My “training” for Whitney did not stray far from my day to day and week to week training. I continued with my 5-6 day of strength training, in which 3 of these were dedicated to lower body strength and endurance.  I ran 3-6 mi, 1-2 days per week, and hiked at least 1 day per week on local mountains and trails, including Camelback Mountain and Piestewa Peak. These two mountains were great and were able to mimic the steepness/grade of Whitney, but at a fraction of the distance and elevation gain. If you don’t have access to altitude for training, there are a few strategies to mimic the depleted oxygen you will experience at 14,000 ft. One strategy I used was strict nasal breathing with zone 1- zone 2 cardio. Think stair stepper or walking on a treadmill with incline, aiming for a heart rate of 135 bpm only breathing in and out of your nose.  Another strategy is to exhale all your air, hold your breath and perform body weight exercises (push ups, squats, jumping jacks) until failure. This will improve your body’s ability to adapt to functioning with less oxygen.