A product of the collaboration between a sports physiologist and mountain sports enthusiast and one of the world's most distinguished mountain-sport athletes, this study examines the main body systems involved in exercise at high altitudes, discussing their capacity for adaptation and their limits. It looks at some of the common problems that affect high-altitude athletes, including bronchial hyperresponsiveness, hypoxia, and oxidative stress, and presents essential anatomical and physiological elements clearly and concisely through annotations and full-color photographs and figures. Each chapter also features Kilian Jornet's comments on his strategy for dealing with his own body's limitations and his training regimen, which he supplements with physiological data.

Author Biography

Fabienne Durand is a professor in the department of science and techniques of physical activities and sports at the University of Perpignan Via Domitia in France and the director of the research laboratory Performance Sante Altitude. Kilian Jornet is one of the world's foremost mountain runners, mountain bikers, and ski mountaineers. He is a three-time champion of the Skyrunner World Series and the winner of the 2011 Western States Endurance Run, a 100-mile ultramarathon that takes place in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains.