If you do three consecutive years, you won't really need to worry about getting in shape, just staying in shape during the off seasons (I assume you won't be hiking in the winters). If you live in the south, you can still get outdoors to hike. If you live in the north, then treadmills and stair steppers are the way to go if you can't stand the cold (like me). The bigger concerns, at least for me, are personal health and money. Injuries and sickness happen, so you have to avoid those. And you need to make sure you're insured while on the trail. You also won't have much, if any, income for 3 years. That's tough. I have an AT thru-hike slated for 2015 and a PCT thru-hike for 2016, but it's already tough on me financially. Things keep popping up and eating into the PCT fund.

For general long distance hiking, here are some of my favorite books:

Andrew Skurka

Michelle Ray

Jan Curran

The Logues

Related categories:

Reddit mentions of The Appalachian Trail : How to Prepare for & Hike It

idea-bulb Interested in what Redditors like? Check out our Shuffle feature

Found 1 comment on The Appalachian Trail : How to Prepare for & Hike It:

Interested in what Redditors like? Check out our Shuffle feature