Steve Whittington is sharing his training experience with us as he prepares for a big challenge: climbing Mount Everest in March. Make sure to check out the other blog posts in this series.
I remember now. I remember the pain of training hard, except this time I am two years older and I have cranked the speed and incline level. In 2010, I was the expedition leader on a private trip to Mount McKinley in Alaska. We had a strong team and tapped the top. I trained hard for that mountain with similar goals as I have for Everest. The training was a less intense version of this sample workout below. Everest is higher, and I am older, so I must try harder. Or at least that is what I tell myself. The mountain doesn't care if I have not trained hard enough, it is not going to get easier.
So here goes:
Warm up on a vibration trainer, then move to a treadmill.
Min. 1 – Speed 3.5 –Incline 3.0 - WALKING
Min. 2 – Speed 3.6 –Incline 3.5- WALKING
Min. 3 – Speed 3.7 –Incline 4.5- WALKING
Min. 4 – Speed 3.8 –Incline 6.5- WALKING
Min. 5 – Speed 3.9 –Incline 7.5- WALKING
Min. 6 – Speed 5.0–Incline 8.5- JOGGING
Min. 7 – Speed 5.1 –Incline 9.5- JOGGING
Min. 8 – Speed 5.2 –Incline 10.5- JOGGING
Min. 9 – Speed 5.3 –Incline 11.5- JOGGING
Min. 10 , 11 & 12 – Speed between 6.0-7.0, Incline at 12.0
Min. 13, 14 & 15 Cool down, easy walk, no incline - Speed 3.0
After the treadmill, move as fast as you can (but controlled) through the following sequence
THREE times:
| Movement | Reps | Weight |
| Plank push up with row | 10 reps | 30 lb dumbbells |
| Single leg squat | 10 reps each leg | 20 lb |
| Alternating chest fly | 10 Reps | 30 lb dumbbells |
| Forward back ward lunge | ||
| w/ bicep curl | 10 reps each leg | 20 lb dumbbells |
| Bent over triceps row | 8 reps each arm | 20 lb dumbbell |
| Lateral shoulder raises | 10 reps | 20 lb dumbbell |
| Full body v-sit-ups | 10 reps | |
| AB plank poise | 1 | Hold for one minute |
| Push up with knee tucks | 10 reps |
I snivelled through this on my lunch break in 45 minutes, breaking rarely, with my hands on my knees bent over, head down, sucking in precious air. This was just one of my work outs that day, as I also rode the bike for 20 minutes and did an ab routine in the morning. Depending on the day, I will either climb for two hours or hit heavy weights in the evening (four times a week). I was so happy that this night was not one of them. But this is the type of training you must endure if you're going to reach a challenging goal like Everest.