With about 40 training weeks until the Ascent, I am working on putting my training plan together. I made some progress on this front recently.
When I started searching for training plans for the Pikes Peak Ascent, there was not much available. The two common things that I found were:
- Use a marathon training plan
- Hike/Run on Pikes Peak as much as possible
I didn’t really like either of these. I am not training for a marathon, so I don’t really want to just use a marathon training program. One of the things that I discovered during the half-marathon is that I believe I need to increase my strength. I think this will help with the fact that the Ascent is uphill and requires climbing the entire way. So while I agree that a marathon training plan will help with endurance, less time should be spent on running and more on strength training than a marathon plan would allow.
As far as getting onto Pikes Peak for training, I would also like to avoid this. I like the idea of the race being my first time climbing Pikes Peak. I have done the Manitou Incline and been on the Bar Trail, but have never hiked the entire distance from the bottom to the top. I would like the race itself to be a ‘new’ experience not just another day of training activity. However, I do intend to do some high altitude training on other mountains.
Due to these factors, I am working on combining two 18-week marathon training programs, mountain climbing, and strength training into a single 40 week plan. Details coming soon!