12 Hour Stair Climb Training

12 Hour Stair Climb Training 

Week #2

Workout: 2 Hour Stair Climb
Goal: Stay at a nice comfortable pace I think I can carry for 12 hours, for two hours. 
Location: Springfield Hilton (32 floors)

With only 12 weeks to go until the big event I put in a 2 hour stair climb workout to start increasing my long climb.  2 hours is the longest climb sessions Ive done and Ive only done that 3 times, once in San Diego for the Towerthon and the other two times at the Hilton as practice climbs. A 2 hour climbing sessions is tough both mentally and physically but Im to the point where I feel I can manage it pretty easily without and drastic fatigue. My next test will be a century bike ride (100miles) then following that up with an hour climb at the Hilton. I am doing this to fatigue the legs and then climb an hour on tired legs. Ive done numerous century rides in the past and there is no way around it, Im tired. In two weeks Ill up it to 4 hours and I feel that will be a true test of how Ill feel. Im curious how I am going to feel around 3 hours of effort once I start tapping into my reserves fuel wise. I equate it to the 22 mile mark in the marathon where you have used your bodies fuel sources up and the crash comes. Stairs are obviously different that running but thats why Im slowly increasing my long climb to where that wall is.

*** Elevators where pretty slow in the second hour, ran into a lot of people but it made for good conversation to break up the time and take my mind off of what I was doing. People always see me in the elevator sweating and catching my breath and leaning on a wall and always as me, "You just get done running?" No Im climbing the stairs. Which results in an always odd look like Im crazy. One lady who was heading down stairs to workout out in the hotel gym asked me where the gym was and she said Ill follow you. I told her I was climbing the stairs. You're doing what. I told her she should try it but she was a no go.

Again, I know I need average at least 9 x's an hour for 12 hours, 9x12=108 plus those few extra climbs that I squeeze in with the extra minutes at the end of every hour. If I can get 10-11 times in each of these hour sessions with a longer elevator I believe I can accomplish an average of 9 x's an hour because I know there will be some hours where I fall of pace from fatigue so I am planning for that. Ill be ready thought as best I can.

Anyway here are my splits for today:

Splits:  
Average splits for the 2nd hour where faster but the elevators were slower.
Hour #1            Hour #2     
1.)  4:10             12.)  3:56
2.)  4:06             13.)  3:54
3.)  4:03             14.)  3:56
4.)  4:03             15.)  3:58
5.)  4:01             16.)  3:48
6.)  4:02             17.)  3:49
7.)  4:01             18.)  3:49
8.)  3:52             19.)  3:50
9.)  3:50             20.)  3:47
10.)  3:54           21.)  3:37
11.)  3:52            10 x's
11 x's