Last month Georgina Whiting, Challenge Team Coordinator at the Coins Foundation offered training tips for those contemplating the Three Peaks Challenge. With a few weeks to go before the event she offers some last minute coaching.
Construction teams entering this year’s 3 Peaks Challenge should by now be well into their recommended 12-week training programme. They will be focusing their minds on the challenges of a race to cover 24 miles and climb 10,000 feet in 24 hours with very little sleep. This is not easy and takes some serious commitment from each individual on the team.
Participants will live in geographically dispersed areas, so individuals will be carrying out their own fitness regimes, some going to the gym or for a swim, others getting outdoors and power walking or running. These routines are based around individual life styles and what fits in with their commitments best but the idea is to start to build up stamina and fitness by undertaking a mixture of cardio work and weight training.
From weeks five through to ten, it is crucial that the individuals familiarise themselves with their team mates. The majority of teams will now be meeting up at weekends at their nearest hill or mountain range in order to practice walking on terrain similar to the 3 Peaks. The team at Fairview New Homes, for instance, has been walking in the Chilterns, close to their office and concentrating their training effects on the steep inclines.
The positive results of such training sessions enable the teams to assess their current fitness levels and then adjust their individual programmes going forward. Around week eight, those companies entering more than one team will need to choose their groups. The weekend walks help decide which mix of individuals will work well together. This is not always about the strongest people being placed in one team as each team will require a positive, motivational person to keep the team moving when things get tough.
The walks also help the participants to learn how to operate as a team. It will also provide an opportunity to practice their navigation and map reading skills and carry out some safety training.
So good luck – and we’ll see on the mountain side in May.
For more information about COINS 3 Peaks Challenge, now in its 10th year, visit www.coinsfoundation.org
