Minimum Age: 10 years

Past experience in trekking: Useful but not essential.

Fitness required: You need to be in good physical condition before the start of the winter camp. You should be able to jog 4 kms in 30 minutes before commencement of the trekking expedition.

A word on fitness. The Winter camp involves trekking on snow and skiing during harsh winter weather. It takes you to a high altitude of 12000ft  when walking on heavy snow.  At that altitude the air is thin and the conditions difficult.

Your physical fitness is important for a successful completion of the trek. Training yourself to get to a jogging distance of 4 km under 30 minutes makes your lungs strong and gives it ability to process less air for more work.

Here is an exercise schedule which will help you run upto 4 km in 30mins by 5 weeks

Week 1 : Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

Week 2: Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

Week 3: Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following:

• Jog 200 meters (or 90 seconds)
• Walk 200 meters (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 350 meters (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 350 meters (or 3 minutes)

Week 4 : Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:

• Jog 400 meters (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 200 meters (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 800 meters (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 400 meters(or 2-1/2 minutes)
• Jog 400 meters(or 3 minutes)
• Walk 200 meters (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 800 meters(or 5 minutes)

Week 5 : Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:

• Jog 1/2 km (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 400 meters(or 3 minutes)
• Jog 800 meters (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 400 meters(or 3 minutes)
• Jog 800 meters (or 5 minutes)

Flexibility Exercises

Flexibility is the ability of the muscles and tendons to relax and stretch easily.  It determines the amount of movement your bones can make in any direction around joints such as shoulders, elbows, hips and knees.  Stretching improves your posture and helps to prevent low back pain.  Stretching your hamstrings, quadriceps, hip flexors and low back muscles regularly, promotes relaxation in the tissues reducing the strain on your back.  On your trek, it is important that you arrive on the slopes with your muscles relaxed. Carrying a backpack, however light, can become a strain after a while. These exercises will help you to be in good shape before the trek.

Warm-up stretching exercises loosen tendons, increase blood circulation, and help prevent injuries during your workouts or any activity.  Cool-down stretching helps relieve muscle soreness and tightness.

A good way to prepare for the trek is to follow the exercise charts on this website: http://www.bodyresults.com/s2hiking-programs.asp.