Guest Post: Training for the Alps

This blog post is coming to you from Elena Sierra, HML member/resident badass, sent directly from her September 2025 walk across the Alps. 

Now retired and having spent the last nearly two years doing circuit and weight training at Human Movement Lab in addition to my walking, I am having a very different experience than when I walked the West Highland Way in Scotland in June 2023—a beautiful adventure of progressive rocks and hills through the Scottish highlands. At that time, I thought as a longtime runner I was prepared and ready for the physical challenge for Scotland, but as the walk, elevations, and distances increased each day, even as someone that considered myself “fit” I struggled along. I finished that hike, but many parts were harder than they should have been and I was terribly slow, and feeling a lot of aches and pains.

THIS time, as I spend hours walking along and cranking up this hilly, gorgeous terrain, it feels much different. I think about all of the time and energy invested to prepare for this adventure, to make it feel so doable and to feel my body feeling so capable. 

We spent much of the last year planning this walking adventure to experience the Austrian alps and cross borders from Germany to Austria and to finish in Merano, Italy. Each day consists of walking an average of 12 miles, mostly elevation—big beautiful, intimidating hills—and I’m doing it happily and without much difficulty and pain, because I spent the last year and a half training.

As I crank up and down hills I think about what time, energy I’ve invested to get me here since December 2023. With more time, now retired, I have worked out 4-6 days weekly at Human Movement Lab. The workouts have been hard. Those 20 months of ~ 15,000 squats, planks, side planks have made an enormous difference in each step. All 3 days so far have constantly called upon the step ups, lunges, RDLs, and core work.  And there is always the upper body work to use the walking poles to negotiate the tricky and slippery elevation changes along single track paths. Each day when having to go up and over a fallen tree trunks, big rocks, I can call upon my BAM (HML's Balance Agility Mobility class) skills. Feeling sure-footed, better-balanced, mobile-hipped, and more confident has made a huge difference. Today’s elevation change was a steep 800m (2624 ft) over 3 km and without HML strength training I would have struggled. Not today!

Day 4’s stretch—Umhausen to Längenfeld—had the biggest, longest hill climb. This taller, longer ascent climbing over 2000 ft in roughly 3.8 miles was followed by a steep descent to the valley floor. We trucked up along the trails, some with little shoulder and with one slip, toast, game over. I was soaked within the first half hour, but content while listening to my audiobook “ The Berry Pickers”( a beautiful story), and thinking about gluteal engagement and gratitude.

The following day we were feeling weary and leery of 9 miles of virtually all uphill hiking with an elevation change of ~2000 ft. At breakfast meeting we all agreed to take a down day, recover and take time to see the gorgeous ski town of Sölden. We happily followed our host’s suggestions to take the gondola to the peak of the Gaislachkogl (10,000 ft)  and then bus to enjoy some Kaiserschmarrn, warm corn pancakes with powdered sugar and jam that gets its name from Austrian emperor Franz Joseph who was fond of the dish. We then took time to enjoy the alpine spa at our next hotel. One day of recovery, a swim and a massage made an enormous difference and I felt ready for our last day of alpine hiking. Balance, some rest and recovery—coaching advice from Coach Kim. We were back on our feet good as new.

In any case, the views here are magnificent, inspiring and intimidating as I look ahead each day to understand how we will walk out to our next destination— bigger, fatter, meaner hills as we head towards the Italian border.

The people are lovely, the beer is delicious. I will keep drawing upon my HML gains and hope for the best finish. It’s a surprise each day that my legs keep adjusting to the progressive muscle stress. My pack even felt lighter today!

Happy moving,

Elena