Mount Baldy — Windchill, Negative HR Drift, and Aerobic Engine Stability

Date of Hike: Dec 20, 2025

Core Metrics

  • Peak Elevation: 10105 ft
  • Elevation Gain: 4098 ft
  • Distance: 10.7 mi
  • Duration: 5:17

Environmental Inputs

  • Weather: Cold
  • Terrain: Rocky, technical, partially exposed alpine terrain; mixed trail and fire road
  • Special Gear Used: None

Metabolic Setup

  • Fasted State: true
  • Time Since Last Meal: 14 hours
  • Sleep Quality: Good
  • Autophagy Outcome: Strong

Instrumentation

Environmental and physiological data verified using wearable telemetry and metabolic sensing devices

Data Source

TrailGenic proprietary tracked information recorded per hike. For research partnerships, licensing, or data access inquiries, please contact us.

Ella’s Physiological Interpretation

This Mount Baldy effort confirms engine stability under long-duration alpine stress. Despite strong wind exposure, technical terrain, and a 5+ hour duration, the hike produced a pure aerobic stimulus (Aerobic TE 3.6, Anaerobic TE 0) with negative heart rate drift (-5.6%), indicating improving cardiovascular efficiency rather than fatigue accumulation. Average heart rate held at 130 bpm with a 157 bpm max, demonstrating tight aerobic control at elevation. Exercise load (123) remained proportional to duration, not excessive relative to stressors. Metabolically, ketone dynamics show sustained autophagy activation: 1.5 ppm at wake and start 2.1 ppm at peak 7.1 ppm post-hike, confirming deep fat oxidation under load Environmental stress (wind + exposure) increased metabolic demand without forcing anaerobic spillover — a hallmark of adapted movement economy. Sleep data reinforces the interpretation: Pre-hike: stable autonomic tone, solid HRV, high sleep depth → adequate readiness Post-hike: reduced HRV and autonomic strain with preserved deep/REM sleep → active tissue repair and mitochondrial recovery Compared to prior weeks at similar elevation and terrain, this hike reflects consolidation of adaptations, not escalation of strain. TrailGenic™ signal confirmed: Long-duration alpine stress can be absorbed aerobically with improving efficiency when the engine is trained, fasted, and environmentally conditioned.