Have you guys ever heard of the phrase "sea legs"? If so, I believe there is a such thing called trail legs. I don't get to go backpacking or hiking every weekends. I Remember I went backpacking for 24 miles over 3 day last year, and was sore in my calf muscles. A month later, a I went on a harder trip and I had much more painful soreness. What I'm getting at is, there is a such thing called trail legs, where if you hike difficult hikes much more frequently, you don't get sore or you're barely sore for a couple hours after the trip, right?

With long delays between trips, I'm working out 3 days a week to keep the ligaments and muscles active. I've been doing lunges and squats that will stress the muscles that are used on steep downhill hikes.

Anyone else got workout tips to minimize soreness with long downtime between trips?