How to train to climb Mount Everest

For over a decade, Mountain Trip has partnered with Uphill Athlete to train our climbers and guides to achieve their climbing and mountaineering goals. Steve House and the crew at Uphill Athlete do a great job breaking down the physical demands of big adventure climbs and helping climbers succeed in tough conditions. I personally use uphill athlete coaching and training concepts to help prepare me for Denali and Everest.

this Uphill Athlete Program Provides lots of great information about training and contacting coaches and training groups. They also shared articles like this one about training for Everest that we wanted to share here.

–Bill Allen, “Mountain Travel”

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Training for an Everest expedition requires careful physical, mental and technical preparation. Although our book New mountaineering training, This guide delves into these topics, providing concise, actionable advice based on fundamental theory to help you understand the “why” behind an effective mountain training program. Let us embark on a journey that will prepare you for your ascent to the highest peak on Earth.

Everest exercise training

Mount Everest places extreme physical and mental stress on climbers. Unlike other sports, there is no option to give up during climbing. Success and safety on Everest depend on rigorous training and preparation, not only for the climb but also for the descent.

When to start training for Everest

To ensure you are fully prepared for the physical and mental demands of an Everest expedition, it is crucial to start training At least 6 months before the expedition begins. Ideally, starting 8-9 months earlier will provide a better opportunity to gradually develop the necessary endurance, strength and technical skills. Extended training times allow for gradual increases in training intensity and volume, reducing the risk of injury and ensuring you are in optimal fitness when you start climbing.

Here is a longer article to help you gain a deeper understanding of the topic.

Endurance physiology is universal

The right combination of aerobic training and climbing-specific strength exercises is crucial. Our decades of mountain sports experience allow us to devise the best methods to help you prepare for the unique challenges of Everest.

“Fatigue makes us all weak.”

In mountaineering, especially on Everest, fatigue is the greatest controllable limitation. Speed ​​means safety; the faster you ascend and descend, the lower the risk of storms and extreme temperatures, and the shorter the time spent in the “death zone” of extreme altitudes. Technical ability and endurance are crucial. Develop your climbing skills by practicing on increasingly challenging routes and mountains, ideally under the guidance of a skilled instructor.

read: What makes a person stamina?

I want to climb Mount Everest, where do I start?

To prepare for Everest, focus on these key fitness components:

1. Aerobic capacity: Essential for sustaining long climbs without becoming overtired. Avoid calling it “cardio”; it’s about building endurance. Developing the ability to go uphill for long periods of time, whether on the trail or on the treadmill, is by far the most decisive aspect in helping you prepare for Everest.
2. Strength training: In mountaineering, speed is power. From core stability to leg strength, every aspect is important.
3. Muscular Endurance: The ability of the legs to perform thousands of repetitive movements is critical.
4. Form/Technique: Effective movement over rough terrain conserves energy and reduces fatigue. This skill can only be honed on similar terrain.
5. Acclimatization: You will spend many hours at high/extreme altitudes. Everest Base Camp is 5,300m above sea level, making it one of the highest base camps in a large area. It’s relatively comfortable, but this height doesn’t allow your body to recover well between rotations. How your body responds to a lack of oxygen is critical and determines your safety and success.
6. Hypoxic conditioning. Science and practice have proven to favor the use of norbaric hypoxia via masks and/or sleeping tents. While these adaptations are not exactly the same as “true” hypobaric hypoxia, they do result in shorter expedition times, faster and safer logistics, and greater resistance to disease and infection that Often affects your performance on Everest. You need to consider about 8-12 weeks of HC for Everest. During the last 6-8 weeks you will be sleeping at such a high altitude that your physical training will suffer. This means that you must start your physical training as soon as possible.

Climber Coaching prepares far more climbers for Everest than all other coaching services combined. Their training plans range from simple general training to complex specific workouts with hypoxic conditioning as your expedition date approaches.

CTA: Training Team

Basic Principles of Endurance Training

1. Consistency: Train regularly and don’t take long breaks. This is the most important thing. You must be physically fit and able to train six days a week.
2. Progressive: Gradually increase your training load to continue gaining fitness. You have to start training as early as possible. Specific physical preparation for Everest requires at least six months, preferably twelve months. Three years is ideal. Working out takes time. We heard from a long-time Everest outfitter that the health of climbers has declined significantly over the past decade. Don’t let this happen.
3. Conditioning: Balance hard weeks with easy weeks to allow for recovery and growth. It’s best monitored by a professional trainer who will use modern training tracking tools and software to monitor your workouts and recovery.
4. Personalized: A personalized approach is needed to assess and address your physical weaknesses and strengths; we all have them. Metabolic adaptations precede musculoskeletal (structural) adaptations. Therefore, it is crucial to constantly assess your athlete’s form and set realistic expectations about how much training you can do given the time you have, and how much endurance you can build. The golden question is always: Is climbing Everest enough? ! The earlier you start training, the better!

Aerobic conditioning

Everest climbing is primarily an aerobic activity, relying on the body’s ability to use oxygen efficiently over an extended period of time. Let a professional trainer evaluate your cardio and customize your training intensity zones using methods like heart rate monitoring. This is a small investment compared to the time and expense of an Everest expedition, but it will have a huge impact on your success.

strength training

Developing strength is essential for bearing heavy weights for extended periods of time. Focus on functional, climbing-specific strength without adding unnecessary bulk. A good strength program is usually 8-12 weeks, then moves to low-rep and high-load maximal strength training, then transitions to at least eight weeks of hard but very effective muscular endurance training. For periodization of strength training to be effective, you need a professional to guide your training.

Read more about Strength training for climbers.

Exercise allocation and timing

Perform aerobic exercise at least four times a week, supplemented by strength training. As you progress, gradually increase the duration and intensity. Our coaches measure training load and progress using either weekly training volume (intensity time) or weekly cumulative training stress.

Backpack

Start training without weights and gradually introduce weighted backpacks only after Establish a base level of fitness. When doing basic aerobic training, gradually increase the weight and never exceed 20-25% of your body weight. Two of the most common mistakes people make are: 1) starting training too late and 2) adding weight too quickly and causing injury.

Rest days and easy weeks

Incorporate rest days and regular easy weeks to allow your body to recover and adapt. Typically, every third or fourth week should be a lighter training week. Professional coaches will use sophisticated software like TrainingPeaks.com to monitor and plan your training and recovery.

muscular endurance training

You can think of your training as keeping you in shape for muscular endurance training. Sometimes called strength endurance, this type of training is fun. These workouts are challenging but doable, and you’ll get stronger every week. This is the fun part of training. However, if you don’t perform physical exercises to build muscle endurance, training with heavy, steep weights can lead to injury and could completely derail your adventure. You need to start early. The minimum time we have seen athletes functionally ready for this type of training is sixteen weeks. You need to do it for no less than 8 weeks. These exercises focus on vertically increasing (treadmill, stairs, or real hills) weight bearing, which causes local muscle fatigue in the legs but does not tax the cardiovascular system.

Do you think you are fit enough to climb Mount Everest now? You should be able to complete the first step in this workout progression with ease. If it’s hard, start training.

hypoxic conditioning

Current best practice dictates that you spend at least 400 hours in normobaric hypoxia via a mask and/or sleeping tent at altitudes up to 6,000 meters/18,000 feet. For Everest, you need to consider at least 12 weeks. During the final eight weeks, you will be sleeping at such a high altitude that your physical training, sleep and recovery will be affected, which means you will start tapering 10-14 days before departure than usual.

This means you have to start your physical training as soon as possible.

tapering

In the last few weeks before climbing, reduce training volume to eliminate fatigue and consolidate fitness gains. Avoid last-minute cramming, which can lead to fatigue and reduced performance. Traditionally, the tapering period is two weeks. But for Everest, you need to consider hypoxic conditions, which takes 8-12 weeks. Instructors at Uphill Athlete have developed a system for adapting to the taper period so you can stay fit while sleeping at simulated altitudes higher and higher.

We ensure you peak at specific training sets (high volume) as early as possible and maintain your fitness during the pre-adaptation phase.

mental training

Consistent physical training is the number one way to build mental toughness. Confidence in your own health and skills is crucial to coping with the stress of an Everest expedition.

technical skills

It is vital to master rock climbing techniques. Practice using crampons, ice axes, and moving up and down on fixed ropes until it becomes second nature. Efficient technology saves energy and improves safety.

Training summary

1. Aerobic Self-Assessment: Determine your heart rate training zone.
2. Cardio Training: Zone 2 training four to five days a week.
3. Strength training: Progressive, periodized strength training twice a week.
4. Retest: Reassess your training areas every eight weeks.

in conclusion

Training is the most controllable aspect of Everest preparation. Make struggle part of your journey because the point of climbing a mountain like Everest is Become someone who can climb Mount Everest. Consistent, progressive training will be the cornerstone of your rare physical and mental resilience. Carefully designed structured training and a good training program for Everest are undoubtedly your best tools for success.