Training for long approaches w/ gear, trad climbing
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Hey everyone, |
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A 50 pound pack seems excessive. I would expect a 50 pound pack to include camping supplies as well as the climbing stuff. |
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Take that 50lb pack, put it on your back, hop on the treadmill on max incline and start walking! |
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Oh, good catch...50 lbs was with camping supplies. Just climbing stuff is probably around 30-40 with a 3L bladder. |
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Im in a similar position, living in MN. Most of my goals are more alpine style (long approaches, long climbs, easier technically) or general mountaineering (rainier, denali etc). For me, the rough plan outlined below has allowed me to meet those goals: |
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Echo the comments above and remember, Specificity is king. you get better at hiking with a pack by hiking with a pack. Stairs, steep hill, whatever you can find. Other aerobic activity is a great idea but in my experience I feel best when I've put in more time with a pack on as the demands are different than merely running, swimming, etc. |
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Cool, thanks for the reply. I've heard some concerns about weight training, as you often add bulk and muscle mass in areas not needed as much for climbing (quads, chest, etc), making you heavier without benefiting your grip strength. Do you mostly do lower weight/high rep conditioning? |
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Hypertrophy is minimized when lifting heavy I.e high weights and low reps (3-5). I lift in addition to other training (not as much for climbing performance as to maintain balance and stave off old injuries) and don't see discernible bulk added when I am lifting heavy. Many threads on this topic. Check out Steve bechtel's book on strength training and his blog. |
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Sounds like you don't use much of your legs when you climb in the gym. Befriend a girl or somebody who climbs like a girl (usually a middle-aged man rocking Mythos, but crushing your projects in the gym), watch them climb, learn their technique. |
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Mike Flanagan wrote:Echo the comments above and remember, Specificity is king. you get better at hiking with a pack by hiking with a pack. Stairs, steep hill, whatever you can find. Other aerobic activity is a great idea but in my experience I feel best when I've put in more time with a pack on as the demands are different than merely running, swimming, etc. Remember too that there are many ways to trim pack weight for those alpine climbs . Many alpine rock routes have water enroute to the climb thus there's no need to carry a full 3l bladder when you can carry 1l and fill up as needed. Oh, and have fun!I would disagree with the comments about less benefit from running swimming etc. If your main weakness is getting "elvis leg" then running will work your calf muscles amazingly. also, varying your training keeps your body from falling into a lull and just getting used to your work out. on top of that, if you are going to train year round, many times a week, there is little chance you will maintain motivation if you are using JUST pack training as your only form (aside from actual climbing). like i said, i get the weighted pack training stairs in every week but even when I was doing long backpacking trips multiple times every month, i didnt feel nearly as good as do now, with the training plan i outline above. |
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Ted, you may also try getting on some slabby sport routes or TRs if you have any nearby. Those work the calves pretty heavily. |
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I am. :) |
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Sure Jake, I we're on the same page hence my comment that "; other aerobic activity is great"; (I do it too) but that I feel best when I shift my overall ratio to "more time with a pack on". Nowhere did I state that there's no benefit from other cardio or that I don't do other things too. I generally vary how much and what aerobic activity I do as a function of what/when I'm climbing in part for some of the reasons you stated re: burnout. |
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Buy the book, Training for the new alpinism. Lots of good cardio ideas for alpine climbing in there |
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Haha, for sure...now to actually find the motivation to go out and do it... |
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Here's some: whitneyzone.com/wc_notes.htm |
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I hit the gym 3-4x per week (in addition to climbing and cycling) and spend a lot of time on the stair master, which has helped me a lot on those long approaches! I'm surprised to hear you are hiking with 50lbs though, even with camping gear. Start finding ways to lighten your pack - a good start would be to bring purification tablets or a water filter to cut down on how much water you need to carry. |
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Personally, looking like Arnold would be bad, but muscle is protective & insulating, and quad muscle in particular is helpful for getting up the durn hill even if it doesn't help you stick to the wall. Hypertrophy doesn't seem like a bogeyman that deserves much worrying, for the ordinary climber. Nobody turns into Arnold accidentally. |
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Training aside, the elvis leg issue is mostly a matter of mental control, finding rest stances (rests for your legs, that is), and not over engaging your calves when climbing. Leg fitness is rarely the cause of elvis leg issues. |
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Yeah that's insane heavy - my single rack (9 cams, 2 sets of nuts, 12 alpines, long slings, cordelette, extra lockers, etc) is 9 lbs, rope (60x9.8) is a little under 9lbs, 3L of water is 6.6lb, personal stuff is 2lbs, clothing (rain shell, puffy or fleece, wind shell, hat, gloves) is 2lbs. All together, you are under 30lbs assuming you carry the rope and rack because your partner is a deadbeat. |
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Do not over do the training..... I knew somebody who can't hike at all anymore because he over trained and destroyed his knees..... |