It takes a lot to break me out of an exercise routine. I tend to find something that works for me and then stick with it for years. I also don’t tend to be very goal-oriented with my training. Only once have I followed a plan (for half marathon training). I’ve changed things around because of pregnancy, moving to a new part of the city, and now because of Covid19.
Since gyms have been closed for the better part of the past year, I’ve felt like my exercise has been extra haphazard. First I was so overwhelmed by what was going on that I didn’t do much. Then my gym started offering Zoom versions of the classes I used to take there. Zoom HIIT, strength, and core classes in my garage plus a couple of runs per week became my new routine. It was pretty convenient to roll out of bed and right into my workout clothes for a class in my house, but the virtual versions of my favorite workouts just weren’t the same. I found myself getting rather bored and plateauing in my running as well. Then I saw a Facebook add for Uphill Athlete’s first ever all female training group and knew I had to sign up.
I had heard of Uphill Athlete through various friends. I knew they had a reputation for dishing out effective training for mountaineering, climbing, and skiing. Their coaches are all accomplished uphill athletes themselves and I already owned the book that started it all. Steve House and Scott Johnston’s Training for the New Alpinism is an excellent resource for everything you need to know to train for the mountains.
I did a little bit of research, figured the program didn’t cost any more than the gym membership that I wasn’t really using anyway, and signed up. I am more than halfway through the twelve week program and I am really enjoying the rhythm of the workout style and routine, not to mention seeing results in my fitness.
What’s so great about this program?
One of the primary tenets of Uphill Athlete training, as described in Training for the New Alpinism, is the importance of training at a relatively low heart rate. A high training volume below your aerobic threshold trains your heart, lungs, and muscles to work efficiently for long periods of time. This is exactly what we need to climb mountains, run long distances, and ski tour without burning out.
Because of the importance of the aerobic threshold (Aet) as a training benchmark, the U.A. training program started with an Aet test. Just this test was a significant challenge for many athletes in the group, myself included. With lots of help from instructional videos, blog posts, and our coaches, we each had to run (or walk) either on a treadmill or on a relatively flat course outside for one hour at what we thought was probably our Aet heart rate. The Aet feels like a pace you could maintain for hours while breathing easily enough to hold a conversation. You can see U.A.’s description of the threshold and the test here.
I’m not normally much of a numbers person when it comes to fitness. I had to do the Aet test twice because the first time my run was cut short. After two attempts, though, it was pretty cool to see the numbers work out the way the coaches said they would. I had a pretty good idea that my AeT was around 150bpm based on previous runs so I targeted that heart rate with my warm up. Lo and behold, the test pinned my AeT at 150bpm. That number isn’t set in stone, however, on days when I’m tired or extra sore I can feel that my threshold is lower.
The Female Uphill Athlete training program isn’t all about the numbers. Participants and coaches sign in to a bi-weekly zoom call about various topics that are especially relevant to female mountain athletes. Rebecca Dent, U.A.’s nutritionist, was a guest speaker in one of those zoom sessions. She was fantastic and answered all kinds of great questions about sports nutrition specific to women. The coaches – Carolyn Parker, Alison Naney, and Maya Seckinger – are amazing resources on everything from recovering from injuries, training through hormonal cycles, and balancing outdoor pursuits with everyday life. Athletes in the training program have access to a private Facebook group where we can ask questions of each other as well as the coaches. It’s been really cool to see what all these amazing women from around the world are up to. There are ski mountaineers, runners, and women pursuing big mountain objectives like the Seven Summits. My own training hikes in the Marin Headlands seem incredibly tame compared to what some are able to do in their mountainous backyards.
My results
The program isn’t over yet, but I have definitely seen improvement in my running, lower body strength, and core strength. We’ve been using the Chamonix Mountain Fit series of video workouts as part of the training program. These workouts are an excellent progression of challenging sequences that focus on lower body and core strength to benefit climbers, skiers, and runners. I can do moves from these workouts that I couldn’t do in the beginning and I can feel the difference in my running form since I’ve strengthened a bunch of micro-adjustment muscles.
As far as aerobic fitness goes, I am consistently running at a lower heart rate at the same speed, which seems like a good thing. I haven’t played too much with running faster while staying below my AeT but, in theory, I can. I have never been a fast running so that part may never improve. My endurance, however, is definitely increasing. Running for an hour totally wiped me out at first but now I can’t imagine running for less than an hour at a time.
I was signed up for a 35k trail run next month but the date was just changed to November, leaving me quite a bit more time to prepare. Maybe I will try to find something else to run in the meantime.
I plan to sign up for another round of the Female Uphill Athlete group training program when this one ends next month. This time around I think I’ll be ready for the more challenging training program they offer (I was in the basic plan this time) and I can’t wait to see where it takes me!
