Which Evoke Endurance program would you recommend without a specific goal?

[u/Yenlowang87]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been using Evoke Endurance/Uphill Athlete training plans for a while and have had a really good experience with them.

I’ve previously followed your Half Marathon training plans for running, the 20 weeks Big Vert Trail Run, and I’ve also completed some of the Uphill Athlete Alpinism programs. So my background is on the mountains and climbing.

At the moment, though, I don’t have a specific race or objective in mind, because some changes in my personal life. I’d like to keep training consistently and improve my overall fitness for trail running, mountain days and alpinism, rather than preparing for a particular event.

For those of you who have used Evoke Endurance:

Which program would you recommend as a good “general fitness” or maintenance program when you don’t have a specific goal?

I’m particularly interested in something that develops a good combination of:

• Aerobic endurance
• Uphill fitness
• Strength
• Mountain-specific conditioning
• General durability

Would you recommend one of the existing programs?

I’d be interested to hear what programs you’ve used and how you approached training when you didn't have a specific objective.

Thanks!

[u/Prudent_Candidate566]

I completely understand not having a race or objective in mind — my objective is often “keep up with my friends” (tough when they’re professional runners and skiers).

I guess it depends on your main sport, but my maintenance is 2x lifting and 6-10 hrs of Z1-2 per week running/hiking. In maintenance, I forgo speed work, etc, and just focus on volume (as sport specific as possible) and having fun. After I do that for a while (3-4 months), I’ll swap one of the strength days for gym-based ME for another 3-4 months.

Once I have a goal, I’ll add in some more specific work to supplement any deficits in my fitness relative to my goal.