Awesome adventure! Acclimatization is definitely a big one to take into consideration hence the pauses you've planned carefully.
In regards to muscle strength you might find the following exercise useful:
Here's how I strengthen my knees, muscles & tissues for difficult dives that require strong paddling against the tide: I walk backwards! You can do this in a park and once you get a bit accustomed to it on the tread mill with an incline. BTW, this technique is also used as a prevention against dementia, Parkinson's and other brain related issues.
Thank you so much @kriszrokk for this useful tip. I had heard of reverse walking but never tried it. Since the time I read your comment, yesterday I gave it a shot. In the beginning it was confusing and slowly got accustomed to it on the steps. I am sure it is connected with many health benefits.
Please do share any such useful tips that you would have that will help me prepare better.
Hi Nainaz (@nainaztengra), I'm happy to share a few more training techniques/ strategies I deploy that could also help you increase your level of strength for the upcoming adventure.
I've been into sports all my life. By the age of 18 I had massive knee injuries and the 20 orthopedist I went to (except one!) suggested I undergo surgery. That was never an option for me! So I followed the advice of the "exception" and continued to strengthen my muscles and tendons to keep my knee in place. A few years later I picked up diving as it was less damaging for my knees. However, I kept searching for new methods and modalities to strengthen my body. A few years ago I came across a guy, a former professional basketball player who had several knee surgeries and still couldn't recover. He turned his back on traditional methods and developed hin own protocol. This guy now helps professional athletes who had massive injuries like torn Achilles etc. recover fast and without the need to undergo any type of surgery by using his methods. I've been using some of his exercises to strengthen my knees, back and overall posture. He is known under the name of "KneesOverToesGuy".
His YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/thekneesovertoesguy
His Medium account:
https://kneesovertoesguy.medium.com/
His website:
https://www.atgonlinecoaching.com/
You'll notice that he is BIG into walking backwards and he even developed a special treadmill designed exclusively for this purpose. His stuff works FAST, and it's extremely powerful.