Training for a 200 miler
Week whatever. Still here
I’ve let the last few weeks go without a training recap because frankly, I’ve just been enjoying life and didn’t really feel like taking the time away from it to write.
I’ve kept mileage moderate, chilling around 40 mpw while creeping up the vert. The alpine is opening and I’ve been able to pretty consistently get 10,000ft+ of gain a week and am slowly increasing my single push efforts, touching a 7,000ft session recently, a 10,000ft session soon and then a day spent hitting the Canmore Quad again where I’ll tap into around 16,000ft in a day.
The climbing legs feel strong, really strong. I find myself knocking out 4-5,000ft workouts and by the time I’ve showered and had a bite to eat after, I feel fully recovered, so thats big. I need some long day tests however to make sure my all-day fitness is there, and the quad will be the first of those, with an anticipated 15hrs or so on foot in the mountains. Mileage is going to start ramping up, the snow is finally melting down up high and it’s time to start hurting.
My biggest takeaway as of late is honestly, to just keep joy at the forefront of everything you do. On paper, I should probably be logging 30+ more miles a week than I am now, but I’d much rather have the time and energy to go to dinner with my wife, walk our dogs, enjoy the spring rainstorms in the mountains and enjoy the process. I truly don’t care what the outcome of race day is, 1st, last, DNF or other, it is the path to get there that means the most to me, and I’m letting myself feel.
I think so many people get paralyzed by their own self inflicted guard rails around training and get so buried in meaningless numbers. When I look at all the athletes I have coached over my 20 year career, the ones who have consistently performed the best, the most frequently, are the ones chasing vibes and adventures. The ones who burn out, who fail the most, who don’t even show up half the time, are the ones who overanalyze every metric, every workout, every step and burn themselves out in the process. Data matters, intention matters…but having a good fucking time matters more. And I’m having a good fucking time.
Onward, Always.