When I started hiking the PCT last year I was out of shape and unfit. The first 3 weeks were hell as I pushed my body to its physical limits .I was lucky not to have injured myself carrying an extra 50lbs of body weight - almost all of which i lost in the first 1000 miles of the 2600 mile hike. I do not want to go through that unnecessary pain again and I owe it to myself to be able to hit the ground running (or hiking?). It will make it easier on myself physically and mentally and will put me in good steed to finish the CDT on time (i was 2 weeks over my predicted finish time on the PCT). The large support network of hikers and trail angels on the PCT kept me going, a luxury which I will largely be without on the CDT.
My current training largely consists of: mountain munning/hiking, self resistance training and free diving. This type of training has four main physical benefits to me:
1. Build cardiovascular fitness
2. Strengthen (not build on) existing muscle
3. Build ankle, knee and hip joint strength
4. Increase flexibility (is currently low caused by the small range of motion involved with long distance hiking)
However, as the best training for thru-hiking is hiking long distances, I will continue to do longer overnight tramps to keep my legs and feet conditioned.
Perhaps the main reason why I am training this way is that these are the things I enjoy most, hopefully which will stop me from procrastinating. I am lucky to be 2 minutes from the Seaward Kaikoura Mountains and 10 minutes from the Pacific Ocean and I cannot think of a more perfect training ground than the place that has been my natural playground since I was a teenager.
Below: Pictures from my latest training run up Mt Fyffe.
