4 ms·

Please excuse the bluntness, but I find it hard to believe that you only trained sprints every 3 days (so 2-3 times a week max) to train for huge approaches and

by xarope 4y ago

Please excuse the bluntness, but I find it hard to believe that you only trained sprints every 3 days (so 2-3 times a week max) to train for huge approaches and multi-pitch climbing (I'm a trad climber and mountaineer too). I assume this was not done in a vacuum, but also included numerous days of climbing and approaches as well, so probably 3/week of climbing, other low intensity work, as well as your then added 2-3/week of sprints. And yes, I agree with your last statement, after 3 weeks in the mountains acclimating for a 7000m peak, even though we got snowed out and never summited, when I got back to ground zero I felt like my lungs and legs were invincible (for about a week, then the bottom dropped out and I went back to normal again!)

Fricken 4y ago
I've been in condition for these things in the past, but over a winter of mostly just walking, light cycling and gym climbing my legs and cardio had suffered. It's explosive training, my muscles hurt afterwards, and I needed 3 days to recover. Over the month of stair sprinting every 3 days I regained about 5 pounds of(what I presume is) leg muscle. The premise behind it is that the high intensity stress of my short sprint sessions is effective way to prepare myself for the all day but lower intensity stresses of big climbs with big approaches, for my heart as well as my legs. My calves and achilles tendon took a beating on the trip, one thing I wasn't well prepared for was all the standing on my toes. I've relied on a period of sprints, either on stairs, flat ground or on a bike, to whip myself into condition a half dozen times over the past couple decades. At 46 I find I don't snap into fitness as quickly as I once did. And I don't live anywhere near big hills, if I did I would train on them more, but not at the full expense of running sprints.

by xarope 4y ago

Fricken 4y ago

I've been in condition for these things in the past, but over a winter of mostly just walking, light cycling and gym climbing my legs and cardio had suffered. It's explosive training, my muscles hurt afterwards, and I needed 3 days to recover. Over the month of stair sprinting every 3 days I regained about 5 pounds of(what I presume is) leg muscle. The premise behind it is that the high intensity stress of my short sprint sessions is effective way to prepare myself for the all day but lower intensity stresses of big climbs with big approaches, for my heart as well as my legs. My calves and achilles tendon took a beating on the trip, one thing I wasn't well prepared for was all the standing on my toes. I've relied on a period of sprints, either on stairs, flat ground or on a bike, to whip myself into condition a half dozen times over the past couple decades. At 46 I find I don't snap into fitness as quickly as I once did. And I don't live anywhere near big hills, if I did I would train on them more, but not at the full expense of running sprints.