A few weeks ago, in Part 1 of 3, I outlined a plan to get trail-ready for mtn biking (click here to read it).  Now it’s time to discuss hiking prep.  Hiking prep??  Don’t you just go hiking…?  Well, yes…that is one way to do it.  But I’ll argue that focusing on a few additional fitness components will go a long way towards making your hikes awesome (especially those last few miles!).  So, without further ado, I give you Part 2 of 3:  Get ready for the trails – hiking!

Walk…Everywhere…All the Time!

Hiking is basically walking, but with hills & a pack.  So, what better way to get ready for hiking than to walk…everywhere!  Get creative & use your Navigation program to plan out appropriate walking miles.  Then head out your front door!  Here are a few ways that I love to incorporate city walking:

• To dinner – Restaurants are everywhere from 1-2 miles to 5-6 miles away.  And bonus…you get a roundtrip out of it!  Also breaking up a longer walk – by eating dinner at halfway – is a great way to ease your body into bigger mileages.
• To the grocery store – Walking to the grocery store is a double benefit.  Not only do you get the walk, but you also get a bit of weight in your pack.  Since you’re only doing half your mileage with weight, this is another great way to ease your body into the rigors of hiking.
• To/from the airport – Yep, we often walk to & from the airport (we’re only 3 miles away).  It saves on parking and/or Uber costs AND it feels SO good to get some good exercise in before or after sitting on a plane!

Exercise Prescription:  1-4 hrs at 2-3 days/wk.

Lift Heavy Weights = Better Balance

Hiking takes place on uneven surfaces filled with obstacles ready to trip you up.  So, balance & proprioception are critical towards keeping you safe & making your experience more enjoyable.  Now you could train balance with all those crazy stability ball exercises…or you could just lift heavier weights.  Just think about the differences in your body’s engagement if you deadlift (click here for deadlift demos) 10 lbs vs 100 lbs.  To lift the heavier weight your core engages more, your little stabilizer muscles have to do more work to hold the weight in place & your ligaments & tendons get significantly stronger.  Not to mention you’re telling those muscles to step up the strength increases!  Add this all up & you’re on your way to better balance.

Exercise Prescription:  1-2 days/wk of 20-45 min

Don’t Forget About Cardio

Even though hiking is often done at lower heart rates (HR), you’re still going to have to go up at some point.  In order to minimize the fatiguing effect of those uphills, a regular cardio program is necessary.  Doing easy & hard efforts in swimming, biking & running are all great cross-training activities that will improve your body’s lung capacity as well as your ability to recover more quickly.

Exercise Prescription:  1-4 hrs at 2-3 days/wk.  Include easy nose breathing efforts AND harder intervals (15 sec to 08min).

Work on Those Hiking Skills

One of the best ways to make hiking more fun & less injury-prone is to improve your technical skills.  Learning to maintain focus, practicing stepping where you MEANT to, efficiently using trekking poles & working on techniques to control speed on downhills are all great ways to become a better hiker.

Exercise Prescription:  Every hike…all the time!

There you have it, folks!  Stay tuned for my final post on prepping for trail running!

Happy Training!

Coach Michelle

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