Travelling to Machu Picchu and hiking the Inca Trail was on our “bucket list” for a long time. When our daughter suggested we should do it before we couldn’t (!) we booked it and then started working on making sure we were ready and able.
Valerie designed a training programme for us which started 5 months before we departed. A mix of aerobic and leg strengthening exercises with lots of variety were put together to ensure we had the stamina for long hiking days (6 – 7 hours per day) at high altitude (2800 – 4200m) with some long steep climbs, often up rough steps. The most challenging day of the hike involved a steep hike from 3100m to 4200m and back down to 3600m.
The programme was excellent and with the goal in mind was never too tough. Valerie made it interesting and was always thinking about how she could tweak it to make it as effective as possible. We supplemented her programme with long hikes in the Wicklow Mountains at weekends.
We did the hike with ease in early June 2018, the only challenge being some altitude sickness for a couple of days, but our strength and stamina were perfect. Valerie’s attention to detail and tailored programme did the trick.
Written by:Peter Gray
Client of BodyScene
