A whale of a trail on Vancouver Island

I just got back from a stellar week hiking the West Coast Trail – 75 kilometres of blisters and bliss along trail originally built in 1907 to help shipwreck survivors access emergency shelter and a telegraph line. The hike is nothing if not scenic: at any given point, trekkers can expect to see wildlife like killer whales, black bears, cougars, and tidal shelves teeming with coastal organisms.

Vancouver Island, or the forest moon of Endor?

But access to the trail's rugged ocean means travelling through dense coastal rainforest, including some of Canada's oldest growth forest. In many places the West Coast Trail is a literal jungle gym that forces trekkers to scramble over giant tree roots, around deep mud bogs, rotten boardwalk, and kilometres of soft, pebbly beaches. Add to these feats of agility the trail's famous ladders and hand-operated cable cars and you can imagine how rewarding it is to witness killer whales cruising past your campsite over morning coffee.

Hiking under load on a clear, flat trail tests your body's core strength; success on a thru-hike that covers uneven terrain calls for strong cardiovascular fitness that keeps big, hard-working hiking muscles like your quadriceps oxygenated as you challenge new features.

With those principles in mind, enjoy this West Coast Trail-inspired workout, which could never truly pay tribute to this world-class trek without ladder intervals:

The Ladders Are The Best Part: Mike Fancie's West Coast Trail tribute workout (30 mins)

For details on how to perform each exercise, just click on the blue links for short video tutorials.

Warm-up (5 mins):

• Jog in place or in a circle (2 mins)

• High knees (30 seconds)

• Butt kicks (30s)

• Wide-legged squats (30s)

• Step-back lunges (30s)

• Trunk rotations (3x in each direction)

Workout (20 mins):

A ladder workout is an interval session that uses a "ladder" of increasing workout times to create a cardio challenge. Perform each exercise in this circuit without stopping; rest for 60 seconds after every circuit.

Circuit 1: 10s/exercise + 60s rest

Circuit 2: 20s/exercise + 60s rest

Circuit 3: 30s/exercise + 60s rest

Circuit 4: 40s/exercise + 60s rest

Circuit 5: 30s/exercise + 60s rest

Circuit 6: 20s/exercise + 60s rest

Circuit 7: 10s/exercise

• Mountain climbers

• Planks with shoulder taps

• Jump squats

• High knees with overhead punches

• 45-degree lunge

Cool down stretches (5 mins):

• Ankle rotations – lift one foot just off the ground. Rotate your ankle clockwise 7 times, then switch direction. Switch to the other foot and repeat the rotations.

• Toe raises – keep one leg straight as you push your bum back and bend your other, supporting leg at the knee. Reach toward your toes. Pull your toes toward the sky and feel the stretch along the back of your active leg. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds, then switch legs.

• Knee bends – grab one leg with your hand and pull your heel towards your bum. Push your hips out slightly to feel a stretch on the front of your leg. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds, then switch legs.

• Standing folds – with your legs shoulder width apart, reach down to one leg. If you can't touch it, focus on keeping your legs straight as you feel a stretch on the inside of your leg. Hold this stretch for 20 seconds, then touch the ground just in front of you and along your centre. Hold this stretch for 20 seconds, then repeat the first stretch on your other leg.