I hear you Steve. By prime shape I don't mean training for a big hike or 15 rounds with Tyson.My work out goals are just to keep in good cardio shape,sustain good muscle tone, maintain joint movement and flexibilty. My workouts are only 45-60 minutes per day, 5 days a week. It is enough to keep me feeling good. I had worked out 3 years before I ever even considered climbing Whitney. When I decided to climb Whitney I added an extra day of stair climbing so I was working out 3 days a week in the gym doing circuit training and 3 days running stairs. Crazy thing was that when I was training 6 days a week hard, I was the heaviest weight I had been in many years. Yes some increased muscle tone but I just ate too much justifying it cuz I was working out so much. If you see my pictures on Whitney in 2007 I was 4o lbs heavier than I am now.
In 2008 I went back up Whitney with 30 lbs shaved off my pack weight and 40 lbs on my personal weight. It is a lot easier to climb Whitney with 70 less pounds unless your name is Laura.
