Source-derived protocol · Garage Strength
Periodize Altitude in Blocks
Cycle up to altitude for a block of one to four weeks, come down for about a month, then go up again. You choose the block length and how many cycles to run.
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Garage Strength's principle
Use altitude training as a periodization tool: go up to altitude for one to four weeks, come down for about a month, then go up again.
Your version
2 total
Use altitude as a periodization tool by cycling up to altitude and back down on a repeating schedule.
From this source · Adapted for your goal
The source states the block lengths as ranges ('one to four weeks', 'about a month') but does not fix a schedule for repeating the cycle, so the user sets the block lengths and the repeat cadence.
Go up to altitude and stay there for [how many weeks will you stay at altitude per block (one to four)] weeks.
Recurring · on your cadenceDone when: The altitude block is complete after [how many weeks will you stay at altitude per block (one to four)] weeks at altitude.
Come down and stay down for [how many weeks will you stay down between altitude blocks] weeks, then go up again.
Recurring · on your cadenceDone when: The down block is complete after [how many weeks will you stay down between altitude blocks] weeks back at lower altitude.
Why it works
What Garage Strength says this builds. Their framing, not ours — every line links to where they said it.
Intervals can beat continuous running when they dominate weekly load
Bakken argues that if you can do more total interval work than continuous work over the week, intervals are likely more beneficial than continuous running. He frames this as a load-comparison heuristic rather than a universal rule.
View in the full analysis →Running above threshold brings many more negative effects than staying just below it
Bakken explains that running above threshold starts producing many more negative effects than running right below the threshold, which is one of the points of this method.
View in the full analysis →Balanced weekly training load beats going hard every week
Bakken argues that balancing training load week after week improves both health and performance — the performance increase is a side effect of the balance approach — and that going hard every week does not produce the most benefit, contrary to intuition.
View in the full analysis →
Source-derived protocol
Based on “The Genius Who Solved Endurance Training w/ Dr. Marius Bakken” by Garage Strength.
- Source fidelity verifiedPassed · Nov 1, 2026
- Protocolability reviewedPassed · configurable template
- Editorially reviewedNot yet
- Supported by independent sourcesNot evaluated
Source fidelity means each creator-worded element was checked against the exact statements it cites. It says nothing about whether the approach works.