Phase Two Training Protocols for Elbrus Race 2014

If you're curious, go back to see Phase One HERE

Elbrus Race 2013 was great fun, and I learned a lot about my own training, and the training support I did for Todd, coaching him to his 3rd place finish. I think you'll enjoy the book HERE - go check it out and read it for a great step by step account of our trip to Russia and the events of the race and qualifier, both held during stormy weather on Elbrus. I also learned a lot in discussions with and observations of Kilian Jornet, who bunked with us.

Todd Gilles and 3rd Place Trophy in the Elbrus Race 2013 Classic Race category

To repeat the stats from the Elbrus Race, during that week of the race, not counting any acclimatization hikes or runs, you will need to:

• Ascend 11,000'
• Descend 11,000'
• Speed Uphill 7 miles
• Downhill 7 miles at a decent pace
• Total 14 miles of fast hiking/walking/running

That's considering it as a weekly accumulated working volume. If you break it up into the two primary events you get:

• Ascend 3500'
• Descend 3500'
• Speed Uphill 2.5 miles
• Downhill 2.5 miles at a decent pace
• Total Single Event "Qualifier" 5 miles
• One or Two Rest Days
• Ascend 6600'
• Descend 6600'
• Speed Uphill 4.6 miles
• Downhill 4.6 miles at a decent pace
• Total Single Event "Classic" 9.2 miles

Winter Trail Running is a great way to maintain general fitness levels with some specificity

In Phase One I required that the athlete only get in the following rather simplistic base preparation work (GPP):

• 4500' of weekly vertical ascent
• 2 Strength Training days per week of high volume/low weights
• 2 "Mountain Climber" calisthenics sessions per week

For Phase Two I suggest the following:

• 8,000' of weekly vertical ascent (mix of inside/outside)
• 1 Session of Anaerobic/Lactate Threshold cardio training per week
• Total Weekly Mileage of 10 miles (divided between all workouts)
• 2 Strength Training days per week of high volume/low weights

We're going to plan for the first four weeks of this training cycle. For a slightly more lengthy explanation of the Anaerobic Threshold Training protocol check out the article HERE. In a nutshell, unless you know your exact current Lactate Threshold based on a recent test, start with the overly simplified formula here:

(220 - AGE) x .85 is your lower limit Heart Rate Target
(220 - AGE) x .90 is your upper limit Heart Rate Target

There are more complicated formulas available if you cruise the internet but for most practical purposes, by the time you do the math, you'll end up within 1-2 BPM for your Heart Rate Target Zone. For the first 4 weeks of Phase Two, I'd like the athlete to use a basic simple regular treadmill to do their Anaerobic Threshold training on.

• Set it to 1% inclination/grade.
• Spend 15:00 warming up to your Heart Rate Target Zone
• Stay in that zone by adjusting your speed up and down as needed
• Week One: 20:00 in Target Zone
• Week Two: 40:00 in Target Zone
• Week Three: 60:00 in Target Zone
• Week Four: 80:00 in Target Zone

Suunto Ambit 2S on the arm of my treadmill for easy access

I set my Heart Rate Monitor Watch on the handle of the treadmill right in front of my face so I can always see it. If your watch has alarm zones you can set it, but it doesn't work well for me. Glancing at the watch display every twenty seconds or so does. Learn your own body and stay in that zone. As you get more experience at it you should be able to pretty much set it and forget it up to the last few minutes or so when you might have to drop it drastically to stay in that zone.

Do not worry about speed and elevation targets during your Anaerobic Threshold Training. Just stay in that zone at 1%. That might be anywhere from 3.0 - 8.0 MPH depending on your own zone limits and age and weight and aerobic base, etc.

Movescount Heart Rate Graph

Our goal in this is to develop the ability to know our upper endurance limits intimately so we can stay in that zone and conserve energy that will translate into speed during the event. The graph above is from the Suunto Movescount site, and shows my 85 minutes in my Heart Rate Target Zone (minus a bathroom break). Notice that near the end it was slightly more difficult to maintain the same general smoothness of the Heart Rate level as in the earlier portion of the workout.

The photo above is from my Incline Treadmill Calculator HERE showing my average stats from this workout. A vertical of 432' and VAM of 79 is not very impressive, from an Elbrus Race point of view, but this workout is separate from my vertical workouts and is to pound my Anaerobic Threshold, not to train for running or for racing.

For now, I recommend that the athlete stick to the recommendations for strength training:

• Deadlift: 4 x 25 
• Squat: 4 x 25 
• Bench Press: 4 x 25  
• Lat Pulldown: 4 x 25 
• Hanging Leg Lift or Knee Raise: 6 x 15 
• Roman Chair Ab Curl: 4 x 25 
• Back Hyper Extensions: 4 x 25 

I would love to add in a few other things, but I think when we're training primarily for an endurance event we only want to work the strength training exercises that will directly affect the outcome of the event. This isn't a great time for Olympic Lifts, Bodybuilding, or Power Lifting Protocols. Randomness might be a detriment at this point. While in the previous Phase One training cycle I didn't care much what the weights were that you used, in this Phase Two I'd like to see if you can maintain about 5% progress from session to session. This might be very difficult.

Let me know if you need any assistance in trying this training cycle here or on Facebook - I'm happy to offer tips and suggestions. In four weeks stay tuned for Phase Three training when we rock the vertical.

Hurts So Good!

I knew the first few weeks of training were going to be a bit of trial and error, but necessary to evaluate my limitations. After another week or so, I think I have a little bit better understanding- but it did come with a cost. Minus the two days I was down sick (very grateful it wasn't a whole week, like others with the same flu!) training was mostly treadmill and strength training.

Saturday, I took a hike up Big Baldy, a 3.5 mile hike (5.6 km.) with 1000 ft. (304 m.) of vertical gain per mile. It's a nice little mountain located on the west side of Mount Timpanogos and a jumping off point for the Everest Ridge route that's particularly popular in winter here (Utah). While the distance wasn't trying, the challenge for me was the elevation gain. I greatly underestimated how weak I was from being sick; it took me two full days to recover. What I'm observing is that my recovery isn't as quick as it was before I got sick- something I'll have to take into consideration from now on. That judgement lapse aside, it's hard to have a bad day in the mountains! The view was amazing and well worth the effort. While the distance is shorter than the Elbrus Race, this trail will work well while I'm getting back into shape.

To change things up this week, I've returned to one of my old favorites: bleachers! As a bobsledder, I would get giddy thinking about running bleachers in the summer. I just LOVED the challenge; sweat dripping down your body, muscles pumped and music booming in your ears. I love the solitude of an empty stadium, full of promise and potential victory for those who are willing to put in the effort. To me, it's inspiring. There are tons of workouts possible when running bleachers, everything from sprints and plyometrics to long slow endurance training. Some I've picked off websites and added to and some I've been doing for so long, I hardly remember who I learned them from. You can cut down the warm-up time if needed, my warm-up's are a bit longer, since it takes me longer than average to get warm.

Here's one of my favorite plyo workouts to get the quads and glutes burning:
- 10-15 minute warm-up jog or speed walk
- 5 minutes easy bleacher jog (up and down)
- Jump up each step, one at a time with two feet together until you reach the top. If you want to kick it up a notch, drop your rear with each landing into a formal squat. Keep an eye on your knees and don't let them go over your toes.
- Side squats across the top to the next section of steps
- Easy jog back down
- Side shuffle back to your starting point
- Repeat

For endurance and base strength, here's the workout I did this morning (remember, I'm a beginner right now, so feel free to ramp it up):
- 10-15 minute warm-up jog or speed walk
- 5 minutes easy bleacher jog
- Walking lunges up each step until you reach the top, concentrating on getting that perfect angle to engage the glutes. If the steps are too small, you may want to skip a step to get the right angle. Keep chest up and resist using momentum- allow your legs to do all the work. 
- Jog across to the next set of stairs
- Sprint down, concentrating on keeping abs tight and body centered. Think, 'fast feet'. If you have balance issues or are feeling extra fatigued, use your common sense with the speed.
- Repeat

With so many plyometric exercises available, there are a ton of variables that can be worked into a good bleacher workout. Today, I followed my workout with some more treadmill time, half a protein shake, tuna and a lot of water. With recovery being my biggest enemy, it's vital that I give my body all the advantage I can.