working out

hey
I was wondering if any of you exercise regularly, just leading up to a trip or not at all...

last year i lifted a lot of weights and my legs were pretty strong. i still work out fairly often but have not been doing my legs much at all. im wondering how this will affect my backpacking trips this summer. maybe the fact that im in good shape as a whole will be enough.

jake

Working out generally just makes you stronger. When I was in High School I worked out to the point that it even hurt to go hiking. Aerobic exercise that conditions the respiratory and cardiovascular systems is best for conditioning yourself for long strenuous activity. And of course that will help your strength some to along with your stamina.

I couldn't really say that I train specifically for backpacking and I try to avoid the gym as much as possible-- I find the whole experience in there very unenjoyable. Thus the only things that I do for "exercising" purposes are running and in the summer I will hit the pool.

I guess I manage to stay in shape partly because of my age and because I am active all year round-- skiing and snowshoeing in the winter, combined with trail running, hiking, biking etc the rest of the year.

Just yesterday for example I hiked the 10miles to the summit of Bergen Peak and back-- just for pleasure and things like this keep me in shape for those 7-13 mile days on the trail.

I find cycling a real good counterpoint to hiking. Keeps the lungs and legs active, and the bike has been getting me to work for the last forty years, so there is a day to day benefit.

I have been on the fitness roller coaster for over 30 years. I have been riding a bike indoors 3 - 4 times per week in a spin class, for going on three years now. I started in preparation for a Grand Canyon trip. Every ride has a different goal to achieve; hills, endurance, anaerobic threshold intervals, etc. I use a heart rate monitor to control my heart rate and to achieve each goal. It's the only form of exercise I have ever been able to sustain for this long.

The two benfits I have realized from my bicycling are the strength and endurance in my legs and my heart rate recovery time. I was recently in Mt Shasta snowmobiling in the back country. When anyone in the group gets stuck, everybody helps, and it usually involves postholing through waist deep snow. My heart rate would jump up as high as anybody else's, but my recover time was much quicker than most, including a few guys that were 20 years younger. Of course the locals that live and work at elevation are a different story.

I wouldn't lift weights for backpacking unless you are just a very weak person. I really don't think strength is an issue for most backpackers (as long as you aren't trying to carry a huge pack). In my experience of leading kids and adults on pack trips endurance is the key thing. If you look at most long distance backpackers they tend to be very slim and wiry.

I normally find that the new thin guys I take packing tend to way out-walk the big strong muscular types. Your body has to feed and supply oxygen to all of that muscle so the lighter you are means that your systems don't have to work as hard. You also might not have to carry as much food as you don't have to supply a larger amount of muscle mass (although your metabolism might change).

Think of backpacking as more of a marathon or bicycle race instead of a powerlifting event. The fast people that run marathons and do bike races tend to have low body fat and are not big and muscular. I do several thousand miles of riding a year and ride several long distance bike races every year. This keeps my body weight low and I feel like I can backpack all day without wearing out.

Work on endurance and not lifting....my $.02.

-Skippy

I don't "work out". Not ever. But I walk at least couple of miles pretty much every day. It seems to keep my muscle tone and cardio-vascular condition in reasonable shape.

Personally the best way for me to get ready for a trip is to do a series of day hikes with full pack (including water). My wife and I start day hiking every day (even if its just a mile or two on our local county park land) at least two weeks prior to leaving on a trip. I find that my legs and feet are usally fine, but the pre-trip dayhikes prepare my shoulders and lower back.

Jake, where are you planning on hiking this summer? We don't have a lot of hills here in MN, so if you are planning on a trip that involves a lot of elevation gain, I would focus on your legs and not rely on just walking or hiking local to get in shape. Lots and lots of stairs are part of my training. I also agree with skippy, endurance over any weight training...

I honestly can't remember when there was not a race or a major hike/climb of some kind in my immediate future. And I've been racing since I was 12. That was 40 years ago. Next month I have a rim-rim-rim Grand Canyon trip lined up and then a running race in Las Vegas. I have a 50 miler scheduled for May.

Having goals always gives me good motivation to work out. I probably couldn't stay in shape without them. I like to do a variety of different events so nothing ever gets stale.

I don't do many leg specific exercises in the gym. All of the road miles on foot or by bike take care of that. If I have a long kayak paddle coming up I usually spend more time on my upper body.

Gym workouts are good but there is no substitute for logging miles on the trail. When I have a long backpack trip coming up I load my pack to simulate what I'll carry and then go out and hike with it. Even though I'm in good shape no amount of running or cycling can simulate the exact demands of backpacking.

I think that no matter what you do to prepare(working out as you mentioned), when you introduce your muscles to a different activity (backpacking) than they are used to they take some time to adapt.

I've backpacked hard the last three summers and I'm a guy that (was) overweight and generally out of shape. But by the end of summer I'm always much leaner and meaner, and then I fall into the boozing and crappy diet routine as I party all winter. And then each spring I drop some lbs to get ready for another summer of backpacking.

Well this spring, I've really been serious about getting back into very decent shape for backpacking. In two months I've already day-hiked over 200 miles, dropped 20 pounds and am in the best shape I've been in over 15 years. I made a decision to stick to a fabulous diet and I've been hitting the weights pretty hard too, although I've mostly only done leg exercises and spent many hours on the stairmaster at the gym.

Some on this thread have said that lifting weights is not beneficial to backpackers but I COULD NOT DISAGREE MORE. On the types of trails I routinely BP (many 1000s of elevation gain and very rocky terrain), POWER is the name of the game. Cardio is obviously more important to backpackers but power is almost as important when you are rocketing up steep slopes that act more like steep staircases than smooth trails. When you are attacking a steep slope, those thousands of lunges and squats you did in the gym are going to PAY OFF FOR SURE.

And great cardio will only take you so far........think about when you're coming down that steep slope. Your quads are going to burn!! Again, those quad extensions you did all winter are going to pay off here.

I've only worked out now for two months and it's amazing how much more of a powerful backpacker I have already become. I still have a ways to go, but when I day hike in the foothills I can already feel the benefits of the weight lifting. POWER POWER POWER!!!!

Man, I can vouch for that! I walked down the stairs at Amacalola Falls at Springer Mountain (all 643 of them) and by the time I got finished my legs were like jelly! It took me three days to recover!

Tango61

Hey Trailrunner, when's your GC hike happening? I'm doing a triple-rim next week. S-N-S. 4/26.

I tend to agree with countr21. Like anything you can go too far. If you are one of those guys you see at they gym that have so much muscle they can't lift their arms over their head or put their arms down to the side of your body, I could see that causing some serious issues.

However being in good shape overall with a reasonable amount of muscle will absolutely make your trip more enjoyable. You will end up being tired less, and will recover faster. I would recommend that you put a particular focus on cardio, legs, and back. In that order.

Just got back from my R-R-R hike. I went in from the South Rim on 4/11, spent the night on the North Rim, and hiked back to the South Rim the next day. My route was South Kaibab/North Kaibab/North Kaibab/River Trail/Bright Angel. My last two hours were spent in a late season snowstorm. It was just enough snow to make everything extra beautiful. There was some snow on the North Kaibab above the Supai Tunnel, deep in places but spotty. The last half mile was solid snow but pretty well consolidated. My snowshoes made life easier but I could have survived without them.

I'll try to post a TR with some pics soon. If you want any recent beta please PM me. Let us know how your trip went!!!!

Work-out for my last backpacking trip to Colorado (one week long), consisted of 4 mile runs every other evening a few months before the trip, as well as well as continually blowing up my sons inflatable pool (which had a slow leak). I know it sounds funny, but I really think that lung workout with the pool helped later as we climbed to over 14,000 fit with our packs!

1) Walk 1.5-2 miles per day (helps to have a dog to keep company and give better reason to be so consistent); 7 days a week.
2) Ride a Schwinn Aerodyne 21 minutes at high revolution counts, with a system of alternating between just legs and just arms; 6 days a week.
3) In the Winter, I ride one 21-minute session, and then I get back on for another 10-minute session an hour later; 6 days a week.

In the Summer, I was alternating between riding the bike and running for an equivalent amount of time, up and down hills, but my knees started to bother me. Picked up a Nordic Track at a garage sale and plan to alternate between bike and that during this upcoming Winter. Would like to ski and pull a sled across the Boundary Waters and maybe Yellowstone someday, so that is good motivation. Also incorporate days of squat thrusts and jumping rope; anything that builds, or maintains, cardio.

It's good to cross-train and add some variety, or your body starts to move the fat around to your genetically set areas. Unfortunately, the body adjusts to exercise all too well. I think a lot of people don't plan for that (I really hadn't), so keep it in mind as you see good progress and then wonder why you lose some ground here and there. That can be a real psychological downer for some people, losing a bit of the battle. I've been loyal to my regiment for around three years, not even taking a day off while on vacation. Stupid, stubborn dedication goes a long way. You get in a rut, but a positive rut. It's all psychological warfare with yourself. Oh, and don't forget to eat every couple hours. Good calories that are efficient for what they provide and how they satisfy.

One more thing...they say drinking 3L of water per day burns 75 calories, and if you add some lemon juice to it, it burns 125 calories per day. How true is that? I'm not sure. I like water, so it isn't much of a struggle for me.

I think that everyone has different physical capacities and that any form of exercise will benefit you backpacking. For me i like working out at our crossfit gym, we do all our own programming and I personally like power and oly lifting. One thing I do like about these are that they dont turn us into body builders but just make you super strong so you can move a large load long distances more easily. I do like to also enjoy a trail run or bike ride but now that school has fired up i find less time for that.