Mount Toubkal is the tallest mountain in North Africa, and it stands at 4167m tall. Situated in the Atlas mountains of Morocco, it provides a very worthy expedition for those wanting to test themselves against a big peak, against altitude, or to try out a relatively short, multi-day trek.
Depending on your chosen itinerary, you could have anywhere between 3-5 days of trekking to complete, so how fit do you have to be to complete the trek? Or more to the point, how fit do you need to be to complete it, and enjoy it!
Now, before we go much further, it's worth highlighting how it really is quite tricky to quantify fitness, but in the following paragraphs, you'll see I'll lay down the demands of the expedition, and explain what benchmark you can create here in the UK to head on your trip in confidence.
Demands of the Trip
If you're joining an LMG Treks & Expeditions trip up Mount Toubkal then you will have 4 full days of trekking, and potentially another couple of hours on the final day. The 4 main trekking days consist of:
Day 1 - 13km - 950m ascent
Day 2 - 11km - 1250m ascent
Day 3 - Between 6.5-9km - 630-980m ascent
Day 4 - 17km - 1000-1200m ascent (Summit day)
Trip Total - A Minimum of - 47.5km (29.5 miles) with 3830m (12565ft) ascent.
Much like entering a running event, you now have a distance and ascent total to train towards which is a great start. It is however worth remembering that all of these days are completed at altitude, which will certainly make the comparable distance / ascent harder on the trek than it would in your training.
If you live in the UK, unless you fancy investing in equipment or sessions of Hypoxic training, there's not really much you can do to accommodate for the influence of altitude whilst training - but you certainly can get as fit as you can be to help compensate (Fitness doesn't have a direct correlation to how you will perform at altitude, but arguably the fitter you are the more your body has to 'give' to the demands of the day, and the better it will recover)
What's the Benchmark?
The average day length sits at around 12km with about 1000m ascent. In an absolute ideal world, you'd be able to replicate this 4 days in a row in your training to simulate the expedition, but in reality, that's a tough ask for most working people.
If you can head out into the hills and can complete two back to back days of 15km with 1000-1250m ascent, without being absolutely wiped out after it, you're probably fit enough to complete the trek and enjoy it.
Specificity
Apart from the altitude (if you are UK based), you can replicate your trek in most other ways in your training.
Weather - Research the temperatures in which you're likely to be trekking in. Granted, getting the temperatures of a Morocco in the UK are quite unlikely, you can still train on hot summer days to see how you operate, and more importantly, what you can do to maintain a good level of operation (hydration levels, sun cover, effort levels). If you're on a winter trip, hillwalking in colder conditions or under less than ideal conditions is more possible!
Kit - Wearing the kit you'll trek in has numerous benefits. Is it comfortable enough? it is fit for purpose? Is it packable when not worn? Try and train in the footwear you're going to wear on the trek too. This way you know they'll be comfy, broken in and familiar.
Pack Weight - Go through the kit list and see what you're going to be carrying on a day to day basis in your kit bag (on most trips, kit you don't need during the day is transported by Mules for you). Figure out what this weighs and complete your training walks with this weight as an absolute minimum on your back. One of my top training tips to anyone training for a hiking challenge is to 'Overload' their pack so you actually train with more than you'll be carrying on the trek. It's a superb way to build leg and core strength, and when you get trekking and your bag feels lighter than what you're used to, you're laughing.
Are you doing Toubkal in Winter?
If the answer is yes, then you will want to increase the benchmark requirement. I would either say 3 x 15km days with 1000m a day, or 2 x 20km days with 1500m a day.
On a winter trip you will be wearing heavier boots, carrying additional equipment such as crampons, ice axe and helmet, and the ground conditions will be more demanding (especially if there is soft snow).
As well as being able to wear winter boots and carry the technical kit, I'd recommend getting familiar with the skills required before your trip too if you can. It isn't absolutely essential, as we put time aside to train people, and we have our second 'Acclimatisation Day' on which you'll get more time on crampons, but it does remove one unknown element from the trip for you. Check out our company Lakeland Mountain Guides for UK based winter skills courses.
Supplementary Training
Specificity is key, so getting out hiking will be the best training for you. However, if you don't have easy access to the hills you'll want to supplement your training too.
You may wish to do this by walking (with a weighted pack or vest), running, biking, Stairmaster or any other form of cardio machine.
Adding in some resistance / weight training also goes a long way, with particular reference to injury prevention and muscular strength. We have some free downloadable Fitness Plans here, or you can reach out to us at Summit Push Fitness to get a bespoke training plan designed for you.
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