Cardiovascular training

• Undertake cardiovascular training several times each week – eg. walking, jogging, cycling, swimming. Lots of walking is ideal training as you will get used to being on your legs for a long period of time.
• Slowly build up over weeks to carrying 5-10kgs in a backpack. You will not need to carry so much on your trip but the extra weight will simulate the impact of altitude on your body.
• At least 3-5 months out from your trip start date, aim for one long walk each week – for approximately 4-5 hours at a good pace.
• Look for stairs to climb, and look for trails with a good number of hills. Take your time going up the hills. They might look daunting but just take a step at a time, so to speak.
• Using trekking poles will help to save your knees on up and down hill sections, and will help with balance.

Strength training

• To the extent you can also fit in some strength training, please do.
• Strength training can be done at home using ‘own body weight’ exercises such as a routine including:

  • Get ups(burpees)
  • Press ups (full or half)
  • Sit ups
  • Squats
• If you have time to do at least 1 weights session per week in a gym, great, but not strictly necessary. It will simply add to your overall fitness.

Stretching