[mojolohberg]

Hi,

I´m living in the Alps and my training is basically just doing what I want to do and for which sports the conditions are good. So at the moment I do not follow a trainin plan because I did not really have a goal. The past two year I was following a plan with the goal of running an ultra-marathon (100km, 5500mtrs elevation gain) – so I assume my endurance level is ok.
Now I´m climbing approximately 2-3 times a week, go running once a week and I go ski touring and north faces on the weekends. A ski tour with 1500-2000mtrs of uphill is normal and so I collect between 2000 and 6000mtrs of uphill a week- depending on the conditions. I do not do any strength training!

Now I decided to go to Bolivia in August and I wanted to climb some 6000mtr peaks. Since I like the technical aspect of alpinism not just on normal routes but also on steep faces and more technical ascents – so maybe AD (assez difficile) or D difficile). Further I want to push my climbing onsight level from 5.10c to 5.11a till August.

What is the best way to plan my training in the next weeks? Can I e.g. directly start with the Base Period Weeks 9-16 (as in Training for the new Alpinism) since I´m doing a lot of sports anyway or is it smarter to make a short transition period and also a shortened base period? Should I also include muscular endurance? I know it´s a really important part but for ascents I often have a heavy backpack or I carry skis, skiing boots, sleeping bag, etc. so I´m wondering if this can replace specific training?

Thanks a lot for answering and also to the authors for writing the book,
Moritz

Topic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous on May 12, 2018 at 12:08 pm #9822

I think the first question you need to answer is: Do you want to follow a structured training plan?

At the moment, it seems like your priorities are more recreational (going when conditions are good, etc). In a structured training plan, you may have to make frequent choices in favor of training over something more recreation-specific. In the long-term, structured training will have greater benefits, but there’s a recreational cost in the short-term.

Have you read Scott & Steve’s book, Training for the New Alpinism? In the book are two training templates, one for general mountaineering and one for technical alpine climbing. It sounds like the latter option would work for you.