HikeStrong Podcast
The HikeStrong Podcast is where I share practical guidance on hiking, backpacking, and trekking preparation. Each episode blends fitness insight with real-world training strategies to help you build strength, endurance, and confidence for any trail.
I sit down with guests to break down how to train for demanding hiking, backpacking, and trekking goals using smart strength training, endurance training, and conditioning approaches. You’ll hear clear advice on altitude training, uphill training, and injury prevention, all woven into training conversations that support preparation for major destinations such as Kilimanjaro, Everest Base Camp, Rim to Rim, Tour du Mont Blanc, the Camino de Santiago, Patagonia, Machu Picchu, the Alps, and the Dolomites.
Because training is never one‑size‑fits‑all, I also bring listeners inside real programs. In select episodes, I interview clients in a deep‑dive format that reveals week‑by‑week training details — real data, real challenges, and real solutions — offering a clearer picture of how people actually prepare for hiking, backpacking, and trekking goals.
A cornerstone of my approach is elevation‑gain training. I believe that consistently building weekly elevation gain is one of the strongest predictors of success on any major adventure. In each episode, I share clear, actionable ways to develop that strength — even if you don’t have access to hiking terrain — so you can stay on track whether you train on hills, treadmills, stair machines, or step‑ups.
If you're preparing for a major trip, gearing up for a multi-day backpacking route, or building a long-term plan for tougher hiking or trekking challenges, you’ll find episodes that support every step of your training.
Beyond training, some episodes feature voices from across the hiking, backpacking, and trekking worlds — guides, operators, storytellers, and industry experts whose insights can shape how you think about adventure. These conversations broaden your perspective and influence your outdoor experiences, even when the focus isn’t directly on training.
Listen, train with purpose, share with your adventure partners — then take on at least one unforgettable hiking, backpacking, or trekking experience each year. Train | Hike | Repeat
I’m Marcus Shapiro, a hiking strength and conditioning coach and an early pioneer in online training for hiking, backpacking, and trekking, helping adventurers get physically ready for everything from local elevation goals to high-altitude expeditions.
HikeStrong Podcast
Inca Trail vs. Kilimanjaro: Training, Terrain, and What to Expect | HikeStrong | Ep. 39
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A hiker who completed both Mount Kilimanjaro and the classic Inca Trail to Machu Picchu compares the training, terrain, altitude, stairs, weather, guides, and gear.
A few months after summiting Mount Kilimanjaro, Alicia is back on the HikeStrong Podcast, this time after completing the classic Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
In this episode, Alicia and Marcus compare Kilimanjaro and the Inca Trail from the perspective of someone who has trained for and completed both. They discuss the biggest differences in training, altitude, terrain, stairs, descents, guide support, gear, weather, and mental challenge.
Kilimanjaro was higher, colder, and more physically demanding, especially with summit night at 19,341 feet. The Inca Trail was shorter, but Alicia found the endless uneven stone steps, rain, and constant need to watch her footing mentally demanding in a completely different way.
Alicia also shares how her Kilimanjaro training carried over, why stair training mattered so much for Peru, how balance work helped her feel more confident, and why she now has a deeper understanding of what her body can do.
If you are deciding between Kilimanjaro and the Inca Trail, wondering how to train, or questioning whether you are “athletic enough” for a big trekking adventure, this episode offers honest, practical perspective from someone who has been there.
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