If your vacation plans include trekking up some of the most scenic peaks in your area or around the world, this 12-week training program can help you get there.

A few aspects of this program that make it unique:
1. It is great for the working person, as the workouts during the week are short but intense. The higher intensity workouts serve to build your strength reserve and overall work capacity. So, while the longer, slower bouts of exercise are reserved for the weekends, you will do shorter, faster activities during the week.

2. One advantage of this workout is that you can continue doing extra endurance workouts during the week. Your morning runs, your afternoon group cycle, or swim will still fit in. In this program, the weight training, fartleks, and the weekend workouts are "trekking-specific," so make sure you save time and energy for these activities. But feel free to add in extra endurance work during the week if you are already doing it and need it for your sanity.

Features of the Plan:
This multifaceted program offers a methodical, periodized approach to training. The weekly schedule of this plan addresses the body's various systems (aerobic, anaerobic, neuromuscular, endocrine, skeletal, etc), so you can train one system of the body while resting another. You will do workouts that target many critical factors that contribute to success in in the mountains, including building your aerobic and anaerobic capacity, improving your posture, increasing your strength, balance, and mobility, and targeting eccentric muscular contractions (key to descending).

What to Expect: This 12-week program is broken up into three 4-week phases that gradually build in either volume or intensity, and then decrease to allow for recovery and rebuilding. The program culminates with a "taper" that should align with the start of your trip.

What You Will Need:
1. This workout is geared towards running, but if you don't care to run, all fartleks and endurance workouts can easily be converted into walking, cycling, or skiing.
2. You will need a training backpack to which you can add weight. Each week, weight will be added and subtracted, based on the estimated weight that you will carry during your trek.
3. A small weight training area is needed, although the weight training is kept simple.
Have Questions?
Feel free to contact me at carrie@verticalpush.com. Also please feel free to visit my company's website at www.verticalpush.com for more training information.