More Training & why one should train with a backpack

Sunday Training

Training never ends. As we used to say in Navy boot camp, "the only easy day was yesterday."

Good training sessions over the past two days. On Sunday, as predicted, rain swells cancelled out surfing. So, I took to pack training. This involves treadmill work while carrying a pack. An example will help underscore the importance of this type of training.

As we also said during my Navy days, "train like you fight." During my training class with AMS on the Ruth Glacier back in 2002, we practiced many of the skills necessary for the Denali expedition. One of the training days involved breaking camp at 6,000 feet and carrying all gear (except some supplies cached at base camp) up a few thousand feet to base camp. When I put on my pack, I instantly had a feeling of regret.

You see, back in Talkeetna, the town from which all expeditions depart, it seemed like a really good idea to carry some personal items to have on the glacier. Despite concern from one of the guides, I put in a hardcover journal and a 200 page book on Alaskan history. I pictured myself reading around the camp stove and reflecting on the days events in my journal. In case my total naivety was not completely clear, I also had amenities like a full tube of toothpaste, a large bottle of saline solution for my contacts, and other items whose weight I had not really considered.

Well, I should say, not really considered until I was about 1,000 feet above base camp, on back-country skis, carrying a 63 pound pack and dragging a 40ish pound sled. Being in a four-person rope team for maximum cravasse safety, travling at my own pace was not an option. To use another Navy term (probably not for the last time), I was the, "weak link in the anchor chain." I dragged the team as the others crept before and after me (I was second in the chain).

To give an example of the energy I put out to carry that pack, I was sweating profusely to the point where my entire capilene long sleeve short was soaked with sweat. My cap was completely wet. My Gortex shell was fully unzipped, the vents were wide, and my bib was unzipped down below my waist

The temperature was 17 degrees.

The team ground to a halt at around 8,000 feet and we set up camp well short of our goal. To top it all off, the history book was boring and, anyway, it was far too cold to lounge around camp to read. My pen would not work outside the tent, so I had to write the journal in my sleeping bag.

So, as a result, I walked the treadmill for 60 minutes at a 1.8 mph pace with a 20 pound weight stuffed into my day pack. I have to do this at the apartment gym, since 24 Hour Fitness officially frowns on this practice. I should be hiking outside anyway.

Monday Training

I moved my strength training from Tuesday to Monday to avoid travel plans tomorrow. My workout started with the standard cycle of 20 min, followed by stretches, then Bench, Bicep, Lats (standing and kneeling) and Military in that order.

Monday's Dinner

If you're still with me, then allow me to brag about this evening's meal. My caloric intake has caught my attention, since I do not seem to have lost much weight in this process. this fact was quite embarassing when I put down 185 pounds on my expedition application only to have my physcian weigh me in a 190 during my recent physical. But, I digress...

So, tonight I cooked up the type of meal that I wished I had the discipline to eat every evening. Dinner consisted of 9 ounces of turkey breast @ 225 calories; 8 ounces of broccoli @ 75 calories; 1 slice of whole wheat bread at 110 calories; A grand total of 410 calories. Oh, I also ate two bannanas and one orange, so add in whatever calories that makes.

I'm sure to be starving tomorrow morning when I get up!

Denali Training Regimen

Today, Saturday, is one of the three weekdays I've set aside for strength training. The schedule is designed to replicate motions I expect to find on the expedition.

Like every exercise day, I start with 20 minutes of cycling, which gets my heart rate to 110 bpm. I follow this with leg stretches - hamstrings, gluts, hip flexors, and quads - holding each position for 30 seconds. Floor bench exercises are next. Lying down with feet up on an exercise ball, raise off the floor and hold for ten seconds. Do 10 sets.

For strength exercises, I subscribe to the theory of low weight and high reps.

Bench exercises, where I do 3 sets of 30 reps with 32.5 pound weights, kick off the cycle. In between sets, I do arm curls with 3 sets of 20 reps with 32.5 pound weights. On the incline bench, raised to 45 degrees, I do 3 sets of 15 reps with 15 pound weights. Building on these sets, Building snow walls and igloos will be demanding and these will help. Miltary press comes next. This is good for working with hands overhead, most obviously in crevasse self-rescue. I do 3 sets of 30 reps with 10 pound weights.

Triceps come into play when traveling with ski poles. Two exercises are helpful: The first involves kneeling before the weight stack and pulling down from overhead to the stomach. This replicates standing up with a heavy pack, which I expect to be 60+ pounds. The second relates more to using ski poles during glacier travel on show shoes or skis. I do 3 sets of 30 reps with a 40 pound stack. Then, standing, I do 3 sets of 30 reps with the same 40 pound stack.

I finished today off with a 35 minute treadmill.

Tomorrow is Sunday, which means it's time for surfing. That is, if rain storms don't turn the ocean into a polluted mess.

Denali Research

There is a tremendous amount of research material available for my study of this expedition. Given that I have signed up with Alaskan Mountaineering School (AMS) for the climb, I first read AMS founder, Colby Coombs' book, "Denali's West Buttress: A Climber's Guide to Mount McKinley's Classic Route." This book is a must for all West Buttress climbs.

The second book I read is "Denali Climbing Guide" by R.J. Secor. Secor describes all known and as yet unclimbed routes. Also an excellent preparation resource.

I've been studying books on cold injuries. One of the best books, for it's scientific discussion of such injuries, is "Hypothermia, Frostbite and Other Cold Injuries" by Gordon Giesbrecht and James A. Wilkerson. Another relevant book, and much more readable, is "Surviving the Extremes" by Kenneth Kamler, M.D. The author details the human body's reaction to extreme environments. It's great for incorporating high-altitude preparation into my training program.

I also recommend, "Knots for Climbers" by Craig Luebben. From my training course with AMS in 2002, I learned the importance of securing people and things with a set of key knots. Remember that mountaineers must be able to tie these knots in some of the worst conditions, which Mt. Denali is only too happy to provide. I practice tying these knots with my overmitts. this sounds impossible, but I witnesses my AMS guides do this on the Ruth Glacier.

Denali 2008 expedition

Hello. This is the first posting in the Blog I created to document and publish my preparation for the 2008 Mt. Denali (Mt. McKinley) expedition departing May 6th, 2008 from Talkeetna, Alaska.