Resilience is like a muscle, one that we can all strengthen. On Saturday I took part in a 22-mile hike for the charity Macmillan, over the toughest terrain possible, the Jurassic coast (Weymouth to Corfe Castle), with 500m elevations at 75 degree angles in 30+ degree heat.

My friend and I took a steady pace, finishing in around 11 hours, having started at 7.30am. The highlight of the day was chatting to other walkers and helping many along the way.

The hills were so brutally steep, some people got physically ‘stuck’ and were in tears, unable to move.

We were able to help – either by giving water when people had run out, talking to lone walkers that were struggling with pain to distract them, and my friend Wendy helped a woman step by step down one of the steepest and hardest hill descents by letting her lean on her, while she used her trekking pole for support.

We were able to do this, and to complete the walk comfortably, for a few reasons.

Preparation. We had walked the hardest sections already as part of our training, so on the day there were no surprises. We knew exactly how hard it was going to be.

Training. We had adjusted our fitness regimes in preparation for the hills, with gym work on the stair-treader, runs, walks, you name it – we’d done it.

Equipment. We’d carefully considered what to wear and what to take. We’d tried everything out before the day, footwear, rucksacks, shorts, trekking poles to make sure we were as comfortable as possible. On the day (one of the hottest of the year) we carried extra water, more than we thought we’d need. We were each able to give away a bottle each to others that needed it and were glad to do so.

Teamwork. While we can build up our individual resilience with training and preparation, we are more likely to succeed with this if we share our efforts and progress. Our team group chat in the months leading up to the big day was a useful spur for all of us, and certainly made the whole experience hugely enjoyable.

For me, this was a perfect example of resilience, and the principles work in any setting. We can build up our resilience to challenges with the right preparation and planning, training to make sure the strength and skills are there, and on the day, being flexible and adaptive (my friend gave her trekking pole to the lady that needed it more), being supportive and kind, and remembering it wasn’t an individual race – it was more important that everyone finished at their own pace.