Do You Lose Weight Climbing Kilimanjaro?

As with all physical fitness and hiking activities, most people find that they lose weight while climbing Kilimanjaro. However, most of the weight loss is due to water loss and is only temporary.

Most people find that they gain the weight back quickly once they return home or when they indulge in post-summit food and drink!

You’ll most likely lose more weight during your training for Kilimanjaro than you will during the actual climb. Don’t be surprised if you shed a few kilograms though during your trek.

Why Do People Lose Weight While Climbing Kilimanjaro?

Kilimanjaro is a huge test of your physical endurance and you will find that you lose weight because of the long hours of walking you will do every day.

There are many different reasons why people lose weight during their climb.

Dehydration

We encourage you to drink 4-5 liters of water each day and we supply you with clean drinking water as part of the climbing price. However, even if you are drinking plenty of water, your body will dehydrate faster on the mountain because of the high altitude.

If you tend to sweat a lot, you will need to drink even more water because your body is losing fluids quickly.

At high altitudes, your breathing rate and pulse will also increase which forces your body to use more of it’s fluid reserves.

If you choose to take medications for altitude sickness, you will need to drink even more water because they act as a diuretic and cause your body to lose water quickly.

As with all physical activity, climbing Kilimanjaro means you will dehydrate faster than you would if you were just lying around on the couch. At high altitudes, your body dehydrates even faster so there is a greater need to ensure you drink the entire day.

Less Appetite

Climbing at high altitudes often decreases a person’s appetite. We serve you large portions of food though and encourage you to eat as much as possible because your body will need the extra calories during the climb.

Our food menu includes plenty of carbohydrates and protein as well as fruits and vegetables. We also give you snacks and hot drinks like tea and coffee.

While this might seem exciting, you will probably feel different once you’re at high altitude. Some people even don’t feel like eating at all.

Even if you push yourself to eat, you will most likely consume fewer calories than you are used to which makes you shed pounds faster than usual.

Less food coupled with more exercise means you’re now in a calorie deficit. Once you’re back down the mountain though, you’ll feel like eating and drinking as usual. This is why most people put the lost kilograms back on within a few weeks.

Burn More Calories

Even if you exercise and train for the climb, you will burn more calories while on the mountain than you do at the gym. Exercise at high altitudes also increases your heart rate and metabolic rate which means you burn calories faster.

This means on a normal day on the mountain you will burn around 3000 to 5000 calories. On summit day, you can burn as much as 7000 calories.

Each person is different though so it’s hard to tell exactly how many calories you may lose during your climb. However, since more calories are burned at high altitudes, you’re likely to see a difference in your weight once your climb ends.

Should I Lose Weight Climbing Kilimanjaro?

Although you’re bound to lose a few pounds while climbing, we do not recommend you try to lose weight during the climb. You need to eat as many calories as possible and focus more on summiting than losing weight.

Your goal should be to stay healthy and active, not to lose weight. During your training period before Kilimanjaro, you also want to focus more on strength training and improving your endurance.

If you’re exercising and training regularly for the climb, you will see yourself losing weight anyway, but this shouldn’t be your main goal.

People of all sizes and shapes can successfully summit Kilimanjaro as long as they put in the hard work and train before coming to Tanzania.

The Weight Loss Is Probably Temporary

Remember that most of the weight you lose while climbing Kilimanjaro is mostly temporary. It’s a result of dehydration as well as walking for hours each day.

Once you get off the mountain, your body will begin retaining water again to try and get back all the water it lost.

You will also have an increased appetite so you’ll find yourself eating more. Tanzania has tons of amazing dishes to try so make sure you try all the best local dishes once you see that your appetite is back.

Get Ready to Summit with Climbing Kilimanjaro

If you’re ready to start your preparation for climbing Kilimanjaro, contact us today and we can give you all the training and fitness steps you need!