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.

Elbrus Race 2014 Tentative Schedule Posted

I recently discussed the Elbrus Race 2014 Schedule with the organizer. It's great to see the schedule up so early. Here's the itinerary as posted on the website [CLICK HERE].

IX international Elbrus Race program :

Date	Days	Day's program
06.09.2014	day 01	Flight arrival to Min Vody. Transfer to Baksan Valley, Azau station. Accommodation in the Hotel Elba.
07.09.2014	day 02	Acclimatization walking nearby. Accommodation in the Hotel Elba.
08.09.2014	day 03	Transfer to Azau lift station. The opening of the competition. Going up to refuge "Barrels" ~3710m. Night at refuge "Barrels"
09.09.2014	day04	Qualifying speed climb from Barrels hut to the Pastukov rocks, 4800 m.
10.09.2014	day 05 (full moon at 15:00 pm)	Relax day. Night at the refuge "Barrels"
11.09.2014	day 06	Speed Climb of Mt. Elbrus West 5642 m. "Classic" from hut Barrels (3710) & "Extreme" from Azau 2400m Descent from Barrels to the Valley
12.09.2014	day 07	spare day for the Race or Awards Ceremony at the morning & The farewell party at the evening
13.09.2014	day 08	Transfer to airport. Flight from Min Vody..

The organizer asked for my opinion about the sensitivity of doing the race on the 11th (9/11) and whether we should do it on the 12th. I replied that if we did it on the 12th we should extend the itinerary to allow for a run on the 13th in case of bad weather. Otherwise we could do a memorial service on the 11th before the run and then commemorate wold brotherhood and cooperation with the International Elbrus Race.

Race Organizer Nik and I in the van on the way to the Tram Station

How do you feel about this issue? Should we go ahead or wait a day? I'll pass on your thoughts to the organizer.

Elbrus Race Treadmill Training Example

After my article about Treadmill Training Guidelines, I thought it would be a good idea to include one of my own treadmill training sessions as an example. Yesterday I ran outside. It was cold and windy, especially on the return trip. I went a little over 2 miles up the road and turned around. I tried to stay consistent in my speed each way, slower up and faster down. We got over 3' of new snow in Summit County Colorado last week, and it's packing down slowly. Though my favorite route on Keystone Gulch Road is often used by snowcat and snowmobiles for the resort employees and Ski Patrol at the resort, their tracks weren't all that solid yet. I was leaving 3-6" deep tracks in the snow, with my toes digging in quite a bit on the push-off. It was made a bit worse because yesterday morning I did a high volume deadlift workout with 10 sets of 10 for my working sets, followed by 6 sets of 10 assisted pullups. I really felt my glutes while running.

Trail Running in loose snow is a heck of a workout

Today I planned on a treadmill workout. I planned on averaging over 1000 VAM over the course of the workout. I chose 28% elevation and cruised along gently over the first 20 minutes working my way up past 2.0 MPH. Then I did some long intervals at 3.0 mph. Finally I felt hot enough that I did 6 intervals of 1:00 at 4.0 MPH with 1:00 at 2.0 MPH rest. At the end of that I did a couple of minutes at 2.0 MPH and 5 or so minutes at 3.0 MPH, 2.0 MPH to rest, and then one more interval at 4.0 MPH. I spent the remainder of the 64 minutes at 3.0 MP

Movescount reporting from my Suunto Ambit 2 S showing obvious intervals

I was shooting for 3500' on the display, though I know that the NordicTrack Incline Treadmills under-report the elevation stats as you increase the elevation. I have mentioned this a time or two or more in various blog and Facebook posts. At 3500' of elevation I shut down the treadmill and got off to rest, keeping the watch going for a few minutes to record my recovery. I think it's interesting to see how long my body takes to slow down the heart rate depending on my interval volume. Note too that this treadmill sits at a tad over 9300' in elevation.

NordicTrack Incline Treadmill Display after my interval training

I used my Incline Treadmill Calculator CLICK HERE to run the numbers from the console. They were right on with my plan. It's kind of fun to do complicated time and distance and speed math while cranking along at over 160 BPM heart rate and get your VAM goal pretty much right on.

My Incline Treadmill Calculator Shows my Elevation Gain and VAM

Here are the stats in text format:

Time: 64:27
Distance: 2.578
Incline: 28%
Elevation Gain: 3811.32'
Average MPH: 2.4
Average Pace: 25:00
Vertical/Hour: 3548'
Vertical/Minute: 59.14'
VAM: 1081.5

In the context of Elbrus Race, that is roughly equivalent to doing a one hour Qualifier. Though there is no award given for the Qualifier, that's definitely good enough to place. In the context of training in Colorado that's good enough for a one hour Grays or Quandary, both of which I've done in 1:30. My intermediate goal this summer is to beat 1:20 for both.

If you want to make the jump to doing VAM greater than 1000 the treadmill is a reasonably safe environment and forces you to keep your foot turnover rate high enough. You can also shoot to improve your steep vertical "running" technique. At 28% and 4.0 mph and a foot-strike cadence over 160 (I actually counted during my intervals) your heels never touch the belt. I wore New Balance minimalist shoes for this workout to improve my plantar strength. I have worn them on my Mount Royal hill-climbs, but have yet to wear them on Quandary or Grays.

So that's probably a lot more than you needed to know. Share your thoughts with me about how you could incorporate this type of training into your program.

Elbrus Race Treadmill Training Guidelines

Calculate your training paces for an incline treadmill based on VAM

VAM is the Vertical Ascent in Meters per hour. For the Qualifier, Classic and Extreme Races, a 1000 VAM will get you a winning finish, based on current course records. A VAM of 600 will get you a Top Ten finish in these events. 

25 minutes at 36% training for Elbrus Race. Later that day I did run/walk intervals at 12%

I put together a spreadsheet showing the VAM for a variety of speeds and inclines on a treadmill. The left-most column is the % of Elevation Incline, which for most treadmills adjusts up to 15%. Remember that this is the percentage of a mile that you would be going upward at that angle. Example: 10% incline would get you 528' higher at the end of a mile. 40% incline would get you 2112' higher at the end of a mile. That's almost a half mile per mile. Treadmills by Freemotion/Nordictrack and a few others will go that steep.

The row at the top is the VAM, from 200 to 1000. For Elbrus Race training that's generally close enough. Notice that at 3% you have to be going really fast to get a VAM over 400. When you get to 6% it's a bit more real, though most people who run on treadmills would be pretty hard pressed to be doing 6:00 miles (10 MPH) to get in their 1000 VAM.

There's also great value in running outside in the snow in spikes at 9% average grade at altitude

For those without access to a steep incline treadmill, going 4 MPH at 15% is the best way to get in your 1000 VAM. It's not sports-specific to the Elbrus Race, but it's a great workout. If you want to be training in a more specific manner, you'll have to get onto an incline treadmill at 30% or greater and do your steady state cardio at 2 MPH and keep that up with a low heart rate for a couple hours at a time.

% Incline/VAM	200	400	600	800	1000
3	4.14	8.28	12.43	16.57	20.71
6	2.07	4.14	6.21	8.28	10.36
9	1.38	2.76	4.14	5.52	6.90
12	1.04	2.07	3.11	4.14	5.18
15	0.83	1.66	2.49	3.31	4.14
18	0.69	1.38	2.07	2.76	3.45
21	0.59	1.18	1.78	2.37	2.96
24	0.52	1.04	1.55	2.07	2.59
27	0.46	0.92	1.38	1.84	2.30
30	0.41	0.83	1.24	1.66	2.07
33	0.38	0.75	1.13	1.51	1.88
36	0.35	0.69	1.04	1.38	1.73
39	0.32	0.64	0.96	1.27	1.59
40	0.31	0.62	0.93	1.24	1.55
Top 10
Record

Goal Setting

I've always had a passion for goal setting, even as a young child. For me, there's nothing like the satisfaction of crossing something really difficult off my list. In the last few days, I've had more than a few friends ask me about my goal setting methods, so I thought I'd make it the subject of my post today.

I want to clarify first, that goals don't have to be about physical achievement alone. My own yearly list is a spattering of spiritual, physical and intellectual goals, as well as goals we've set as a family unit. I know every person is different, but for me, achieving my goals has more to do with proper planning/preparation and less to do with the difficulty of the goal. I set large, yearly goals with smaller benchmarks to keep me on track. In addition, I also set weekly goals aimed at reaching the next benchmark. When I set a goal, I follow the 'SMART' method (I'm not sure of the original author):
S- Specific
M- Measurable
A- Attainable
R- Realistic
T- Timely (include a specific deadline)

For the most part, it's been a bit of a trial and error process. Saying that you'd like to eat healthier is well intentioned, but how do you know when your goal has been met? To make the goal more specific, your smaller weekly goals can include something like, this: In bed by 9pm, replace all sugary drinks with water etc. This specificity makes it much easier to measure your success; either you were in bed by 9pm, or you weren't. Simple.

Attainable goals can be hard to decipher, and this is the area where some of my friends have experienced frustration. This is where your imagination comes into play, and some reflection and meditation may be in order. Remember, that if you're setting a large goal, it will be necessary to set smaller milestone goals to get you there one step at a time. You will be amazed at what you can accomplish if you take it one step at a time. It can also be very encouraging to have evidence of your progress. Inexperience can be intimidating, but remember that those with experience are usually very willing and excited to share their knowledge. Never be afraid to ask for help and opinions.

As you get into the habit of setting and attaining goals, you will discover that you are capable of more than you ever imagined, but you will also find your limitations. Don't let that be a discouragement, but a nudge in a different direction. Make sure the goal is realistic, based on your finances/family responsibilities and take into account any physical restrictions. Personally, as a rule of thumb, I think of something really hard that I should be able to achieve if I work my derriere off, and then up the ante again until I have one foot in crazy. But that's just me.

All of your goals should have a specific timetable, even if it's purely a new year's resolution. You need to have a deadline that will keep you from hitting the snooze bar at 5am. Believe me, if you're not fully committed, that bed gets comfier with each day that passes in those dreadful first two weeks. And they ARE dreadful. Tell yourself before you go to bed that your workout is non-negotiable, I've even been known to lay in bed at night and repeat, "I will wake up with my alarm, I WILL wake up..."

Establish a routine until it becomes habit. Right after I had an emergency delivery with my third child, my body was a mess. Some days, working out was just impossibly painful. On the days that I needed to rest, I still went through the motions of getting my workout gear together and going to the gym, but I would sit in the sauna or hot tub instead of working out. I knew that I had to keep the habit of going to the gym or it would be easy to falter.

On failure... there will be goals that you do not reach. Let yourself be upset. Learn from your mistakes, but never let them drag you down. If you're looking for a reason to quit, you'll easily find one and no one will stop you. Take control. Focus on the positives instead of dwelling on the negatives. Use failures as fuel for your next endeavor or even another try at the same goal. Remember to be somewhat flexible. Life happens. Injuries happen. Family emergencies happen. This is not failure, but merely postponement. If you set your lifetime goals higher, then putting off a race to take care of responsibilities is not a setback, but a step in a more eternal direction.

I do not profess to be any kind of a professional, but hopefully these few tips should get you started in the right direction for the new year! Give yourself the chance to be surprised by your own strength.

Winter Trailrunning Training

One of my favorite training activities is trailrunning on snow. In freezing weather it's probably one of the most directly sport-specific ways to train for an event like Elbrus Race. Footing on the snow can be difficult with reduced traction on ice or deep loose snow. Running up and down hills in these conditions is great training.

From my own experience Winter trailrunning will be done at a somewhat slower pace than on smoother gravel or dirt trails. That depends on the surface of course. Some of my fastest Quandary (Colorado Fourteener) ascents were done on mostly firmly packed snow. Something that you can do on snow that you can't do on more solid surfaces is churning uphill with your feet cranking away in circles while you barely move up a steep slope. It feels a lot like riding a mountain bike uphill with your feet spinning at a 100 rpm cadence while barely making forward progress.

I usually wear spiked running shoes. I've added 3/8" #6 hex head sheet metal screws to the bottom of some Hoka One One Mafate WP (waterproof) and a pair of Hoka One One Stinson Evo. The former have about 50 miles on them, and the latter had about 240 miles on them when I spiked them. I have a pair of Salomon Spikecross CS that are a more traditional style running shoe with solid lugs and embedded carbon steel spikes. These shoes have been pretty good in the dry snow of Quandary and up the Gulch Road, but the last time I did Mount Royal in melting slush they leaked horribly and I don't know if that was coming in through the top or through leaking seams that need to be sealed. I also use a pair of Pearl Izumi Trail N2 that are not spiked. If the traction and ice is an issue I can wear microspikes with them.

I have a few different layering systems I use, including Windpro front tights and looser pants style tights, normally without baselayers unless it's below zero. On top I normally wear a baselayer top, possibly two thin ones, and a hybrid fleece/softshell jacket. I wear a thin running beanie with a baseball cap on my head and on my hands I wear shell gloves, fleece running gloves, or insulated bike gloves depending on the temperature and wind.

I have been running in the winter for about five years now, almost all at altitude in Summit County Colorado, near the ski resorts of Keystone and Breckenridge as well as the Fourteeners in the area, Grays, Torreys, and Quandary. It's an excellent way to get in shape for high peaks and I'm sure it was instrumental in my one-day climb of Orizaba with Todd, and my successful completion of the Elbrus Race 2013 Qualifier and Race, in spite of the stormy conditions.

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.