[jake.barber88]

Morning,

I wanted to ask if maybe my training was a bit too heavy for the base period. I’m doing the 16 week mountaineering plan and where I live in Spain, I have access to a tonne of steep hills behind my house which is where i train. I started the first week of the steep hill climbs this week and ended up with a tss score of 670. My fitness is currently at 61 (up front 54) and its pushed my form to -27. The total elevation in feet for the week was 7595 feet. I ended up doing the initial 8 weeks twice, so over 16 weeks, just to build up slower and because I was limited to my garden during COVID.

Am I overdoing it and should I maybe reduce the time training due to the elevation gains I’m doing? I just need a bit of advice as I dont want to injure myself and currently my body feels great.

Regards
Jake

Topic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous on May 25, 2020 at 2:48 pm #42045

Jake;

That answer is one that only you can answer. It must be determined by how well you are recovering between workouts. However is a handy metric that we use a lot: Keep CTL gain to less than 5/week on overage over a several week period. Jumping CTL 7 in a week is not outrageous but you might want to cut back in the next week to hold CTL steady or even let it drop 2-3 points to be sure your body has absorbed the training. I have pushed some elite athletes to 10+ CTL jumps in a week. But those were always followed by a recovery week. If you are observant you will notice what sort of weekly CTL jump you can sustain long term. Use my suggestion for a bit to see how you handle it.

Scott

[Anonymous]

Anonymous on May 27, 2020 at 10:20 am #42093

Also bear in mind that a more modest ramp rate applied over a longer timeline will outperform a higher rate that is less consistent. Similar to saving money, slow and steady wins the race.

I made the opposite mistake a lot when I started training. I was greedy, and I loved to see CTL climbing. It took several aerobic dirt naps for me to wise up. When in doubt, be conservative, and over the long-term, you’ll be fitter for it.

[jake.barber88]

jake.barber88 on May 27, 2020 at 10:28 am #42097

Thanks for both your answers. My ramp rate was going up at around 4 per week, sometimes less. It’s only now that I’ve started the base training that it’s gone up due to longer workouts.

To keep it down, would you say it would be better to shorten the length of time of each exercise? Or cut one of the exercises per week out? If so, which would you say is least important to do?

Maybe it’s the hills near me which is where the extra ramping of the rates is happening as they are all steep and I’ve gone from averaging 5000ft per week to 7500ft.

Also due to COVID and not being able to go on my planned trip to the alps in july, I wont be planning on doing anything till december if everything clears up. Would I be better off doing the full mountaineering plan twice in a year, or dragging out the transition period and base period for longer?

Thanks
Jake

[Anonymous]

Anonymous on May 28, 2020 at 9:13 am #42153

My ramp rate was going up at around 4 per week, sometimes less.

If that’s a long-term ramp rate that includes recovery weeks, then it’s on the high side. If it’s just the ramp rate for a training week, then it’s reasonable.

To keep it down, would you say it would be better to shorten the length of time of each exercise? Or cut one of the exercises per week out? If so, which would you say is least important to do?

It depends on what you’re training for. If you’re using a mountaineering plan, then I assume that the goal objective is of long duration. That being the case, I would prioritize the longer sessions, perhaps reduce the intensity, and take additional rest days.

Would I be better off doing the full mountaineering plan twice in a year, or dragging out the transition period and base period for longer?

Either would work, but for most, repeating a plan is more interesting than dragging one out.