[silpa1980]

I started with ADS 4 yrs back and have been working on it  and 1.5 yrs in I did 24 wk mountaineering plan for Mt Rainier which got my Aet to be <10% of my AneT( 173, assumed never tested) . I was at 145 when I started and went up t0 159 and   pace went up from 16 min to 11.5 . All good so far and then I stop running outside and was training on Stairmaster getting ready for my trip to Nepal. I had a great trip and felt the best but realized how slow I was in spite of recovering really well. Decided to work on speed (Some zone 4/5 work) and got 8-week custom plan from one of the coaches and then got derailed by tendon injury. Ramped up miles too fast when I got back into trail running after 6 months as I was feeling good, apparently common injury among ppl with good aerobic base.

Here I am now testing my Aet again after a very long time on Stairmaster as most to all of my training would be on Stairmaster. Planning for one day hike to Mt Whitney in Aug and a big trip to Nepal next March. I did continue to work on my base all long (Did aerobic training on stationary bike with Hr between 145-150, 3-4times a week for 60-90 mins) I learned that if I kept my Hr above 155 It was too much stress on my body. I am finally able to pull the concepts from the book together.

You would think I got this by now but never feel confident. First 25 mins is my warmup, started at 157 and getting 1% drift. Where do I go from here, (Should I be getting one on one coaching for fine turning?) Should I keep all my base work in Zone 1? or below 150 is fine. When I train on indoor bike even with hr. below 150 If I  go longer then 60 min, I can see it’s getting harder, but I am fine the next day and can do it again.

http://tpks.ws/OQ53NE5LVAPTSV4WBARMW7UOEE

I have barely done any speed work. Most to all my work at been in low zone 2. Please help me with my zones.  I am ready to start some speed work.

Thank you.

[Scott Johnston]

Silpa:

I do think you need to add some spice to your training.  Just doing aerobic base training with no hill sprints, no muscular endurance, no pick ups and no strength work is probably the reason you feel slow.

A few thoughts:

1) when you switched to the bike did you redo the HR drift test to find you biking AeT?  It is most likely different from running which is also probably different from AeT on a stair master.  Usually biking AeT will be lower and that might be why you felt like it was too much stress to train at 155 on the bike.

2) Adding interval training like Z4-5 without proper preparation with the hill sprints and ME could be why you injured yourself.

3) When I look at your test I select from about 25 minutes because that is here your HR stopped climbing so fastened began to stabilize.  I select the next 26 minutes and see an average HR of 159. Selecting the last 26 minutes of the test gives and average HR of 164.  164/150= 1.03 or a 3 % drift.  I would say that your starting HR of 157 is probably a good estimate of your AeT.  What was your perceived exertion during this test?  If it felt hard then yes, you need to do most of your base training at a lower HR, maybe around 135-145 range.

As to whether you should use one of our coaches:  You will get your best results that way and you have a partner to help you decide what to do when and explain why so you can learn in real time.  You’ve already done a pretty good job with the aerobic base training. But some elements do seem to be missing.  Maybe dive back into one of our books and read about hill sprints, muscular endurance and pick ups.

I hope this helps.
Scott

 

 

[Andrew Bollard]

Silpa, is your objective in Nepal in March a mountaineering one? It’s a bit confusing because you mention speed work which makes me think of running. If it is mountaineering, then you definitely need to add ME work to optimise your preparation.

I can relate somewhat to your situation; I focussed on building base from the end of July last year right up to the start of April, and such an extended base period can be very tedious and make you feel decidedly slow and unathletic with the constant low-level fatigue (even though that’s normal). I’m 4 weeks into my ME block now and it’s given me a new enthusiasm for training, and by the sounds of it you would almost certainly get the same effect.

[silpa1980]

Thank you, Scott!

I do need more spice and every time I try to add some, I end up overdoing it. Listening to your podcast on training mistakes to avoid tell me I am that over enthusiast person, but I am trying to be better.

1.It did not occur to me to do AeT for bike. I switched to Bike because of my tendon injury. It makes sense why it is hard even with my hr around 150. I will test it.

2.After my 24 week plan I only do ME work last 6-8 wks before my planned trips on Stairmaster. Can I do them on a regular basis once every 10 days? I have never done Hill sprints, I am a little lost on the concept on   how to, Will read the book again. I don’t have access to any hill or tall building stairs, best I have is 4 flights of regular stairs (would that work?)

3. I meant to say 3% Drift on my initial message.  I did feel borderline hard at my AeT . I try to get about 4-5 hrs of Zone 2 in a week and my recovery has been good. Looks like I will do better with below 145. From my understanding, training gets more polarized as you get fitter but, Since I am unable to do Zone 4-5 at this time while recovering from injury, Should I continue to train in Zone 2 or keep it below 145 ? since training at 155 is too much stress on the body. I work really hard on building my aerobic base and hate to lose it to an injury. I strength train with low weight high reps once a week (exercises from the book) and do Cham fit once a week. 

I have tried to keep track of my training for last 3 yrs and looking back into why I got an overuse injury I (think) I was running 20+ miles a week at my Aet right after training on Stairmasters for 10 months and I guess it was time for me to move to Zone I . Concepts from the book at coming together but at coast of training mistakes/time.

I am ready for one-on-one coaching but will start after recovering from my injury. Definitely need some fine tuning.

One big question I have is, If I continue just Zone 1 and low Zone 2 and ME training (without any zone 3/4) would I always be slower in the mountains?

Andrew,

Yes I am looking at Island peak and Mera peak, beginner mountaineering. After being in the mountains, I have realized I need some speed as summit days can be long. I have some experience with low level fatigue when I was on 24wk plan but this is me just being slow to the point even if I gave all I have I couldn’t move any faster .

[Scott Johnston]

Silpa;

My responses below.

2.After my 24 week plan I only do ME work last 6-8 wks before my planned trips on Stairmaster. Can I do them on a regular basis once every 10 days? Yes. I have never done Hill sprints, I am a little lost on the concept on   how to, Will read the book again. I don’t have access to any hill or tall building stairs, best I have is 4 flights of regular stairs (would that work?)  These sprints are no more than 15 seconds long so 4 flights is more than enough.  I detail in some depth how to do these in both books. Don’t try these sprints while injured.

3. I meant to say 3% Drift on my initial message.  I did feel borderline hard at my AeT . I try to get about 4-5 hrs of Zone 2 in a week and my recovery has been good. Looks like I will do better with below 145. From my understanding, training gets more polarized as you get fitter but, Since I am unable to do Zone 4-5 at this time while recovering from injury, Should I continue to train in Zone 2 or keep it below 145 ? Maybe 1-2 Z2 hikes or bikes/week and the rest in Z1.  since training at 155 is too much stress on the body. I work really hard on building my aerobic base and hate to lose it to an injury. I strength train with low weight high reps once a week (exercises from the book) and do Cham fit once a week.

One big question I have is, If I continue just Zone 1 and low Zone 2 and ME training (without any zone 3/4) would I always be slower in the mountains? True speed is directly related to strength/power.  The ability to maintain sub-max speed is much more related to endurance.  As a mountaineer, pure speed is not as much of a limiter………  But, if you can’t move fast for a short distance, you will never move fast for a long distance.  First, you need to increase your max speed with things like max strength training (not high rep low weight, that’s endurance training. Ref  Training for the New Alpinism).  Next…..  you need to develop the endurance to maintain I high percentage of the max speed for a long time.  That’s what ME and aerobic base training do.  You can improve sub-max speed with hit intensity interval training, but without a base of at least some pure speed work, you will always be limited in speed. 

I hope this helps,

Scott

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