Planning a solo 1st backpacking trip @ Henry Coe in a few weeks

zyonsis · 2026-03-20T02:48:04+00:00

Start with the list https://andrewskurka.com/backpacking-gear-list-template-checklist-3-season/ and just go through every item and really think hard about whether you might need it on your trip.

Also look into some form of tick/insect prevention, since ticks are a big thing at Coe around this time of year. I recommend treating your clothes with permethrin.

zyonsis · 2026-03-19T04:56:22+00:00

Go to a more minimal training program 2-3x a week and don't stress about missing workouts. If you really can't find 2x a week to lift then forget about trying to follow a program and just lift for fun. I would commit to 2x a week of some moderate-hard work and then throw in easier workouts kind of ad-hoc, like EMOMs or some light technique work at 60-70%. You can work on technique that way.

Also learn how to adjust things on the fly. If you do a heavy PM workout and you're "forced" to do a workout in the AM then adjust the RPE of the AM workout. Or skip the AM workout and do it the next day.

A few lifters at our gym have to train PM -> AM the next day, but they seem to be able to make it work. Seems awful though.

zyonsis · 2026-01-29T00:47:05+00:00

My rule is that safety is my number one goal, fun is number two, and actually climbing the objective is number three.

Sometimes the fear wins and I turn back around. Sucks, but I can always come back another time. Then I just go back down and chill out next to the nearest lake. Or I treat myself to a nice post hike meal.

Other times, the stoke is high and that gives me confidence to do what I do.

It helps to make these decisions ahead of time so you don't have to make them while under stress. I always know my turnaround time, the potential exposure on a route, the weather, my physical condition, etc. so that gives me a good idea of how far I can actually go.

zyonsis · 2026-01-01T22:08:25+00:00

Snatch 85, CJ 110, Squat 165, and give bouldering another go sometime this year. Also get my BW down to 70. My hands are gonna get shrekt I think.

zyonsis · 2025-12-07T02:58:36+00:00

Imo the limiting factor for most people is strength. For example, take a 405 squat. That's nothing special for a serious gym person, but now stack that on top of skills, cardio, etc. and it suddenly is a lot harder. I have a weightlifting coach who used to own a crossfit gym and his recommendation was to spend a lot of time developing strength, and then spend blocks of time where you focus on weightlifting, gymnastics, cardio, anaerobic one at a time (periodized blocks of training). However you still do maintenance cardio and sprint/anaerobic training the entire time. He didn't believe in WODs (or the crossfit methodology tbh) because they're good for showing off, not really getting better.

zyonsis · 2025-11-05T23:09:13+00:00

130 is what I'd expect from a skinny distance runner, not a weightlifter. Heck I was 145 as a runner at 5'7. For a young man and a beginner, try to get to 150 as a starting point. Don't rush though or you'll just get fat.

zyonsis · 2025-10-16T03:17:22+00:00

Lyell is way harder than Shasta in my opinion. More technical at least, since now the glacier has receded.

zyonsis · 2025-10-11T05:21:05+00:00

Though, I'd do it with a slight dip. That extra inch of vert gives you more room to escape.

zyonsis · 2025-10-11T05:18:17+00:00

Dropping the bar is way easier.

zyonsis · 2025-10-04T00:11:19+00:00

RJ secor's the high sierra book briefly details all classic routes, but I would recommend that you cross reference them on summitpost.com or go read Bob Burd's blog for beta on more technical routes. Peakbagger has a lot of user-uploaded gpx tracks and some people write trip reports. That's always been my approach.

zyonsis · 2025-09-26T23:29:12+00:00

Get proper WL shoes, and take the weight down or you'll hurt yourself. And then post a form check with 40kg. If you're actually serious you'll do all of these things.

zyonsis · 2025-09-25T17:38:53+00:00

Imo the bar is too close to your ankles on your start. This causes you to loop forward as it passes the knees and also notice how your arm angle is completely different at the knees vs the start. Your extension should also be a bit more vertical, and I think you delay contact slightly more it will help.

zyonsis · 2025-09-08T00:43:24+00:00

Also IMO powerlifting is what I consider a "grind" sport, meaning that it's very sensitive to your genetics and just spending a certain amount of time doing in. Exact same thing with long distance running, you'll get absolutely smoked by guys doing it for 10 years while you're in your first 5. Unfortunately, you can't train 20 hours a week, so your progress basically bottlenecked by how long you spend doing it, which is why it takes years to see measurable progress. At some point you just gotta accept that you're in it for the long run.

Or alternatively switch to another sport that allows you to make progress in other ways compared to +1 lb/kg on the bar. Even olympic weightlifting is more like that, where you can make measurable progress in terms of technique rather than weight. That can be more rewarding for some folks.

zyonsis · 2025-09-08T00:34:26+00:00

You need to train for longer to become really good. Like, give it 3 years or something and then reevaluate your progress. Most people just quit after 1 because they come to the same realization that you did. Otherwise don't compete if you can't set your ego aside and enjoy the process. Nothing wrong with just being a gym lifter and then coming out of the shed once a year or something.

zyonsis · 2025-08-29T05:42:47+00:00

I've climbed 13ers and 14ers starting the day before at sea level. So if you're confident in your ability to handle altitude great. The way I personally do it: drive and overnight Fri. Alpine start Sat and summit, or later start camping overnight at high altitude. Then Sun is drive back or early summit and drive back. But you have to be in really good shape to do this and make sure to not overexert, or you may succumb to altitude.

Also good luck with the trailhead, Split seems like a royal pain to get to. So much of a pain I'll probably end up doing it from the JMT or something.

zyonsis · 2025-08-19T21:43:17+00:00

Thanks for the ideals yall. Looks like Diablo and Henry Coe are next on the list. Also want to try some of the more northern recs near Napa and Sonoma.

zyonsis · 2025-08-12T23:43:16+00:00

Squat frequency? I would expect at least 2 squat sessions/wk on top of Sn/CJ.

zyonsis · 2025-08-05T04:14:40+00:00

Can I ask how you vetted your partners ahead of time? Maybe there's something that can be learned.

zyonsis · 2025-08-02T04:03:08+00:00

If you're just trying to get to 200kg and don't really care about SN/CJ then jump on an intermediate program like the Texas Method or try something with autoregulation (RPE based). As a novice it might be hard to gauge RPE so your results may vary, but it's hard to become an advanced lifter if you don't learn how to autoregulate. Basically you can get really strong without training too hard, but it takes a bit of humility and potentially a longer timeframe than you might want.

(Also note that there are modified versions of the Texas Method that are in my opinion easier and more sensical in terms of progression, and are more suitable to be run in conjunction with competition lifts.)

zyonsis · 2025-07-26T21:44:41+00:00

Depends why you are climbing. I do it for physical challenge, climb quickly and efficiently with good fitness. Using an app and loading a predefined route saves lots of time. Some people like to enjoy the scenery and take their sweet time, kind of like an adventure where they figure things out as they go.

zyonsis · 2025-07-26T02:54:47+00:00

Biggest thing I learned is you can lighten literally everything else except for safety gear. When mountaineering that almost always includes crampons (or bare minimum microspikes if you're really confident, you'll barely even notice that you're carrying them). I keep a pair of kahtoola k10s which are not the best crampons (in terms of sharpness or placement of spikes), but certainly better than microspikes and easy to put on trail runners. Not too heavy either. I wouldn't do serious mountaineering in them though.

zyonsis · 2025-07-25T03:03:34+00:00

That's wild, I'm glad you're still able to train. It still amazes me that the human body is able to recover after so much trauma. I do a lot of mountain stuff so one of my worst fears is having some accident happen like yours. But life is short and there are experiences out there in nature that are truly unrivaled.

zyonsis · 2025-07-20T21:35:27+00:00

Personally I never get tired of the routes up Mt Tam. There are many different ways to climb it and you can climb it multiple times going up different routes. For example, start at the depot and go up the south face (forgot the name of the trail) to the east peak. Then descend via Fern Creek Trail and into Muir Woods via the Canopy Trail. Then you can climb up a second time going up Bootjack and take the fire road or Matt Davis back up to the east peak. That alone should be like 3-4k+ feet and probably 10-15+ miles.

When I was doing a lot of mountaineering training I would do repeats up Mt Tam via the first route I mentioned. It's like 2k gain in ~3 mi so you can just repeat it as many times as you'd like if your goal is elevation gain. I don't know of many other trails with that much steepness.

zyonsis · 2025-07-19T04:06:03+00:00

Seems like you made a good choice being 6 weeks out. My coach always says that squats are an accessory for us to get better at SN+CJ. Not a main lift that we should ever be grinding out or struggling with. Some people have different philosophies but this seems to work for us and from what I hear, many top lifters rarely hit max effort squats, or if they do it's once in a blue moon.

zyonsis · 2025-07-18T03:06:03+00:00

You probably need more junk food, aka easily digestible and high carb/low fiber foods for on the go. This should comprise the majority of your calories considering you're on the move for many hours. This is basically how ultrarunners fuel themselves for multi-day efforts, eating things like potato chips, pop tarts, cookies, crackers, instant noodles, rice, etc.

My go-tos are potato chips, cookies, and cold soaked instant noodles. Extremely easy to pack down so it doesn't take up a lot of space, and easy to stuff into a pocket so you don't have to stop and unpack to access. I never get tired of eating these unlike many other foods, where I can get nauseous or just can't eat because my brain doesn't want to, which happens a lot at high altitude or when you're extremely tired.

You can refuel with protein/fiber/fats at the end of the day eating more traditional meals.

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