Kilimanjaro Climbing Fitness

Kilimanjaro Climbing Fitness

Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa. With all the information you have, added to being physically prepared, your chances of reaching the summit is substantially increased. The tests of physical endurance and mental stamina will determine, to great extend, whether you will be successful in you quest to conquer the Roof of Africa. Being physically prepared for the trek will also greatly contribute and make a world of difference to the most valuable benefit of your preparation– your mental confidence and strength!

How fit do you have to be to climb Mount Kilimanjaro?

The type of fitness is more important than the degree of fitness. Kilimanjaro is a hike, so the best preparation you can do, is to hike, preferably under simulated conditions. While running helps to some degree, it does not fully prepare your muscles for a strenuous 6-day hike. We suggest that you spend some of your training time by simply walking. Going for walks, in addition to regular gym work in order to also stimulate some muscle development, has proven to be the most successful preparation. Try to do a one or two day local hiking trial in your area, which will not only be an excellent way of preparation, but also most enjoyable.
We have therefore developed a practical (in terms of time and costs) fitness preparation guideline, which we will assist you greatly in preparing your body for your Kilimanjaro summit attempt. This guideline contains both a gym as well as a hiking program which should be followed simultaneously over an 8 week period.

Important points to remember – Before you start!!

Medical Check-up

Before embarking on a fitness program, it is always wise to seek the approval of your family doctor. By all means show him this program so that he can see exactly what you are talking about. Chances are that he will be delighted that you will be exercising regularly.

Progressive Resistance

In essence this gym fitness program consists of regular performance of progressive resistance exercises with either free weights (barbells and dumbbells) or free weight machines as found in gymnasiums. The idea behind progressive resistance is that your exercise can be tailored to your age, conditioned and strength and progressing to higher resistance or weights as you develop.

Safety Factor

Because progressive resistance movements are tailored to your strength levels the program is potentially safe. However it is essential that all the exercises are performed correctly and that the basic safety procedures are followed. It is always a good idea to invest in a book on physical fitness or to ask the local gymnasium instructor to show you how to perform each exercise correctly and safely.

Sets and Reps

Your workout is made up of repetitions (reps) and sets. A rep is a single count of an exercise. — I.e. going down for one squad movement. If you perform a series of reps (the average is 10 to 12) and then stop for a breather, this is known as a set.

Warm Up

You should always warm up your muscles before any exercising routine. This means putting your body through a variety of stretches to warm up, strengthen and progressively challenge the tendons, ligaments, joints and muscles. Stretching is very important; it’s the best way to prepare you for an injury-free workout.

Gym program – eight weeks guideline
Exercise Monday Wednesday Friday
  Sets Reps Sets Reps Sets Reps
Stretching and warming up 5 minutes 5 minutes 5 minutes
Leg developing aerobics
Cycling 10 minutes 10 minutes 15 minutes
Leg combination
Squats 3 12 4 12
Leg presses 4 12
Thighs isolation
Leg extensions 3 10 3 10 4 10
Leg curls 3 10 3 10 4 10
Lower legs isolation
Calf raises 3 20 3 20 4 20
Toe pulls 3 20 3 20 4 20
Lower back combination
Hyper extensions 3 12 4 12
Good morning exercise 3 12
Abdominal
Crunches (upper) 2 20 2 20 3 20
Leg raises (lower) 2 20 2 20 3 20
Leg developing aerobics
Stairmaster / climbing 10 minutes low resistance 10 minutes high resistance 10 minutes low resistance
Stretching and cool down 5 minutes 5 minutes 5 minutes
Total time 1 hour 15 minutes 1 hour 15 minutes 1 hour 15 minutes

Other important gym guidelines

The above represents a guideline and can be adapted to your time schedule and current fitness level, but it will give you an good idea of which muscles you should concentrate on.

Unfit people should utilise light weights during the first two weeks of this program.

To stimulate sufficient muscle growth and development, the weights should be increased progressively at least every two weeks.

For effective muscle development every muscle or muscle group should be given a resting and recuperation period of at least 48 hours after every strenuous exercising session if weights where utilised.

It is important to execute the various exercises in the same order as listed above.

The above program can be adapted for home gymnasiums – we will gladly advise you on request.

If time permits it always a good idea to include some upper body development exercises in your program, in order to achieve a more balanced and overall body development.

Walking program

It is advisable to go for frequent walks which should include some uphill and down hills sections. Take your daypack with you and carry at least three litres of water or three kilograms with you. This will simulate the conditions you will encounter. As mentioned before, doing a one or two day local hiking trial in your area is not only an excellent way of preparation but also most enjoyable. We have developed an adequate hiking programme of least 8 weeks to ensure an adequate level of fitness.
If your local weather conditions do not always permit outdoor activities, you can do part of it on a treadmill and simulate the flat, uphill (inclined) and downhill (declined) sections. Terminate your hiking program at least 4 days before you’re the start of your summit attempt to ensure sufficient rest before the climb.

Walking program – eight weeks
Week one
Tuesday Thursday Sunday
Warm up and stretch 8 minutes 8 minutes 8 minutes
Walk
Flat terrain – 4,5 kms per hour 10 minutes 10 minutes 10 minutes
Walk – lower leg development
On heels, toes lifted 3 minutes 3 minutes 3 minutes
On toes, heels lifted 4 minutes 4 minutes 4 minutes
Walk
Flat terrain – 4,5 kms per hour 40 minutes 40 minutes 40 minutes
Stretch and cool down 5 minutes 5 minutes 5 minutes
Total time 1 hour 10 minutes 1 hour 10 minutes 1 hour 10 minutes
Week two to three
Tuesday Thursday Sunday
Warm up and stretch 8 minutes 8 minutes 8 minutes
Walk
Flat terrain – 4,5 kms per hour 10 minutes 10 minutes 10 minutes
Walk – lower leg development
On heels, toes lifted 3 minutes 3 minutes 3 minutes
On toes, heels lifted 4 minutes 4 minutes 4 minutes
Walk
Flat terrain – 4,5 kms per hour 40 minutes 40 minutes 30 minutes
Uphill – 2 – 3 kms per hour N/A N/A 20 minutes
Downhill – 5 – 6 kms per hour N/A N/A 10 minutes
Stretch and cool down 5 minutes 5 minutes 5 minutes
Total time 1 hour 10 minutes 1 hour 10 minutes 1 hour 30 minutes
Week four to eight
Tuesday Thursday Sunday
Warm up and stretch 8 minutes 8 minutes 8 minutes
Walk
Flat terrain – 4,5 kms per hour 10 minutes 10 minutes 10 minutes
Walk – lower leg development
On heels, toes lifted 3 minutes 3 minutes 3 minutes
On toes, heels lifted 4 minutes 4 minutes 4 minutes
Walk
Flat terrain – 4,5 kms per hour 40 minutes 30 minutes 50 minutes
Uphill – 2 – 3 kms per hour N/A 20 minutes 40 minutes
Downhill – 5 – 6 kms per hour N/A 10 minutes 20 minutes
Stretch and cool down 5 minutes 5 minutes 5 minutes
Total time 1 hour 10 minutes 1 hour 30 minutes 2 hours 20 minutes

The above training programme will prepare you physically for Kilimanjaro to the extent that you are capable of hiking 100 kilometers in one week. If you are fit enough for this, rest assured that your body will still give you more when you need it. If you follow the guidelines for both the gym training as well as the walking routine, you are definitely ready for Kilimanjaro physically. You can now concentrate on being mentally ready, but chances are…

Scroll to Top