Thank you Mark and Stefan for the responses.
Mark – that makes a lot of sense! Two follow up questions:
1. If the pack weight I plan to climb with is heavier than the 15% BW currently prescribed in the weekend workouts (currently closer to 20-25% BW), should I use the higher weight? Or train across the range? I noticed the weekday endurance workouts call for heavier weight, so I’ll definitely plan to carry more those days.
2. Which brings me to question 2, probably 50% of the time I’ll only be able to do the gym based endurance workout during the week (unless I do some 200-300ft hills repeatedly here in my neighborhood as an alternative….). I should be on the intermediate plan, but all 4 progressions of that workout call for BW only, adjusting rest time and # reps with each progression. I did version #1 today and it felt pretty easy, and it was hard to push my heart rate into zone 2. Would you recommend adding some weight to help increase the intensity of the workout? I will definitely try progression #3 next time, but curious what else might be able to push my heart rate up. (For reference, I felt like I was moving fast during the movements, and completed the bulk of the workout in under 40 minutes).
Stefan – I think that’s another great use for a weight vest! It reminds me of when I train with my taller friends in rock climbing – I often challenge them to shorten their reach, even by a few inches, so that they can experience the climb for the perspective of someone much more petite (and have the extra challenge of using form/balance to extend their reach!)
I believe there are only two ‘sticky threads’ which are intended to be quick access for everyone to view (Zoom videos and intros). There are definitely themed threads throughout the forum, and I appreciate you starting the technical thread earlier today to troubleshoot watches and HRMs!
