Training Tips

The assigned fitness level and technical difficulty of your trip should be appropriate for your known physical abilities. But your experience will be more enjoyable and more comfortable if you train.

Your training should prepare you primarily for vertical change, off-trail travel, and a loaded backpack. I would not focus on training for mileage — it’ll happen naturally in the process of training for these other factors.

If you live at sea level and if your trip will be at high altitudes (e.g. 8,000 to 12,000 feet above sea level) you may want to take some additional precautionary measures, notably by arriving two days in advance.

Vertical gain and loss

Find vertical near where you live (e.g. mountains, hills, stadium stairs, parking garages, office buildings, residential high rises, etc.) and train there regularly.

Hiking on flat surfaces or having good overall fitness is NOT a substitute for vertical-specific training. Each year, some clients struggle with the vertical more than they expected because they didn’t incorporate it into their training.

If you have gym access, do one-legged squats (high reps, low weight), plus sessions on the Stairmaster and/or treadmill with the incline at its max.

On a training hike in Boulder’s foothills, where I can climb about 2,500 vertical feet before needing to go back down. My pack was loaded with 50 pounds of weight.

Off-trail travel

Off-trail hiking requires better balance and more power, and a Zen-like attitude — don’t get frustrated, because it is what it is.

Start hiking off-trail. You won’t go as far or as fast, but you’ll still get a comparable workout, and you’ll start strengthening all of those balancing muscles. If you are not comfortable yet going too far away from a trail, don’t, but still get off-trail for short sections.

Instead of hiking on “trails” made of concrete or pea gravel, find nasty, technical trails that are full of rocks, roots, blowdowns, or soft sand (especially if you are joining us in Utah). Again, you won’t move as fast, but your body will be better adapted to the stresses you will experience on your trip.

Loaded pack

At the start of your trip, you should expect your pack to weigh 20 pounds for a 3-day trip, about 20-25 pounds for a 5-day trip, 25-30 pounds for a 7-day trip, and 30-35 pounds for an 11-day trip. This includes all of your gear, food, and starting water. If your location is cooler, wetter, or buggier, or if you will be required to carry a bear-resistant canister, expect to be on the high end of these ranges.

Your upper body needs to be trained to support this pack weight, and your legs need to develop the strength to move it.

Do some of your training with a fully loaded pack, even if that means adding excessive water or food to your load, or even putting rocks or bricks into your pack.

Do shorter efforts with an even heavier pack. For example, one client told me he has been doing repeats with a 40-lb pack on a small nearby hill with 150 vertical feet. Don’t go overboard here, however — it’s easier to tweak a knee or ankle when carrying a lot of weight. Build up to it.

High elevations

If you have not been at altitude before, or have not been at altitude in a while, you may experience acute mountain sickness, the common symptoms of which are headache, light-headedness, nausea, and loss of appetite.

You may be able to avoid, reduce, or quickly get through these symptoms with some training and preemptive measures:

1. If you have access to high elevations (sorry, East Coasters), try to get up a few times before the trip.

2. If your travel schedule allows, stay at altitude for two nights before the trip. If you live at sea level, one night is the absolute minimum, but we strongly recommend two.

3. Increase your cardiovascular fitness with high exertion activities like running, rowing, and cycling.

We do NOT recommend altitude medications like Diamox. Even if these medications are used exactly as directed, our experience has been that they can have other adverse effects not conducive to backpacking.

Cross training

Train for your hiking trip by hiking — ideally, with vertical gain and loss, with off-trail, and with a weighted pack.

The closest substitute for hiking is running. If you run on days when you have little time and can hike on days when you have more time, you’ll have pretty good results.

Other physical activity like cycling, yoga, rowing, and weight lifting are NOT good substitutes for hiking. They are complementary, but not supplementary, because they don’t closely replicate the physical stress of hiking.