A LIFTON man is poised to enter the Guinness Book of Records after trekking up the Himalayas to hold the highest-ever fitness class at over 6,000 metres.

Heath and fitness coach Matt Luxton made the challenging attempt in Nepal earlier this month, as he trekked up Mera Peak, which stands 6,476 metres above sea level.

He and friend Tim Megginson, were part of a team who held a fitness class at just above 6,000 metres on the way to the summit.The trip saw Matt trekking for ten days up the mountains, battling the shortness of breath which makes the climb all the more challenging the higher you climb.

He was raising money for research into Motor Neurone Disease, as one of his mother’s closest friends has recently been diagnosed with the condition. He is also supporting the charity as a former rugby players, as a number of rugby players are being diagnosed with the condition.

Matt set himself the target of raising £3,000 for the Motor Neurone Disease Appeal, and has exceeded this, raising £3,702 so far.

Matt, 36, is no couch potato, regularly taking part in triathlons, but he found the trip a challenge due to the altitude; some of his team had to turn back due to altitude sickness.

He said: ‘It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life, without a shadow of a doubt. When things are tough now, when I’m training, I will be able to draw back on the experience.’

He said he undertaken the challenge because it was ‘outside his comfort zone’.

‘Being part of a group of people that came together with a common goal, who didn’t know each other before – from Sweden, Australia, Canada and the UK and from Nepal, was really nice,’ he said. ‘We did the record at 6,039 metres and then came back and slept overnight in our tent before we were to go to the summit the next day. There was so much snow, though, they called the next attempt off and we had to wait for six hours before we tried again and we were the only six people at the summit. At times we couldn’t see a few metres in front of us.’

He confessed that in fact the fitness class itself was plain sailing compared to the final stretch to the summit, at 6,457 feet.

‘The total distance covered was not more than two miles but it was really tough walking and we had to stop every few minutes. That was hard.’

To sponsor Matt, see: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Matt-Luxton-Mera-Peak.