Summary

Location: Anywhere

Duration: 2 hours, 45 minutes

Length: 5.47 miles

Gear: water, 1 pre-cooked lunch, protein+oats, 30 pounds of added weight

Highlights: attempting to increase my rate of fatigue

Stats:

Elevation plot of the training circuit – up and down three times!

Making an Easy Day Hike Longer and Challenging

Yesterday was the first sunny day in over a week.  The sunshine was welcome, especially after many days of torrential rainfall.  Although I had no hike planned, I wanted to make sure the beautiful weather didn’t go to waste so I grabbed my go bag and set off for a nearby hike.  My goal: training for altitude at sea level without venturing too far.

Here is my usual struggle with quick or nearby hikes: they are usually short and low, thus not challenging.  Typically, I have to venture a little further to get a decent backcountry hike and workout in.  With only a few hours to spare, I decided I was not going to let the landscape determine the difficulty of the hike – I was going to make it difficult.   After all, I may be going to Machu Picchu next month and if I can’t even do this, I may as well save myself the disappointment and not go at all.  Right?

I picked a nearby location with a decent amount of elevation gain in a short span (~600 feet in half a mile), with the intention of doing multiple circuits of it.  My goal was to simulate altitude, so I:

• Packed an additional 30 pounds of weight into my day pack – alongside my water and lunch – for a total of 40 pounds of weight.
• Completed the out-and-back hike a total of 3 times, back to back.

Enough to Simulate Altitude?

The increased energy expenditure naturally leads to a higher rate of muscle fatigue and an additional tax on my respiratory system.  Although my ability to recover and push on is still on point, by the time I’m on my 3rd circuit, I am sufficiently fatigued.  I liken the 1,600 feet of elevation gain I covered during this hike, pack and all, to 400 feet of gain at higher altitude.  This is not based on anything other than my own personal opinions and experience, having climbed/hiked at altitude in the past.

Only consistent training and knowing your limits can help you with the two beasts in the sky: fatigue and altitude sickness.  Still, there is nothing quite like being at elevation.  I’m not a fan of training masks either, because

• No amount of training can actually prepare you for altitude sickness – you are either more susceptible to it or less.
• If you spend your entire life near sea level then quick tricks will not be enough to prepare your body for high altitude.

In my case, If I can’t train at altitude, I might as well try to make other aspects of my hike as difficult as possible – but I’m prepared for the worst, knowing that if altitude sickness does set in, I’ll be turning back before its too late.

Victory lunch after completing the circuit – mashed potatoes, rice, chicken breast, and broccoli!