Return to Training: Tough Task
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Greetings to the entire Team at Evoke Endurance.
Recap: In May-2022 I had to turn back little above 7000m on Mt.Everest, due to extreme heat exhaustion. The climber in me was more than happy to make the tough call. But not a day goes past by thinking about that summit push. Because up until that point, everything went well as per textbook precision. Apart from the mental challenge, little did I know what was to happen to me physically in the coming months. The detailed account of this is here:
Time line:
End of May: Return to home, rest and recovery.June-Jul-Aug: Could not even spend time outdoors for more than 2 hours. One day of exertion meant 2-3 days of rest. Facial skin became hyper sensitive to sun exposure. Loss of appetite, no hunger for these 3 months. Strength sessions got better, but cardio sessions were dismal. But I stuck slow progression. Regular conversation with my longterm physician (a high altitude specialist) told me one thing, each time we spoke, “Kamalesh, you have to take things easy. The moment you rush, you’ll be back to square one. Remember that your training saved you on the mountain. Just take it slow and you’ll be back in no time.”
Sep: Increase in appetite, first feeling of ‘hunger’ in months. Gain a 4 kilos of excess weight, partly due to sugar abuse; ice creams to be specific. However, in all these months, I did not stop training. If I could only manage 40 mins of brisk walk and 30 min strength sessions, I put them in. Pulled out an old nutrition plan of Ms.Rebecca and deployed it. Better gains were observed in other aspects: Rock climbing. I was just climbing anything on everything: Sport/trad/scrambles. I did not chase grades, If I felt I could climb something on a particular day, just climbed.
Oct: Armed with the new level of ‘feeling good’, took my first AeT. This was approximately 50% less than that of the previous test parameters (speed & incline). I burnt out in 32 mins flat. Massive blow to the ego. However, I’ve continued training at a level that I can sustain. The good part is that the continued strength routines has taken all of my niggles away. But endurance wise, I am not even sure if i can run a half marathon.
Today, as I write this; it only makes me think: how long? Has any of the coaches seen athletes be out of shape and take such a long road for recovery. My argument here is that I don’t have any broken bones.
Looking forward to hear out from your experiences.
Thank you!
Kamalesh,
Welcome to Evoke Endurance. Thank you for reaching out with your questions. I have shared it with the coaches, and you should get a response in the next few days. All the coaches are travelling back from the recent Evoke Endurance coach summit.
Wish you the best!
– Shashi
Kamalesh,
Welcome and thanks for posting! I read your post and reread your trip report from Everest. Firstly good for you for making a smart choice in the moment when things weren’t going right and staying safe. I have a couple of thoughts about the Everest trip having been thru that section from BC to Camp 3 a handful of time myself. Obviously as you state here you got caught out in the glacier between camp 1 and 2 late in the day. Its just so warm then and once you get that overly heated there is no way to recover at that altitude. I think 2 things are becoming very common now that didnt use to be common practice and it negatively affects some climbers. 1) Acclimatization schedules/standards get short and shorter every season. Oxygen delivery systems and pre acclimating at home in simulation tents can help with some of this but it can also come back to bite you. 10-15 years ago it was pretty normal to climb Lobuche, do an rotation to camp 2, do a 2nd rotation to camp 3 (including sleeping a night at 3 without O2) then rest and go for the summit. Now I see climber sometimes just doing 1 rotation where they may not even make it to 3 let alone sleep there. Very limited amount of time up high IMO which leaves little room for error. 2) No one stays at camp 1 any more after round 1. I think the day from BC to Camp 2 is to big for many folks and/or it leaves you out on the glacier in the heat of the day. Its horrible. Much better to consider a night at Camp1 then an easy morning the next day.
As for your recovery I am not shocked it has taken you a while. It is a longer process for almost every single person than they think. Its a two part issue where you are deeply fatigued but also lost fitness at the same time. Thats said yours seems a bit longer than most. Did you have a really comprehensive panel of blood work done with your doc? If not i would get one done and if so i would consider a second to compare values/trends. This should help rule out anything more sinister. I think as your energy returns and you can slowly get back training you’ll see things snowball in a positive directions and as you feel stronger and fitter you’ll be able to slowly rebuild aerobic capacity.Dear Mark,
Apologies for the late reply. Looks like my email notification are off.I’d like to begin by saying that I’ve return to my normal* medical and physical health. Yes, it hurts to see the lack of previous fitness (mostly ego driven) but I guess that’s what goes as an investment into the ‘bank of experience’.
I definitely got a CBP done before going on my expedition. But never got one done after I came back. The reason being that my physician suggested that taking one is not required at the moment. Because, as I see it in hindsight, I’ve carried a lot of mental stress (due the event not being successful) and the general life’s stress of returning to work and life. The whole process of trying to rush the return of fitness, climbing, etc only worsened it. So, I think that could be one reason why it took me longer. However, it’s not going to hurt to get another blood work done right now and I shall get it done.
As I keep visiting the events in my episode, I will definitely agree on your take on the rotations. I can’t change what happened earlier, but will definitely spend more time in the higher camps. The second aspect that I feel that needs work is my speed. I feel that I could have avoided some of this if I was faster by an hour or two. So in the current training cycle of 8-12 months, I intend to work on moving faster.
Thank’s a lot for sharing your valuable experience. I shall keep Evoke Endurance posted from time to time on this forum
Cheers!
My definition of Normal*
-Return of appetite
-Good, consistent sleep cycles
-Ability to finish low intensity strength and cardio sessions
– Recovery from the sessions.
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