IN A PRIMED-BUT-NOT-ADAPTED FORM READY TO GO. INDEED MOVING INTO A SPECIFIC PROGRAM CAN MEAN DROPPING BACK THE VOLUME, WHILE YOU RECALIBRATE FOR THE NEW METHODS BEFORE BUILDING A MORE SPECIFIC VOLUME AGAIN. A BODY HAPPY ALREADY WITH 3-5hrs OF UPPER CONDITIONING A WEEK WILL SLIDE EASILY INTO DEDICATED STRENGTH TRAINING, ALREADY HAVING THE MOVEMENTS AND SUPPORTING MUSCULATURE IN PLACE PLUS A FOUNDATION OF UPPER ENDURANCE THAT ASSISTS RECOVERY UNLIKE ANYONE COMING INTO STRENGTH CONDITIONING WITHOUT IT WILL KNOW. THE BENEFITS OF A GREATER VOLUME-RECOVERY RATIO HERE ARE OBVIOUS.
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NEVER FORGET THAT NONE OF THIS IS OBJECTIVE TRAINING. THAT’S AN ENTIRELY OTHER MATTER BETTER DISCUSSED ELSEWHERE WHERE MILLIONS OF WORDS OVER DECADES HAVE BEEN DEVOTED. BASE TRAINING DISTILLED TO IT’S ESSENCE IS THE CLIMBER BEFORE THEY TAKE ON A SPECIFIC TRAINING PROGRAM, THE BASE ANIMAL YET TO BE TWEAKED TOWARDS A SPECIFIC RESULT. THIS IS THE ‘YOU’ THAT RIDES OUT THE LIFE YOU LEAD AND THE MEASURE OF WHAT YOU PROVIDE FOR YOURSELF.
DONE WELL, WE HAVE SEEN ‘WELL BASED’ CLIMBERS CLIMBING HIGH LEVEL ROUTES WELL PAST 50, OFTEN 60, RICK ALLEN AND SANDY ALLAN, MIKE HORN AND KOBI REICHEN BEING AMONG MANY EXAMPLES. WE ALSO KNOW ULTRA RUNNERS AND SWIMMERS WELL INTO THEIR 60’s AND 70’s WHO DRAW FROM DECADES LONG BASE CONDITIONS, THE POINT NOT BEING THEIR LONGEVITY BUT THEIR DEVELOPED CAPACITY TO MAKE THE CHOICES SO THEY RECOVER ENOUGH TO KEEP THE VOLUME OVER SIGNIFICANTLY LONG TIMELINES.
THE BOTTOM LINE HERE IS THAT THE CLIMBER WHO GETS ONTO EFFECTIVE BASE TRAINING EARLY ENOUGH HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE LOOKING AT A CLIMBING CAREER WITH A PHASE OF HIGH LEVEL PERFORMANCE LASTING DECADES, RATHER THAN YEARS. A SUSTAINABLE BASELINE OF CAPACITY ACROSS MULTIPLE SYSTEMS OF PERFORMANCE, BUILT ON WITH SPECIFIC TRAINING PHASES AND EXPEDITIONS THEMSELVES OVER YEARLY CYCLES – PLUS ALL THE LIFE CHOICES THAT GOES WITH IT – CAN BUILD A LIFE SUPPORTIVE OF INTERNATIONAL-LEVEL CLIMBING ACHIEVEMENTS. MATCHED WITH THE WAY UNEXPLORED MOUNTAIN AREAS ARE OPENING UP, THIS SEEMS AN OBVIOUS THING TO DO.
