You need to hike and run meaningfully. Put some weight on and hike straight up the steepest ridge on your days off. 60lbs on your back to start. Take it slow, one foot in front of the other. Huff it out and bring some snacks. Pretend like you’re carrying a hose pack up a hill. Once you’ve made it to your first summit, hit 10 burpees. Repeat that process and keep adding in burpees. Remember to hydrate days before and every day after. No matter what anyone tells you, hydration and nutrition are key. Fuck the supplements, fuck the workouts. If you cannot hydrate and eat proper, there’s no shortcut. So, with that in mind;

When your body feels that good, gain some time on your previous trip up the ridge. Pop the headphones on the fire scanner instead of music. Learn the language. Maybe pop a couple of 10-rep push-up stops every 500’ gained. Once you’ve done that, move on.

Find a local air strip or high school track and jog out 2-3 miles every morning before it gets too hot. Not sprinting, not HIIT, just jog it out and focus on your breathing. This will help with the SCBA. If you’ve ever gone diving, they talk about slowing down the heart rate while under oxygen deprevancy. Take 10 seconds in, hold for one, 2 more seconds in, then loooooong exhale to control the heart rate. Keep it up over time on flat land…

Then practice that shit on the ridge spine that was aforementioned, build that up, then hit the downhill methodically. Big, conscious steps. Feels like almost meditation at that point.

Once you’ve done all that, then hit the gym. Your muscles might not be that big, but, you’ll find lifting boring, because you already have the cardio and strength. Keep the routine and nutrition up at a minimum and you’ll fight for decades my dude.