165 Days to Mt. Everest. Trek. Exercise Routine

Oakbrook Tower Terrace - 31 floors; (680) 6.5" steps.

Last Wednesday, I ran up 1.5 laps of Oakbrook Terrace steps. The tower is 680 steps, so I ran about 1,000 steps. From the 3rd floor (my office) to the top was done with some difficulty, but a good pace. I ran down to the 1st floor, then back to the third. LAP 1. 14 MINUTES.
I was weak, but wanted to press forward. I continued to the 14th floor, where I sat down from exhaustion & caught my breath. On my return, I met a woman who runs the stairs 7x per day. 7x! I hope to soon conquer this building multiple times within my hour lunch break.

I was impressed and inspired by the woman I met. She was an average body shape & full of positive energy. Apparently, she runs the Swallow Cliff toboggan slides on the weekends 10 - 15x. I hope to meet her again and give her a high five.

Unfortunately, I over-exerted myself and was soon taught a lesson in the importance of stretching. On my return from this great workout, I continued sitting at my desk until the end of the day. Once home, I found it hard to walk; go figure. The next morning, since I was doing better I had a 30 minute circuit workout, which focused on legs/core. After a good stretch, I drove 3+ hours to work. By the time I returned from my work trip on Friday, I could barely walk up stairs... down stairs was even worse. Saturday was brutal, but thanks to some pain meds (and a few beers last night) I feel great today! (PS. I've greatly reduced my alcohol intake to almost nothing. I have only drank when it was proper to do so.)

Though sore today, I did not let it stop me. After reading a (http://summitclimb.com/new/default.asp?vid=965&ltitle), I was inspired to continue kicking my own butt.

Today's exercise consisted of Les Mills 45 minute HIIT (High Intensity Integrated Training) workout. In the boxing portions, I upped my training to use 5lb. weights as much as possible, going down to 3lb, when I couldn't keep my arms up and I physically couldn't hold the 5lb. weight. I pushed myself. 3lbs doesn't sound like much, until you hold them in a boxing stance for 45 minutes while punching (jabs, upper cuts, blocks, etc.) A few hundred punches at shoulder level become a great workout with only a few pounds.

Once I completed the workout, I cooled down & had the urge to fully wear myself out. (Yay adrenaline & reading the inspiring article earlier!) I ran/jogged, not below an incline of 5, and averaging an incline of 8-9. I did this for about 3.2 miles at various speeds. I went for about 45 minutes and climbed about 760 vertical feet. In the back of my mind, I'm hoping to climb at least 1200 vertical feet a day on the treadmill. I have only done this one time, but it is becoming easier to reach.

None the less, I hit my pedometer all-time high of 13,000 steps. 7.72 miles. Yes, this is a small feat compared to marathon runners, but it was something I was proud to accomplish.

Now, it's Sunday night. 10pm. and time for bed. I have a long & exciting week ahead of me at work.

PS - My 175 days jumped to 165 days because we are now planning on leaving earlier for our journey. I have a porter that I have been speaking with and am looking for about $2,000 so I can book him and my flights to Kathmandu. Please consider making a donation http://paulfranklinlosesit.blogspot.com/p/everest-sponsorships.html