A Week in Training

"It's a long way to the top" - AC/DC

It doesn't take a seminal hard-rock band to understand that Mt Everest is pretty high. Around 1500 people have climbed all the way to the top of Mt Everest. When you stack that up against the 4000-plus Olympic Gold Medals that have been awarded, the modern Olympics looks positively pedestrian (yeah ok, that's not even true...)

A combination of leg strength, cardiovascular fitness and the genetic ability to acclimatise are vital elements to any successful Everest attempt. Michael has been preparing for over 10 years for this climb. You can check out what a typical week of training looks like below:

Sunday
AM: Weights session
PM: A long run of 12 to 25km

Monday
Rest & recover!

Tuesday
AM: Weights session
PM: Long swim

Wednesday
PM: Jacobs Ladder (1-hour session with heavy pack)

Thursday
AM: Weights session
PM: Long cycle

Friday
AM: Fast 8k run
PM: 3 to 4 hour beach hike with heavy pack

Saturday
AM: 6 to 8 hour long hills hike with heavy pack

In addition to regular training, Michael is on a strictly controlled diet that includes 5 meals per day to make sure he has enough calories for training, one massage session and up to two physio sessions per week, as well as significant logistics planning and almost around-the-clock mental preparation.