[hafjell]

hafjell on July 21, 2020 at 1:07 pm · in reply to: Cycling Transfering #43755

A few thoughts:

1. If weight loss is the goal, wouldn’t the OP be better of hiking instead of running to save his ankles? I see a lot of fat mtn bikers with wicked strong legs who crush the descents. Same with swimming. Go to Aquatic Park in SF and see all the fat people crush very cold water swimming. Mechanical advantage on the bike and buoyancy in the water won’t transfer as well as hiking. Walk before you run.

2. Squats in the gondola! I am running up and taking the lifts down this summer to preserve joints and time. But I’m checking my phone while seated on the gondola. Perhaps I need to sneak a rock on and continue the workout.

3. I read a blog post by Gaston or his crew in which they discussed supplementing bike rides for very long days to avoid running wear and tear, This doesn’t apply, imo, to the OP. In time maybe. HE needs weight loss which will be easier weightborn. No sure he needs to try to run though. Just hike until the joints recover.

Edit: Don’t think the mental benefit of training on long rides will transfer unless you are very new to endurance sports. Given your current volume of hiking (pretty good! Remember not to beat yourself up too much emotionally.) you know what hard feels like, the temptation to quit, the temptation to take an extra day off. I think you might just be returning to running too soon for your ankle. If you can handle the hiking, keep doing it until the weight comes down.

[hafjell]

hafjell on April 21, 2020 at 11:45 am · in reply to: Extended base build #40722

Sorry for the thread jacking, but I’m in the same boat time wise. 49, live in a mountain town, have no time constraints on training except for work and family. Have had my back country season cut short and am now faced with 7 to 8 months of base building. Been running and hiking and not much else.

My question, is it safe to increase 5 to 7% every week for that time frame (except obviously every fourth week for recovery)? I imagine the last days of the week in the fall will be very long. Any problem there?

[hafjell]

hafjell on October 21, 2019 at 12:10 pm · in reply to: Fatmap #30625

Mariner,

I can’t speak to outdating. IME, it’s best to combine a number of tools as none alone are perfect.
The contour lines in CalTopo should tell you if a route cliffs out (is insurmountable), and using Google Earth to visually crosscheck for cliffs might be enough. No experience with FatMaps so can’t discuss.
Route planning with CalTopo has a really useful profile feature. After you create your route. Click on it and a window will appear. You may choose Profile or Terrain Statistics, both of which will help you understand how well planned your route is. I like Profile for the auto-calculation of elevation and distance; and terrain stats for slope angle and aspect checks. I often think my approaches/ascents are mellow enough, but the slope angle chart will prove me wrong.
Tl/dr using Google Earth in conjunction with CalTopo may compensate for the weaknesses in each.

[hafjell]

hafjell on October 21, 2019 at 10:20 am · in reply to: Fatmap #30623

I would use a combination of CalTopo and Google Earth.

[hafjell]

hafjell on October 20, 2019 at 4:37 pm · in reply to: Maintain Fitness during Treatment #30596

Thanks, Pete. Good tip on the 10% and adaptation. I’ll likely start uphill walking this week (hesitate to call it hiking at my current speed) and will keep the 10% rule in mind.

[hafjell]

hafjell on October 16, 2019 at 9:42 am · in reply to: Maintain Fitness during Treatment #30345

Thanks, Pete. Recovering from abdominal surgery on the 27th of September. I’m back to walking for exercise and even rode the bike for a mile last night. Slow and steady. We should be able to skin by Thanksgiving. I’ll do as much of that as I can tolerate.
I’m guessing you’d recommend a longer than usual transition period when the surgeon gives me the ok to train at the end of this month?

[hafjell]

hafjell on April 25, 2019 at 11:21 am · in reply to: ADS and Strength Training for Older Athletes #20989

We favor an approach that first builds General Strength before moving to the more Event Specific.

Is this sentiment incorporated into the training plans’ transition and base weeks?

[hafjell]

hafjell on April 8, 2019 at 1:30 pm · in reply to: Where do I start? #20190

Matt,

Buy the book and start training. Marathons and Ironman will give you a huge head start, but you need to begin the sport specific training.
IMO, you would be wise to purchase the training plan instead of DIYing. Very short money for what you get.
Plan a trip to the White Mountains of NH or CO or the Cascades or anywhere you and maybe your family want to go in the Alps or the lower 48 with mountains. Hire a guide for a long day in which you prioritize learning over the summit. Make it explicitly clear to both the guide and the owner of the guide service that you are there to learn, not be towed up a route. Having the guide work with you on rope systems and protection will be incredibly helpful. Especially if you can’t find a local community.
Try to find a local community. Join a rock gym and climb twice a week if possible. Find somebody who climbs trad and learn the knots and rapping from them. You need a lot of knowledge covered in Freedom of the Hills but it’s best to have a human explain it. Rock gyms aren’t a substitute for alpine terrain but you will learn how to belay, how to tie-in, the figure-8 knot, the benefits and weaknesses of belay plates vs. grigris, etc. You’ll also become accustomed to being lowered and to hanging off the ground (skills best learned indoors, imo).
Time in the mountains is the best way, but, you can buy knowledge and experience via a guide. Wisdom and judgment will not come from your wallet, however. Good luck.

[hafjell]

hafjell on April 8, 2019 at 12:30 pm · in reply to: midweek long run on mike foote's plan #20181

I’d wait for the experts to chime in, but the answers will likely depend on how long and how intense. See p. 102 of the recent TftUA. Over two hours and you’ll need 24 to 48 hours. Eating during and immediately after will help you recover as will sleep and massage.

[hafjell]

hafjell on March 26, 2019 at 7:29 am · in reply to: Soft Flask/bottle #19118

Just used Hydrapak as my main water bottle for a two week trip. No leakage but you do have to make sure you’re not packing something hard on the bite valve. I bought this one and will be purchasing more. Cool that it comes with two caps.
I did break the extended straw from the cap on the way home but I foolishly packed it between a shovel and axe. Operator error.

[hafjell]

hafjell on March 8, 2019 at 8:29 am · in reply to: How to convince partners that weight matters? #17771

I think being fit and having homogeneous partners with similar ideas for objectives is more important.

This is especially true if the objective is long and/or committing. Similar fitness and similar gear solves a few problems, including pace and distance. The race crowd can get down everything, but it’s interesting that a lot of serious backcountry descents on steep, exposed lines are done on 85+ underfoot and longer than 162…
So many good skis these days to choose from.
Edit to add: the trend is toward lighter gear. Nobody is asking for heavier skis or boots. Damper and stiffer, perhaps, but not heavier.

[hafjell]

hafjell on February 28, 2019 at 6:59 am · in reply to: Matt Fitzgerald "The Endurance Diet" #17102

You can’t go wrong with eating healthier. I can’t argue with an author I haven’t read, but if you’re hoping for gains in mountain sports which require very long days on your feet, I’d keep it simple. Train on fat, race on carbs has worked for a lot of folks here. Also, fasted training will change your body and performance. The deeper I get into training the less I want to read because most of the voices are distractions. Check in here (which is what you’re doing) for guidance, but otherwise stick to the principles in TftNA, AND learn to listen to your body and sort out what works for you.

[hafjell]

hafjell on February 25, 2019 at 7:07 am · in reply to: How Long with 15 Grade on a T-mill #16981

Jay,
I’ll let the experts weigh in, but while you must pay attention to your HRM or breathing, the minutiae of 1 degree after 1,000′ is less important. Get the 1,000′ at 15 degrees, then finish as you can.

[hafjell]

hafjell on February 21, 2019 at 7:24 am · in reply to: Newbie question #16896

Not sure I’d discount the descents. Yes, they are way less aerobically challenging than the ascents. But, you will usually have to descend in real life and so you need to get better and stronger at descending. I could care less about my descent times (used to love bombing downhill, not I’m slower to preserve joints), but I started including them in my training because it’s both important to improve at and also important to have an understanding of how quickly you travel. Even if it’s just to tell the S.O. when you’ll return. YMMV.

Also, I think 2 to 3 hours are the shortest “long” runs in some of the beginning plans. For many, 2 to 3 hours will be a lot for the body to handle even including the descent times. As with most aerobic activity, how quickly you recover will tell you how much you can add to suggested training times, but for now, I’d just trust these plans and Training Peaks, and stick to their times. It worked for me.

[hafjell]

hafjell on February 21, 2019 at 7:15 am · in reply to: Recommended mountaineering watches #16895

Thanks, Terry. Not to quibble, and not to imply it’s a deal breaker because I really do like the watch, but my Garmin worked out of the box without the above mentioned work arounds. And it worked with road bike shirts which were much tighter than my ski and running shirts, and all synthetic. Just want to be honest for the OP as he’s in the market. Also, Suunto is talking about ditching Movescount. Not ideal for me.