What would be your take on this?


(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #1

So I did 80 minutes on the treadmill today, with a 15 degree (or is that 15% ?) slant… 3mph, for a 1000 calorie burn.

I’m a hiker, usually on mountains, so besides just good cardio health and fat loss, I’m basically training for my mountain trail hiking.
What I have seen in the last couple months, is that I have went from 1 mile 250 Cal workouts in which my heart rate went as high as 162… To today’s workout that as I say was an 80 min, 4 miler in which my heart rate only climbed 131 for short periods, but usually below 130.

If it were you, and you were training for endurance, would you be stepping it up to 100 or 120 min or would you increase the speed to force a higher heart rate ?

I wish I could go steeper than 15 degrees… Or be wearing a 40 lb pack like I do in the field…
Not trying to be a speed freak. Prefer to be a non stop bulldozer…

Your thoughts or suggestions plz.


(Bunny) #2

Do you have a Target Zone?

E.g. “…220 subtracted from your age? So for a 50-year-old, maximum heart rate is 220 minus 50, or 170 beats per minute. …” …More

Note: the example above may be sugar burner ratios? (i.e. the heart can burn fat directly as fuel)


(Trish) #3

I would do the same workout and add your 40 - pound pack to simulate a more realistic climb.


(PSackmann) #4

I would do a combination, at least one day per week should be your distance, so extend that one, even at a slower pace. The other two or three days are your aerobic capacity. On those days, keep time shorter and “play” with the speeds and/or the incline. Variable paces will increase your heartbeat for a short period of time and improve your overall performance. Reminder, if you’re training to hit the trails, the treadmill reacts differently than the ground. At least one of your training days should be on the trail or on the road, so you’ll strengthen the small muscles in your legs and core that help balance on uneven terrain. Those muscles come in handy when climbing up and over roots, and can prevent ankle sprains.
When is your trip?


#5

Trade your treadmill for a squat rack! Hiking up mountains is more about strength, you want your legs to laugh at the work needed to constantly push your heavy/weighted body upwards. Something tells me you’re already very good at walking forward, so it’s the pushing up with weight that needs the improvement for a constant beating up the side of a mountain, treadmills won’t mimic that. Being the bulldozer requires pushing some steel around. Constant long cardio will pull muscle off you, which is the opposite of what you need. Also, don’t take the numbers on cardio eq to literally, they’re notoriously wrong.


(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #6

I guess not really. But 170 seems crazy high to me. At 160 my heart felt like it would pound out of my chest…


(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #7

I would too if I had the treadmill at my house… But I’d feel pretty goofy walking into Planet Fitness with my 40 lb backpack on :smiley: lol


(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #8

This sounds correct. And of course keeping it variable is much closer to what I’ll experience outdoors, as the trails go from mostly flat, to very steep, and all in between.

I used to purposely end my endurance sessions on the treadmill mill, by cranking up the speed for the last 5 minutes, to intentionally jacking up my heart rate… I’d call it my home Sprint :slightly_smiling_face:


(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #9

Probably more great advice. Thank you. I used to do some squat excercises before my back injury 5 years ago.
My thighs, which you really can’t see in any of my fitness pics, were 29", and as hard as wood.
I’m sure the squatting helped, but back then I was climbing outdoors hills / mountains 3-5 days a week… On 1 to 8 hour climbs… With typically a 1 hour weightlifting session before I left the house…

Interestingly, after starting Keto 2 months ago, and losing 30 lbs, I’m starting to uncover some muscle definition in my thighs :slightly_smiling_face: I guess I haven’t lost all of it. :slightly_smiling_face: …or getting a little of it back.


(Trish) #10

But it’'s a judgment free zone lol. People will just be jealous of your abilities. Tell them you’re training for kilamanjaro and watch their eyes go wide. :smile:


(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #11

And then Everest ! :smiley: Lol