Ever wondered how elite athletes get that extra edge? Sometimes, it’s not just about what they do in the gym, but where they do it. You’ve probably heard whispers about high-altitude training, athletes heading up to the mountains to train where the air is thin. But is it just for the pros? And can it really help with building pure strength, not just endurance?
Let's break down the science and see how training up high can seriously push your fitness to a new level.
So, What Exactly is High-Altitude Training?
It’s pretty much what it says on the tin: training at heights above 2,000 metres (around 6,500 feet). Up there, the air is less dense. For every breath you take, you get less oxygen than you would at sea level. This makes your body work a lot harder to supply your muscles with the oxygen they need, and that’s what kick-starts some amazing changes.
Your body is incredibly smart. When it senses this oxygen shortage, it starts adapting to become way more efficient. These changes have a huge impact on your performance, not just for marathon runners but for anyone looking to improve their strength and endurance.
How Does It Actually Work?
The magic behind training in thin air is all about how your body responds to the challenge. It learns to do more with less.
It Makes Your Blood Better
The single biggest change is that your body starts making more red blood cells. Think of red blood cells as a fleet of tiny delivery vans, carrying oxygen from your lungs to your muscles. When you’re in a low-oxygen place, your body panics a little and sends out an order to build more vans. A hormone called EPO gets released, telling your bone marrow to get busy.
When you come back down to normal altitude, you suddenly have this massive, upgraded fleet of delivery vans. Your body becomes a super-efficient oxygen-delivery service. For endurance, that means more stamina. For strength, it means you recover faster between sets and don’t get tired as quickly during your workout.
It Gives Your Heart a Workout
Your heart gets a serious training session, too. At altitude, it has to pump harder to get oxygenated blood around your body. Over time, this makes the heart muscle itself stronger and more efficient, just like lifting weights makes your biceps stronger. This improved heart function is a massive bonus for any kind of activity, from a long cycle to a heavy set of deadlifts.
The Strength Gains from High-Altitude Training
It’s famous for helping endurance athletes, but training at altitude has some real benefits for anyone focused on building strength.
You Can Go for Longer
One of the first things people notice is that their muscle endurance improves. Because your body gets so good at using oxygen, your muscles can work for longer before they start to burn out. This is a huge help when you’re doing high-rep sets of exercises like squats or bench presses. It helps you grind out those last few reps where the real muscle growth happens.
You Bounce Back Quicker
Better oxygen delivery also means faster recovery. When your muscles are flooded with oxygen-rich blood, it helps flush out all the waste products that make you feel sore. This means you recover faster, not just between sets, but between workouts. If you can hit your next session feeling fresh, you can train harder and more often. A comprehensive system like the Speediance Gym Monster 2 is great for this, as it lets you track your performance so you can see exactly how your recovery and work capacity improve over time.
How It Supercharges Your Endurance
This is where high-altitude training first made its name. For runners, cyclists, and anyone who needs to keep going, the benefits are massive.
It Boosts Your VO2 Max
VO2 max is just a fancy way of saying the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use when you’re going all out. It’s a key measure of your aerobic fitness. By making more red blood cells, altitude training allows your body to suck in and use more oxygen, which can give your VO2 max a serious boost. A bigger VO2 max means you can go harder for longer before you hit the wall.
You Get a Bigger Engine
Training in thin air basically forces your body to upgrade its entire system. Your muscles grow more tiny blood vessels (capillaries) to deliver oxygen, and they get better at pulling that oxygen out of the blood. It all adds up to a bigger, more powerful aerobic engine. For long-distance athletes, that means holding a faster pace for longer without feeling like you’re about to blow up. A machine like the Rowing Bench 2.0 is perfect for building this kind of engine, giving you a full-body workout that really tests your heart and lungs.
It Pushes Your Pain Threshold
We’ve all felt that burn in our muscles when we’re pushing hard. That’s lactic acid building up. Your lactate threshold is the point where you’re making it faster than your body can clear it. Training at altitude helps your body get better at dealing with this acid, which means you can push at a higher intensity for longer before the burn makes you slow down.
How Can You Actually Try This?
Most of us don’t live up a mountain, but there are still ways to get the benefits.
Start Slow
Whether you find a specialised altitude gym or use an altitude mask, the key is to ease into it. This kind of training is a big shock to the system. Start with shorter sessions and a lower simulated altitude to see how you feel. It’s totally normal to feel much more out of breath than usual.
Mix It In
You don’t need to do all your training at altitude. A popular method is to do it in blocks. You might use an altitude mask for your cardio sessions for a couple of weeks to get the blood-boosting benefits, then go back to your normal strength routine at sea level.
Listen to Your Body
This is tough on the body, so recovery is more important than ever. If you feel dizzy, wiped out, or just not right, it’s a sign to back off. Don’t be a hero. Rest and hydration are vital to avoid overdoing it.
The Bottom Line
High-altitude training is a proven method for boosting your strength and endurance. By making your body more efficient with oxygen, it gives you a real performance advantage. Whether you’re a serious athlete or just looking for a way to smash through a plateau, it’s a powerful tool.
To support your training, having the right kit is key. A versatile Adjustable Bench is the cornerstone of any good strength routine. Smart gear like the Speediance PowerGrips can help you get more out of every rep, and a good Storage Rack keeps your space tidy.
If you’re ready to take your fitness to the next level, check out the full range of smart equipment at Speediance UK. If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch with our team.
