Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Training

I was reading the "Lottery Progress" post and noticed alot of people mentioned working out or training? I am a personal trainer and weightloss specialist... and am courious what everyone is doing to prepar for the trip up the mountain. I don't think a post like this was posted in the near past so I thought I would get on here and see if anyone wanted to post the Plan - routine??

I am currently putting mine together and will post if anyone is interested when I finish it...

If this is a repeat post -- please ignore me!

Brandy

Hi Brandy -
I did ask the same question a while back about training in San Francisco which is obviously at sea level. All the responses were helpful but mostly about acclimatizing and some local hikes here in the Bay Area. We don't really have anything over 4,000 ft unless we go to Tahoe (3 hrs away)where you could go up to 10-11,000 ft. We will do that the week before our Whitney day hike on July 25.

I have always worked out regularly but when I climbed my first 14er in Colorado back in 2005 when I was 37, I was living in NJ so I had no practice mountains or even decent hills like I have here in the city. I found the best thing for me was the stairmaster with a back back (15 pounds) for as long as you can do it. I ran a few miles every day but the stair master really helped with my leg strength - I did that 3-4 times a week for 3 months. I got to the top so it definitely helped but I was able to acclimatize a bit before that climb which probably had something to do with getting to the top. I was in Denver for 2 days then slept at 9,000 feet for 2 nights - in a nice comfy bed. At the end of the day, I feel that I only have a few days out there in Lone Pine (not camping-doing motels) and all I can do is get into the best shape I can, do a couple good hikes before Sat the 25th and hope for the best. If I end up not feeling well at some point, I will have to turn around and go down- bottom line. Whitney isn't going anywhere..I can go back.

Leigh-Ann

Brandy
Hiking in the mountains is probably the best training you can do.Try to get miles in the mountains in, and make sure you can get elevation gain.
I found running the stadium stairs at our local Jr. College was the best training for me for several reasons. It was close,available daily, outdoors and is an amazing cardio workout.The bent knee on the upward stepping was so much easier on my arthritic back and left knee than any form of running because there is minimal impact and pounding. The downward stepping is done on the toes and stepping as slow as necessary initially to minimize foot,knee, back impact.It helps with strength and balance.
The one thing I hear over and over is that the downward descent hurts hikers feet and knees more than the ascent, especially on Whitney. I found the stair training eliminated the problem of descent for me due to the actual running down the stairs strengthened my feet,ankles and lower leg muscles on real descent conditions. Stairmasters simulate only climbing up.

I agree with DocRodneyDog. First of all, obviously training in the mountains is the best thing but not everyone has access to mountains in the state they live. When I initially posted back in February, I asked about training in SF specifically. I figured you did not have substantial mountains in Missouri (your location). When I was in NJ, I had no mountains to train in or stadiums near me so I had to work with what I had and my only choice at that time was the gym. You mentioned that you were a personal trainer so I thought you may have access to a gym.

Having said that, living in San Fran gives me access to lots out great outdoor stairways and very steep hills to train on. There is one set of stairs that tons of people use. I've used them for over 3 years work out on. For Whitney, this is exactly what I am doing. Outdoor stairs, walking the hills and local hikes up to 3-4,000 ft because that's all I have near me. I also put a pack on because I will be carrying one on the trip. Going up is so much fun but coming down is tough on my knees. So if you do have a stadium with stairs I would choose that over the stairmaster too but it all depends on what you have access to.

FWIW - The first time I climbed Rainier I met a woman from NYC who had never climbed a mountain - NONE. I was a bit aghast, but she had done training on stairs for months in preparation. She had a very busy schedule as a TV producer, and couldn't find time to actually hike. As it turns out, she did fine, including adapting to the high winds we experienced on summit day. Success has much to do with attitude - she had a cheery, upbeat attitude, and was determined to summit.

If you've got hills around where you live, you can use those. But if not, more important is aerobic conditioning. Jogging & bicycling are the two I use. Also include some stair climbing (running or walking up & down) which helps your legs adapt to the pounding. I don't use a gym for any of this; jogging and cycling start at my doorstep, and the occasional stair running is at small 'stadiums' at either a local community college or high school, or a parking garage at a local mall (rainy days in the early AM).

Upper body strength is not as important as aerobic conditioning if you're just hiking on a trail, but it doesn't hurt to pump a little iron if you've got the weights lying around. I use a few 20 & 30 lbs dumbells while watching T.V. (the penalty I pay for watching the 'boob tube').

Acclimatization just before hiking: As stated above; try the usual short day hikes at altitude - to Lone Pine Lake for lunch, Onion Valley up to Robinson Lake, or drive up into the White Mtns and hike around the Bristlecone Pine Forest area (Limestone Peak, Sheep Mtn).

Hi At some point it helps to walk about 15 miles , 10-12 hours on your feet and see how every thing works clothes shoe fit etc.

Since the effort to train will get you on a fast pace, focus should be on a steady walk of about 3/4- 1 mile an hour drinking and snacking and enjoying the day , this works well on the up and should then kick it up on the down walk (3-5 miles per hour) if you are in a hurry.


This mountain isn't a hard climb , just long most people fail due to going to fast at the lower sections and not drinking or eating along the way.


Work on the head as much as the body look at the photos and see yourself at these places , it is only a mountain if you see it as a mountain otherwise it is just another walk. Thanks Doug

It really depends on the hike you are going to do. If you are a MMWT backpacker. You need to get into good enough shape to haul your gear to Trail Camp. The rest of the hiking will take care of itself.

Day hiking is another story entirely. You have to be able go all day. Therefore, you need hikes that keep you on the trail 10 to 12 hours and go up 5,000-6,000'.

However, there is one McNasty question that will not be answered...How will I perform at elevations above the SoCal Zone, since most people doing this peak are SoCals? One of the stupid mistakes I made my first time was not going high for extended periods and had a very rude introduction to AMS on 8/2/97. Go Sierra/White high a month before your trip (if you can), so you have time to see a doctor about Diamox...but don't expect the doctor to know damn thing about its use for AMS.

On that Sunday afternoon 1987 William Andress,her grandson and great grandson stood next to her on the summit. Grandma Whitney reaches the summit for her 23 rd. time at the age of 91.

Grandma Whitney Queen of the Mountain by William Andress and Winne Gohde Teach Services Inc Brushton New York


never stop asking why or how

Hi, Brandy. Eastern NC where I live is pretty flat. I run 5 miles every other day in a hilly area, and then climbed stairs every other day for 2 months before going to Whitney. I had a good acclimation plan after I got to Whitney to minimize any AMS problems. I did the hike in 2 days (camping at Trail Camp) and didn't have any problems. Lots of cardio training seems to be very important. I also took large doses of aspirin for couple of days before Whitney, which may (or may not) have helped.

I do lots of hiking both in city and the Cascades (1-2 hours every other day and 4-6 hours one day on the weekend) with a 20# back pack. Also, I spend a lot of time on the bicycle (200-300 miles per month) Though I train at sea level most of the time, the altitude has bothered me only once on 12 summit attempts (8 successfull). Do as much training as you can in conditions that will be like what you'll find there. Same boots, clothes, food, etc and stretch a training session out to a 6-8 hour minimum at least every other week. Some upper body and core work along theway is helpful. Whether you do it in one day or two, it's a very long, hard hike and the better overall shape that you're in the easier it is, especially the last few hours coming down.

My approach was something like the approach I took to training for marathons back in the 80's. I NEVER ran a full 26 miles in training. I think the most I did in a single day was 14. I did some stadium steps to mix things up but mostly just ran 10 to 12 miles every other day. Yeah, I hit "the wall" just like almost everybody, but I got through it and ran respectable times. With Whitney I hike my local hills - about 3500 elevation gain, 9 miles in length. Some days I run most of it. Some days I take it easy to recover a bit. I usually carry about 10 lbs in my camelbak including water. My first day hike up Whitney took me less than 12 hours. Conditions were perfect - zero snow and pleasant temps. It's taken me a couple hours longer than that in the snow though. Anyway, my two cents is that if altitude problems are not an issue with you, you don't have to hike 22 miles to see if you can do it prior to doing it. I would suggest you see if you can go up hill for a couple hours swiftly though. If you can hike fast or run uphill for a few hours you can hike at a decent pace and do Whitney in a day. As someone else pointed out, MANY people fail because they start out too fast on the bottom. Start at a comfortable pace and settle in to it. If you feel great after a couple hours, go ahead and increase your pace.