The hardest thing about a Nepal trek is not a single climb. It is walking five to seven hours a day for ten days in a row, on stone staircases, at altitude, carrying a daypack, with a cold night's sleep between each day. Gym fitness helps with that but does not guarantee it, and plenty of marathon runners have found the descent from Chhomrong harder than they expected.
Training for Nepal is therefore about three specific things: sustained low-intensity endurance, legs that tolerate long descents, and hips and core that hold a pack comfortably. Twelve weeks is comfortable; eight is enough for a moderate trek; four means choosing your route more carefully.
What You Are Actually Training For
| Trek type | Typical day | Total ascent over the trek | Training target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Short trek — Poon Hill, Ama Yangri | 4–5 hours, 500–800 m gain | 2,500–4,000 m | Walk 4 hours comfortably on hills |
| Classic teahouse — ABC, Langtang, Mardi Himal | 5–6 hours, 700–1,100 m gain | 5,000–7,000 m | Walk 6 hours on consecutive days with a 7 kg pack |
| High-altitude — Everest Base Camp, Gokyo | 5–7 hours, 400–800 m gain at altitude | 6,000–9,000 m | Back-to-back 6-hour hill days, 12 days of them |
| Pass crossing — Thorong La, Larke La, Three Passes | 7–10 hours on the pass day | 8,000–12,000 m | One 8-hour day with 1,200 m of ascent, then walk again the next day |
| Trekking peak — Island, Mera, Lobuche | Summit day 8–12 hours from a high camp | Plus technical ground | All of the above, plus load-carrying and altitude experience |
Note the descent figures, which nobody publishes: a trek that climbs 7,000 m also descends 7,000 m, and it is the descending that damages knees. Our difficulty grades guide explains how we rate each route.
The 12-Week Plan
Four sessions a week, with one long day at the weekend. The long walk is the session that matters; if you only do one thing, do that.
| Weeks | Long weekend walk | Midweek | Strength |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–3 | 2–3 hours on hills, no pack | 2 × 40 min brisk walk, jog, or cycle | 2 × 30 min: squats, lunges, step-ups, planks |
| 4–6 | 3–4 hours on hills, 5 kg pack | 2 × 50 min, one with hill repeats or stairs | 2 × 40 min, add single-leg work and calf raises |
| 7–9 | 5–6 hours, 7 kg pack, deliberate long descents | 1 × 60 min hills, 1 × 45 min steady | 2 × 45 min, heavier step-ups and deadlifts |
| 10–11 | Back-to-back weekend: 6 hours Saturday, 4 hours Sunday | 1 × 60 min hills, 1 × 45 min steady | 1 × 45 min, maintain rather than build |
| 12 | Taper: one 2-hour walk, rest | 2 × 30 min easy | One light session, then rest |
The back-to-back weekend in weeks 10 and 11 is the most useful part of the whole plan. It is the only session that teaches you how your legs feel on day two, which is the question a trek asks every single morning.
Train the Descent
More trekkers struggle with the downhills than the uphills. The descent from Chhomrong to Jhinu Danda on the Annapurna Base Camp trek drops over 1,000 m on stone steps, and the walk out from Mardi Himal to Siding does something similar. Eccentric loading — the muscle lengthening under load that happens on every downhill step — is what causes the stiffness on day three.
- Include real descents in training walks rather than looping back on the flat. Find steps if you have no hills.
- Add single-leg step-downs and slow eccentric squats to the strength work.
- Train with trekking poles so the technique is familiar. Poles transfer a meaningful amount of load off your knees.
- Strengthen calves and hip abductors, which stabilise the knee on uneven ground.
If You Only Have Four Weeks
Prioritise in this order, and be realistic about route choice:
- Two long walks a week. Three to five hours on hills with a loaded pack beats any amount of gym work.
- Stairs. Twenty minutes of continuous stair climbing twice a week is the best proxy for Nepali trails available in a city.
- Break in your boots. Fifty kilometres minimum. A blister on day two ruins a trek more reliably than poor fitness.
- Pick a route that matches your preparation. With four weeks, Poon Hill, Mardi Himal from Pokhara, or Langtang Valley are sensible. A 5,416 m pass is not.
And remember the thing training cannot do: fitness has no effect on how well you acclimatise. A very fit trekker who walks too fast is at more risk than a slower one. See our altitude sickness guide.
Specific Advice by Situation
- Over 60: many of our guests are, and they do well. Allow a longer build-up, add a rest day to the itinerary, and prioritise balance work and poles for the descents.
- Knee trouble: get a physiotherapist's opinion, train the eccentric work consistently, use poles, and consider a route with shorter descents — Langtang and the Everest valley are kinder than Annapurna's stone staircases.
- Asthma: usually manageable. Carry two inhalers, tell your guide, and talk to a doctor about cold dry air at altitude before booking a high route.
- Heavier build: hill walking with a pack is the right training, and a porter is money well spent. Pace is never a problem on our trips; our guides walk at the back.
- Children and teenagers: generally strong walkers but less reliable at reporting symptoms. Keep the sleeping altitude moderate and the days shorter.
- No hills where you live: stairs, a treadmill at 10–15% incline, and a loaded pack. Use every one of them.
A final note. Arrive rested rather than peaking. A trek is not a race, and the fortnight before you fly is better spent tapering, sorting kit, and sleeping than squeezing in one more big week.
