Training and Acclimatization

 

At Sierra Mountain Center, we’ve guided countless individuals from all walks of life, of varying ages, fitness levels, and experiences, through the rugged beauty of the Sierra Nevada. Time and again, we’ve seen our clients achieve remarkable feats—whether it’s hiking hundreds of miles or reaching the summit of towering peaks deep in the California wilderness. There’s something truly transformative about exceeding personal expectations in the mountains and turning a dream into reality.

However, one of the most common reasons for trips being cut short is the lack of activity-specific physical preparation and acclimatization. We’ve found that being properly prepared not only enhances the enjoyment of the experience but is crucial for ensuring safety and success in these demanding environments. 

What is Activity-Specific Physical Preparation?

Activity-specific physical preparation means training for your hiking or climbing trip by practicing the demanding movements and activities that you’ll be doing on your trip.  As a backpacker or alpine climber, the main demanding activity you will encounter is hiking over uneven terrain with a 20-30 pound pack on your back.  This will likely be for 5-8 miles a day, gaining as much as 3,000-4,000 feet of elevation at a time, for 2-3 days in a row, possibly more.

The single best way to prepare for those demands – go hiking in uneven terrain with a pack on your back. Slowly increase the distance, weight, and pace of your hike every week. By the time you arrive for your trip, the distance, elevation, and weight are nothing new, or at least not drastically far off from what you’ve been doing in your own time.

While activities like CrossFit, weightlifting, or running are excellent for overall fitness, they don’t replicate the balance, slow aerobic endurance, and comfort in mountain footwear that you need for long days on rough terrain. If your fitness routine doesn’t include weighted hiking, your guide may have concerns about the pace and safety of the trip.  

Your guide will adjust to your speed, but we do need to maintain a reasonable pace to ensure safety. For example, reaching the summit before afternoon storms or getting to camp early enough for proper rest. If progress is slow, we may need to modify the day’s goal to keep things safe and enjoyable. After all, the aim is to have a fun, manageable experience—not one that leaves you overly exhausted.

If you’re unsure how to train for your upcoming trip, we’re here to help. Schedule a free 30-minute consultation to discuss your preparation and get guidance tailored to your needs.

Training Recommendations

  1. Begin preparation early.  A strong training program will begin 3 months or more before your trip.  That being said, something is better than nothing, and you can get a decent amount of training done in 6-8 weeks if necessary.
  2. Start slow.  Your training hikes don’t need to kick your butt–that’s not the point.  Start slow and make sure you can complete your training session with some gas left in the tank.  Then, be sure to recover adequately by getting enough sleep, eating enough carbohydrates and protein, and taking a day or so to let your body compensate for the work you’ve done.
  3. Progressively increase the challenge of your training hike.  Our bodies can tolerate as much as a 10% increase in training load week to week with adequate recovery between sessions.  So, if you hike 5 miles on week 1, you should increase your distance to 5.5 miles on week two, a little over six miles on week 3, and so on.  The same is true for increasing elevation gain and pack weight.  
  4. Learn to squat.  One or two low-repetition squat sessions a week can dramatically improve your core, leg, knee, back, and ankle strength and stability.  Six to eight sets of four repetitions, up to a weight that feels like an 7/10 exertion, is a great session structure that will only take you 40 minutes or so to complete.  

Train with Louie at Vertical Ascents - 20% off

SMC guide Louie Allen is also a certified personal trainer working with Vertical Ascents (VA). Louie and Vertical Ascents are offering 20% off to SMC guests! VA offers remote programming and coaching that teaches athletes to coach and program for themselves to maximize self-efficacy moving forward.  Working with Louie is a great way to ensure you are training effectively for your specific program. Schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with Louie!

 

Do I Really Need to Train for my Trip?

If you’re reading this and asking yourself “do I really need to train for my trip?” Here are a few acid-tests to perform or answer to help you decide.

  1. Can you sit down on the floor and get back up without using your hands?  If not, you should consider training.
  2. Has it been 3 months or longer since you hiked 5+ miles in a day with a 20+ lb pack on, with 1000+ feet of elevation gain?  If so, you should consider training.
  3. Can you hike 1 mile with a thousand feet of gain, with a 20+ lb pack on, in an hour or less?  Can you do that 3-4 times in a row during the day with 5-10 minutes rest between efforts?  If not, you should consider training.
  4. Can you step up on a box, bending your leading knee past 90 degrees, with heavy boots and a 20+ lb pack on your back, relatively easily several times in a row?  If not, you should consider training.
  5. Do you feel confident in your ability to tolerate elevation above 10,000 feet while performing the hiking and climbing demands of your trip?  If not, you should consider training!
  6. These questions aren’t meant to scare you or overwhelm you.  They’re meant to de-mystify what it actually takes to prepare for challenging hikes and climbs.  The reality is that, while the training takes time and some planning, the best activities and structure for your training are actually very simple and straightforward.  

Sierra Mountain Center is committed to making sure you are more than prepared with the information you need to understand and train for the physical demands of your trip.  If you’re not sure what the distance and elevation numbers in your trip information mean, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.  We are here to help! 

Acclimatization

Our programs take place in high-altitude environments. Altitude-related illnesses can force us to abandon our objective, or worse, pose life-threatening risks. Your guide is trained to promptly identify signs and symptoms associated with altitude sickness, and help you descent to lower altitudes if you do not improve. Taking the time to acclimatize properly prior to your trip is a proactive measure that can significantly enhance your experience and safety. In the days leading up to your trip, incorporate small hikes at low intensity from higher elevation trailheads. Going for a hike to, and above, 10,000 feet will help your body begin to respond to the decreased oxygen supply. Then you can allow your body to recover from that slight strain by resting low. Many hikers and climbers have had great success with this technique for a very long time, which is where the phrase “climb high, sleep low” comes from.

If you know you sleep well at elevation, we suggest spending at least one night at a moderate altitude, higher than 8,000 feet, just prior to the start of the journey.

  • Cottonwood Lakes Walk-in Campground (10,000 feet)
  • Mammoth Lakes Basin Campgrounds (9,000 feet)
  • Bishop Creek Campgrounds (9,000 feet)
  • Mosquito Flat Campground (9,000 feet)

While sleeping at high elevation is helpful for some, many people do not sleep well at elevation. If you know this is you or if you’re uncertain about how well you’ll sleep, we recommend sleeping in town, at lower elevation, the night before your trip. Prioritize your rest by choosing the most comfortable sleeping arrangements, such as staying at a slightly lower elevation hotel room in Mammoth Lakes (7,800 feet). Arriving at your mountain adventure well-rested is crucial. It equips your body to handle the physical exertion and altitude-related stress more effectively.

Proper hydration is another vital component of feeling your best at high altitudes. This entails being well-hydrated before embarking on your trip and maintaining that hydration throughout your journey. It doesn’t mean guzzling a gallon of water just before bedtime and spending the night in the restroom! Instead, consider gradually increasing your water intake while incorporating electrolyte supplements into your routine several days before your trip. Once at altitude, continue to increase your water intake slightly, still complemented by electrolytes. Without these essential minerals, increased water consumption alone may have adverse effects. Numerous brands of electrolytes are available, some of which can enhance the taste of your water, and others are conveniently in capsule form. Meticulous attention to your hydration will yield significant improvements in your energy levels and recovery throughout your adventure.

Example Training Plan

This is an example training plan for Mt Whitney via the Mountaineer’s Route. 

Trip stats:

Total distance: 10 miles round-trip

Total elevation: 6000 ft gain (and descent)

Average pack weight: 25-30 lbs on hiking days, 10-15 lbs climbing days.

Prep time: 12 weeks/3 months

**Note that this is an EXAMPLE and may not be best suited for your specific needs or fitness.  

Week 1

Monday: squat, six sets up to 100 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: Hike 3 miles, 10 lb pack, 500 ft gain

Thursday: squat, six sets up to 105 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Hike 3 miles, 10 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 2

Monday: squat, six sets up to 105 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 3.5 miles, 11 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Thursday: squat, six sets up to 110 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 3.5 miles, 11 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 3

Monday: squat, six sets up to 110 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 4 miles, 12 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Thursday: squat, six sets up to 115 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 4 miles, 12 lb pack, 1250 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 4

Monday: squat, six sets up to 115 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 4.5 miles, 14 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Thursday: squat, six sets up to 120 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 4.5 miles, 14 lb pack, 1500 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 5

Monday: squat, 6 sets up to 120 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 5 miles, 15.5 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Thursday: squat, 6 sets up to 125 lbs

Friday

Saturday: hike 5 miles, 15.5 lb pack, 1750 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 6

Monday: squat, 6 sets up to 125 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 5 miles, 17 lb pack, 1000 ft gain

Thursday: squat, 6 sets up to 130 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 5 miles, 17 lb pack, 2000 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 7

Monday: squat, 8 sets up to 125 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 5 miles, 19 lb pack, 1100 ft gain

Thursday: squat, 8 sets up to 130 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 5 miles, 19 lb pack, 2250 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 8

Monday: squat, 8 sets up to 130 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 5 miles, 20 lb pack, 1200 ft gain

Thursday: squat, 8 sets up to 135 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 5 miles, 20 lb pack, 2500 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 9

Monday: squat, 8 sets up to 135 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: hike 5 miles, 22 lb pack, 1500 ft gain

Thursday: squat, 8 sets up to 140 lbs

Friday: Rest

Saturday: hike 5 miles, 22 lb pack 2500 ft gain

Sunday: Rest

Week 10

Monday: squat, 8 sets up to 140 lbs

T: Rest

W: Rest

T: Rest

F: Rest

Saturday: hike 3 miles, 24 lb pack 3000 ft gain

Sunday: hike 3 miles, 24 lb pack 1500 ft gain

Week 11

Monday: squat, 6 sets up to 145 lbs

Tuesday: Rest

W: Rest

T: Rest

Friday: hike 3 miles, 27 lb pack 3000 ft gain

Saturday: hike 3 miles, 27 lb pack 2000 ft gain 

Sunday: Rest

Week 12

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: squat, 6 sets up to 150 lbs

Thursday: Rest

Friday: hike 4 miles 30 lb pack 3000 ft gain

Saturday: hike 4 miles 30 lb pack 2500 ft gain

Sunday: hike 4 miles 30 lb pack 0 ft gain

Week 13: de-load.  No strenuous activity 5-7 days prior to your climb

Meet Our Coach

Louie Allen

Alpine Guide & Fitness Coach

Testimonial

Louie Allen

Louie began guiding with Sierra Mountain Center in 2015 after falling in love with the people and places of Bishop, CA, and the Sierra Nevada mountains.  He grew up climbing and backpacking in the southeastern US and moved West to pursue bigger mountainous terrain.  He is a passionate and dedicated climber in all of its forms and has backpacked extensively across the Sierra.  It is a joy for him to share his favorite peaks and trails with visitors.  Louie is an equal-opportunity cookie lover and die-hard Cincinnati Bengals football fan.  He travels to the eastern US often in order to pursue world-class rock and ice climbs, but always finds his way back to the Sierra.

Louie is an AMGA Certified Rock Guide and is pursuing Alpine Guide certification.  He holds an MS in Recreation and Sport Sciences and a Graduate Certificate in Sport Coaching.  He works as a guide, strength trainer, and climbing coach to help developing climbers and hikers achieve meaningful goals in the mountains.

Mike Mourar

Mike is originally from Pennsylvania where he learned to ski on the icy mountains of the Northeast. He moved to Northern California soon after high school and received degrees in Outdoor Adventure Education from Feather River College and later Southern Oregon university. He has worked in outdoor education for over 15 years, leading wilderness education expeditions all across the world and the American west. Mike currently ski guides and teaches avalanche education courses in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He loves to ski steep narrow couloirs on warm sunny days in the Sierras! When not guiding on skis, Mike can be found kayaking the rivers in the Pacific Northwest. 

Heather Shaw

Heather grew up in the Bay Area and has many fond memories of backpacking and camping in the Sierra as a kid. She moved up to Oregon to attend Lewis & Clark College and obtained a degree in Environmental Studies focusing on education and food systems. While living up in Oregon Heather fell in love with the Cascades and began guiding her peers on backpacking trips, cross-country skiing and even local mushroom foregoing. Following her passion for guiding and the outdoors she spent the summers guiding children on backpacking trips and adults in sea kayaking. Heather enjoyed living in the Portland area, skiing on Mount Hood and doing lots of cycling but eventually she decided it was time to come back to sunny California. For the past couple of years she has been spending summers and fall in California guiding students in backpacking, river trips and day hikes. She is excited about guiding backpacking trips in the Eastern Sierra this summer. Heather is a Wilderness First Responder and Leave No Trace Trainer.

Robert "SP" Parker

Robert “SP” Parker, hails from the picturesque landscapes of New Zealand. His journey into the realm of mountaineering began during his days at the University of Auckland, where he delved into the world of climbing alongside the university tramping club (akin to “backpacking” for our American counterparts).

He relocated to Yosemite Valley in 1979. He traveled the US climbing in all the great places: Yosemite, Tuolumne, Colorado, Joshua Tree, Devils Tower, Canada. In 1996, he joined forces with Todd Vogel to found Sierra Mountain Center. SP has over 40 years of full-time professional mountain guiding experience. He has earned IFMGA certification in Rock, Ski, and Alpine disciplines and has served as a past director of the AMGA.

As the torch of ownership at SMC passes into the capable hands of Emma, his passion for guiding in the breathtaking Sierra region continues to burn bright, and he eagerly supports Emma in her new role.

Larry Gumina

Larry is a native of the New Jersey shore. Raised as an ocean lover, Larry spent his early days surfing and being in the water as much as he could. Through an active involvement in scouting, as well as an adventurous friend group, Larry found a passion for the mountains. Naturally, this passion had him trade his surfboard for a snowboard, and he went west! Larry graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder with degrees in Environmental Studies as well as Atmospheric and Oceanic Circulation. In Colorado, he fell more in love with the mountains. After graduating, Larry moved to Alaska to explore the wilderness of the last frontier through backpack and canoe guiding. When COVID struck and found Larry abroad in Central America, he came back to the states hoping to get back to Alaska, but discovered the Sierra along the way. And the high peaks and the fairer climate of California was as far as he made it. Larry now resides here in Bishop, where he spends his time exploring the mountains via roped climbing, splitboarding, and hiking. When not guiding, Larry enjoys traveling and climbing the high, glaciated peaks of Central and South America. Larry’s favorite trip to lead in the Sierra is the Bishop to Mammoth backpack as the variety of the terrain offers tremendous opportunities for natural and human history studies! Larry holds a certification as a Wilderness First Responder, a Leave No Trace Trainer, and a AIARE Level I.

Tyler Logan

Tyler grew up hiking in the Sierra Nevada before being introduced to rock climbing as a teenager. Since that time, he has climbed extensively in this same mountain range, including Yosemite (he has climbed El Capitan multiple times) as well as various other crags and mountain ranges throughout the West. Much of this climbing happened during spring, summer and winter breaks while working as a high school English teacher in southern California. After more than ten years in the classroom, Tyler made a career change and began guiding in 2016. He loves being able to make use of his teaching background while working outdoors and helping people achieve their goals. While climbing is his first passion, Tyler also enjoys hiking, backcountry skiing, running, cycling, and a bit of fly fishing now and then. He lives in Bishop with his wife, Mona.

Anouk Erni

Anouk grew up on the glaciers and peaks of Switzerland where her family is from and currently resides. Anouk has had an appreciation for the elevated outdoors from an early age. She has lived in Europe, America’s east coast, and finally, she came to the west coast in her teens, and never left. Even though she calls the Eastern Sierra her home, she began her guiding career in the Pacific Northwest, where she worked on glaciated peaks such as Mt Rainier and Mt Baker, and rock guided during the summers. However, having learned to rock climb in California and frequenting the Eastern Sierra during her years living in Los Angeles, she ultimately returned to California eight years ago and has been guiding here year round. In the summers, Anouk guides rock and alpine trips, and during the winter seasons, she ski guides and teaches avalanche courses. She sees her guide work as a way to increase and infuse passion and knowledge into the outdoor community – her way of giving back after having been fortunate enough to receive solid mentorship during her initial years climbing in California.

 

Anouk is an AMGA Certified Rock Guide, Apprentice Ski Guide, and Apprentice Alpine Guide, as well as an AIARE avalanche course leader and AAI course leader.

Dave Stimson

Dave is originally from Alberta, Canada, but has traded in his Canadian passport for his American one, lured by clean Sierra granite and perfect California weather. He graduated from Mount Royal University in 2007 with an undergrad in Ecotourism & Outdoor Leadership and has been working ever since as a ski patroller and avalanche forecaster in Canada during the winters. Dave has been climbing since 2003 and has climbed in Squamish, the Canadian Rockies, The Bugaboos, the Tetons, Red Rock, Indian Creek and Peru, to name a few destinations. His first time climbing in California was in 2103 in Yosemite Valley and was instantly in love. He has been with the SMC team since 2015 and is excited to continue climbing and guiding in the Range of Light. 

Dave holds a Wilderness First Responder certification, and a Canadian Avalanche Association Level 2. He began the AMGA program in 2014 and has become a fully certified IFMGA Mountain Guide.

Emma Gasman

Emma joined the Sierra Mountain Center team in early 2021 as the Program Director. Fast forward almost three years, and she has now taken the reins, becoming the proud owner of the company previously helmed by the legendary Robert “SP” Parker. Emma is passionate about making the marvels of the mountains accessible to individuals of all skill levels. Emma grew up backpacking and skiing in the western Sierra Nevada, where her personal connection to these majestic landscapes began. While attending college in Oregon she discovered rock climbing and skiing touring, which ultimately led her to the Eastern Sierra. Emma is ready to carry forward the rich legacy established by SP back in the 1990s, eager to nurture and expand upon the successes of the company.

Barb Bemis

Barb began working for SMC in the summer of 2016 as a backpacking and climbing guide. After 4 summers, she began working as an adaptive sports instructor and program coordinator with Disabled Sports Eastern Sierra in Mammoth Lakes. Fast forward to 2024 and Barb is back in the office at SMC. She enjoys organizing all the trip details and other behind-the-scenes tasks to help guests get outside and enjoy the Eastern Sierra. She has always been involved in the outdoors in a variety of ways: hiking, climbing, mountain biking, running, and more. Moving to the Eastern Sierra was a great choice!