Here’s The Ultimate Training Guide For Hiking!

Yes, I know what you’re going to say about hiking. Something like: “Isn’t the ultimate training guide just to walk longer

and further? I mean, that’s all hiking is, right?”

The short answer: if you want to build your chest, do you only do

pushups?

Okay, bear with me!

Overview Of How Hikers Should Train

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Building “hiking strength” in your core and lower body

Most hiking is simply the work of our lower halves. Sometimes our backs and arms are used, but it’s nowhere near as frequent as our core and legs.

Increasing stamina

In those same muscle groups, as well as the lower back and shoulders, we get worn out pretty quickly. Hiking – especially the kind of hikes that people train for – can be an all-day activity. There are a few around where I live that go on for multiple days. Now, that’s crazy, but I’m sure you get my point: stamina’s important!

Incorporating a fair amount of cardio

Now this might seem like the same thing as the previous bulletin, but it comes with different types of exercise. The thing is, people tend to shy away from the word “cardio” because they instantly think of gasping for air on a run or cycling for an hour on one of those in-home cycles with a lady on your tv yelling “Keep those knees going, ladies!”. In reality, though, cardio just means “a constant exertion of energy”, and this, to us who’d prefer not to overdo it, should sound like music to our ears. I’ll explain below.

Lastly, get that ninja balance!

Balance is so important for hiking. Think of all the amazing places you get to see and experience while on a hike – now think of all the times you’ve been near the edge of a huge drop or were walking across some slippery stones. I hope you were okay during those times, but not everybody is. Balance makes the difference between fun and fatal!

Core And Lower Body Strength Training For Hiking

The best thing you can do for your legs is use them in their full range of motion. Here’s a list of the things that’ll build your muscles and get you feeling up for any hike you may face!

• Squats
• resistance band exercises
• calf raises
• lunges
• stairs
• Stretching the right way

Check these out, build your own routine that works for you, and get those gains!

Each of these exercises should help build muscle in your legs, but figuring out how to stay consistent in training is the key, as well as making sure you’re taking steps to reduce the chances of injury.

When it comes down to the core and lower back, these are the all-encompassing exercises that are going to get you in better shape, making hikes much easier:

(P.S. The list I get here is from a well-done article you can find here)

• Plank. The plank is a perfect start to your core strengthening journey; with minimal movement, this exercise can be adapted to something harder or easier depending on how you feel. …
• Reverse crunch
• Bird Dog Crunch
• Bicycle Crunch – Sitting
• Glute Bridge

Try these, and also check out the videos shown in the article. Having a strong core is necessary for almost all activities in life, but especially for hiking long trails!

Here – Take Some Endurance!

Don’t Worry, It’s Free!

In the long run (get it?) your endurance is going to come from a continuous push to go further. There aren’t a lot of shortcuts – none that I’ve been able to find anyway – that magically give you more stamina.

To build your stamina, you really only need to focus on four things:

#1 Embrace the benefits of physical exercise!

Exercising at any level will indeed increase your stamina. Your body breaks down muscle to build it up stronger and better than before, allowing it also to be able to withstand more exertion.

In a study by the NIH, it states that when individuals are exposed to regular physical training, they “improve peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak), increases capillary density of working muscle, raises blood volume and decreases heart rate during exercise at the same absolute intensity”.

Don’t just leave it to a treadmill or some sit-ups! Taking care of the whole body will make anyone a better hiker!

#2 Hiker Polymetrics

Any exercise that is short, fast, and explosive, allowing you to generate maximum force in the muscle in the shortest period of time – that is polymetrics.

The reason this is so good for us, and why you should incorporate it into your stamina training, is because it forces you to exert maximum force in short periods of time, which improves your ability to store energy between each eccentric and concentric contraction.

This is really such a cool tool to use for acquiring more endurance!

#3 Make rest your priority!

As with any training program, doing too much and not allowing time for rest actually works against you.

News Medical says it perfectly, here’s a snippet from their article on the importance of rest:

“Everyone thinks you need to ‘practice, practice, practice’ when learning something new. Instead, we found that resting, early and often, may be just as critical to learning as practice,”

So push yourself! but don’t forget to let your body recover and become stronger periodically!

#4 Ride the wave of consistency!

When we workout, our muscles get tight and, in a day or so, they begin to feel sore and hurt. Depending on the amount of pain, it could make any one of us not want to work out again.

Consistency fixes this problem.

The more we use our muscles, the stronger they get and the more they adapt to the pressure we’re putting them under. If you train in little inconsistent spurts, then you’re not doing yourself much of a favor, since your body can’t adapt without enough time.

This doesn’t mean you train for three hours a day six days a week – a little bit will do just fine. Just make sure it’s constant.

Engage In Cardio: It’s The Anthem Of Vitality

Doing cardio is one of the best ways we can exercise our bodies.

There’s some kind of weird stigma against doing cardio – mostly, I think, because it takes a lot of energy out of us and makes us sweaty, smelly, and tired. I get that.

What isn’t talked about often enough is how simple cardio can be.

I’ll explain what I’m talking about:

It’s a beautiful phrase called Moderate Intensity. Moderate-intensity cardio is the kind of cardio you would find yourself performing on a hike. It’s nothing major, it’s not going to get you really out of breath nor cause a lot of stink and sweat – but by and large it is amazing for you.

So what kind of exercises am I talking about here?

Exercises like cycling, swimming – and yes, hiking. In fact, to train yourself to be a better hiker, my suggestion is to focus a lot of your cardio specifically on trails around your area. a bike and a pool are great tools for cardio (as are many other things), but you’re training to hike, so fill up your water bottle, maybe put some headphones on, and hit some smaller, easier hikes near you on a consistent basis.

Some of the benefits of training with moderate intensity are:

And these aren’t even all I could list!

As you can see, cardio can be manageable, simple, and actually pretty fun! Try it out and I think you’ll find there’s nothing to be hesitant over.

Make Sure That Training For Hiking Is Balanced

One of the most important things for a hiker to be good at is a firm balance.

Especially on longer hikes, when your legs, shoulders, and back are about at their limit, you’re prone to having a weaker balance, and this can obviously risk leading to injury.

Watch this video and practice what it preaches.

Once you have your balance, you’re going to be in a really good place in all future hiking ventures.

I hope this article helped you! Please let me know if you have any questions or comments, and thanks for reading this far!

Have a great day!