High-Altitude Training Camp: A Practical Guide for Amateur Athletes

Every August, something strange happens to some of the fastest amateur cyclists and runners in Europe. They go quiet. Strava feeds dry up. Then, three or four weeks later, they're back — and something about their legs is different.

They've been to altitude. Sierra Nevada. St. Moritz. Font-Romeu. Livigno. Places where the air thins out, your heart hammers at paces that felt comfortable a month ago, and every run feels like someone swapped your lungs for smaller ones. You can check what that actually means in oxygen terms using the Oxymeter calculator before you go.

Is it worth doing if you're not racing professionally? Honestly — yes, if you do it right. And the "if you do it right" part is doing most of the heavy lifting in that sentence.

Does altitude training actually work for amateurs?

This is the right first question. And the honest answer is: it depends almost entirely on how you approach it.

A badly planned altitude camp — too short, wrong elevation, same training load you'd use at home — produces very little. You'll come back tired, maybe slightly demoralised, and wonder what the fuss was about. A well-planned one, though, can genuinely move the needle on your aerobic capacity, your VO2max, and how quickly you bounce back from hard efforts.

You don't need to be Kipchoge for this to work. You do need to understand the rules.

What altitude actually does to your body

When you gain elevation, the air gets thinner. At 2,000 metres, the partial pressure of oxygen is about 16% lower than at sea level. At 2,500 metres, the gap widens further. Your lungs are pulling in the same volume of air with each breath — they're just extracting less oxygen from it.

The body doesn't take this passively. It responds with a cascade of adaptations that are, if you think about it, genuinely remarkable:

The kidneys ramp up EPO production. Erythropoietin — the hormone that instructs bone marrow to produce more red blood cells. This is the same mechanism that doping tries to shortcut artificially. In a natural altitude camp, it happens within safe physiological limits, without side effects beyond the ones you earn through training.

Haemoglobin mass increases. More red blood cells means more haemoglobin — the protein that shuttles oxygen to working muscles. The practical result: your blood delivers more oxygen per heartbeat, per breath, per minute of effort.

The muscles adapt independently. Beyond the haematological changes, hypoxia triggers adaptations at a local level: capillary density increases, lactate processing becomes more efficient, aerobic energy production improves. These happen even when red cell count doesn't shift dramatically.

VO2max goes up. The cumulative effect of all the above is an increase in maximal oxygen uptake — the metric that, more than any other, determines endurance performance in running, cycling, and triathlon.

In real numbers: at 2,000 metres, blood oxygen saturation (SpO₂) typically drops to 94–96% for a healthy adult at rest, from the 98–99% you'd see at sea level. During hard exercise at altitude, it drops further still. That's the stress that sets everything above in motion.

The altitude sweet spot

Not all altitude is created equal. This is where a lot of amateur plans go sideways.

The sweet spot is 1,800–2,700 metres. Below that, you're mostly getting a change of scenery. Above 3,000 metres, sleep deteriorates, recovery slows, training intensity crumbles, and you're essentially paying a lot of money to feel worse for three weeks.

Higher isn't better. There's no prize for suffering the most.

How long do you actually need?

This is the part amateurs most consistently underestimate, usually because they're working around jobs, family, and the cost of staying somewhere for weeks.

Under 10 days. The haematological adaptations essentially don't happen. You might get some neuromuscular benefits and a genuine change of headspace. That's not nothing — but it's not altitude training in the meaningful sense of the phrase.

10–14 days. You're just getting started. EPO production kicks in within 24–48 hours of arriving at altitude, but the actual increase in red cell mass takes longer than that. Think of this as priming the system, not completing it.

Three weeks (21 days). This is the minimum duration the research literature consistently points to for meaningful haematological change. It's what people mean when they talk about a proper altitude camp.

Four weeks. The professional standard. For an amateur with a job and a family, four weeks is ambitious — but it's achievable if the camp lands in summer leave. Some people make it work.

One thing that often surprises people: the benefits last after you come home. The elevated red cell count holds for roughly 10–14 days before starting to decay. That matters enormously for race timing.

Live high, train low — and why it matters

The elite approach isn't to sleep and train at the same elevation. The "live high, train low" protocol has been standard in professional endurance sports for about thirty years, and the reasoning behind it is pretty simple.

You want maximum hypoxic exposure to drive the EPO response, which means as many hours as possible at altitude — including the hours you're asleep. But you also want to train hard, and training hard requires oxygen. The two goals pull against each other at altitude above a certain point.

In practice for an amateur: stay and sleep at 2,000–2,500 metres, and drop to 1,200–1,500 metres for quality sessions — intervals, threshold work, anything where pace and output actually matter. Long easy runs you can do at sleeping altitude. Recovery jogs too.

If the logistics don't allow for that (they often don't), training entirely at your sleeping altitude still works. You just need to adjust your paces down and accept that your splits will look slower than at sea level. They should be slower. That's correct.

The week-by-week structure

Week one: don't be a hero

The first week isn't for fitness. It's for not going home early.

When you arrive, the body is disoriented. Resting heart rate is elevated — sometimes by 10–15 bpm above your normal. Your breathing feels laboured at paces that were comfortable last week. You'll probably sleep badly for the first few nights. All of this is normal and temporary. What doesn't recover easily is the damage from ignoring it and training through the worst of it.

• Cut volume by 20–30% relative to what you'd do at home
• No quality sessions for the first three to five days. None.
• Drink significantly more water than usual — altitude air is dry and dehydration sneaks up on you
• Load up on carbohydrates; they require less oxygen to metabolise than fats
• Sleep as much as you can get away with

Week two: starting to build

By week two, the worst of the adjustment is behind you. You can begin bringing quality back — carefully.

• Reintroduce steady aerobic work and moderate-intensity sessions
• One or two medium-intensity sessions, but not at sea-level paces: those are still too ambitious and you'll pay for it
• Keep a close eye on heart rate. If it's still running high relative to your normal numbers, back off

Week three: where the work actually happens

This is the week things click. You're adapted, EPO production is close to its peak, and the body is genuinely ready to absorb real training stress.

• Full quality sessions back in — intervals, threshold blocks, race-specific work
• Recovery is still slower than at home, so be honest about how much you're absorbing
• This week is often when people feel best and start overtraining. Don't.

Coming home

The first 48–72 hours at sea level feel odd. A lot of athletes describe feeling flat, even sluggish — the blood is thicker than the body is used to, the system is recalibrating. This is normal and it passes.

Your peak fitness window is 10–20 days after returning. The increased red cell mass is fully active, and you haven't started losing it yet. Build your race calendar backwards from that window.

Where to go: the best European options

Sierra Nevada, Spain (1,900–3,200 m)

The closest thing Europe has to a purpose-built altitude training infrastructure. Granada is about an hour from the training zone by car, the climate is excellent from March through October, and the road up to Veleta — the highest paved road in Europe — gives cyclists effectively unlimited vertical. Runners have trails at every gradient. Estimated SpO₂ at typical training altitude (2,000–2,300 m): 93–96%.

St. Moritz, Switzerland (1,800 m)

The original. More middle-distance runners have prepared for world championships here than probably any other European location. The Engadin valley has terrain for every preference, infrastructure is polished, and the lake is a reasonable incentive for the off days. SpO₂ estimate: 95–97%.

Font-Romeu, France (1,800 m)

The French national altitude centre, and probably the best pure training environment in Europe if you're serious about running. Olympic athletics track, solid trails for cross-country and trail work, accessible from Spain or southern France. Not glamorous. Functional. SpO₂ estimate: 95–97%.

Livigno, Italy (1,816 m)

The Italian option. Under three hours from Milan, a good network of trails and roads for cycling, solid if unremarkable infrastructure. The altitude sits at the lower edge of optimal but is sufficient for real adaptations. Good choice if you want to stay in Italy and minimise travel. SpO₂ estimate: 95–97%.

Val Thorens, France (2,300 m)

Europe's highest ski resort becomes a summer training destination for trail runners and cyclists. The altitude is ideal for a live-high, train-low setup — you sleep at 2,300 m and work out at lower elevations. Fewer people around than in peak ski season, which some athletes find helpful. SpO₂ estimate: 92–94%.

Andorra — Pal Arinsal (2,000–2,500 m)

Less talked about in English-language running circles than it deserves to be. Widely used by professional Spanish and French athletes, with modern facilities, a favourable climate, and lower costs than Switzerland. SpO₂ at training altitude: 93–96%.

The mistakes that ruin altitude camps

Going too hard in week one. Athletes who ignore acclimatisation and train at home intensity from the first day regularly end up sick, exhausted, or on a flight home by day five. The ego cost of slowing down in week one is nothing compared to the cost of blowing three weeks of preparation.

Not staying long enough. A mountain weekend is great. It's not an altitude camp. Below ten days, you're leaving the real haematological benefits untouched.

Skipping the water. Altitude increases fluid loss through both respiration and sweat. You can become meaningfully dehydrated before you feel thirsty. Drink before you're thirsty. Don't stop.

Racing too soon after returning. The 48–72 hours immediately after landing are the worst possible time to race. The body is recalibrating. Wait. The peak is genuinely coming — you just need to let it arrive.

Going too high too fast. Above 3,000 metres without proper preparation, acute mountain sickness is a real risk — headaches, nausea, dizziness, disrupted sleep. If those symptoms appear, descend. Don't push through altitude illness.

Practical checklist

Before leaving:

• Target altitude confirmed: 1,800–2,500 m
• Duration locked in: minimum 14 days, ideally 3 weeks
• Post-camp window calculated: target race 10–20 days after return
• Accommodation booked at the right altitude — not in the valley because the hotel is nicer

During the camp:

• Week one: reduced volume, no intensity
• SpO₂ checked every morning at rest (a basic pulse oximeter is cheap and worth having)
• Carbohydrate and fluid intake increased from day one
• Eight or more hours of sleep prioritised — recovery is slower at altitude
• Weeks two and three: quality sessions reintroduced progressively

After returning:

• 48–72 hours before resuming serious training
• Target race scheduled 10–20 days out
• Notes kept: heart rate data, SpO₂ readings, how each week felt — you'll want this for planning the next camp

Frequently Asked Questions

How much oxygen is there at 2,000 metres?

At 2,000 metres, the partial pressure of oxygen is roughly 16% lower than at sea level. In terms of SpO₂, a healthy, fit adult will typically read between 94 and 96% at rest.

From what altitude does altitude training start to make a difference?

The hypoxic stimulus becomes meaningful at around 1,500–1,800 metres. Below that threshold the EPO response is negligible, though there can still be environmental and psychological benefits.

How long before a race should I do an altitude camp?

Plan your return 10–20 days before your target race. That window puts you right at the peak of post-altitude fitness.

Do I need a heart rate monitor for an altitude camp?

Strongly recommended. At altitude, both resting and exercise heart rate run higher than normal. Tracking it is the most reliable way to gauge when your body has adapted and when you can start pushing again.

Is it dangerous to do an altitude camp if you're not a professional athlete?

For healthy people without cardiovascular or respiratory conditions, a camp up to 2,500 metres is generally safe with a sensible progression. If you have any pre-existing medical conditions, check with your doctor before planning extended time at altitude.

Before heading up, use the Oxymeter calculator to estimate SpO₂ and oxygen availability at your target altitude. For more on managing hypoxia, see the guide on [acclimatization at altitude](/en/articoli/acclimatization-high-altitude and the overview of [altitude sickness](/en/articoli/altitude-sickness.