Elements Of Fitness For Hiking

In this episode I share a 'laundry list' of different elements of fitness and training a hiker should be covering, to ensure the best chance of a safe, enjoyable and successful adventure. 

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This episode was inspired by something that happened just a few days ago.

I was sitting down and putting together my next 16 weeks of training for myself.

Recently, I started doing a completely new type of training. I’d been a bit stagnant with my exercise for a while and honestly hadn’t felt super inspired. So I decided to do something totally different and jumped into mixed martial arts training.

Something I’ve never done before. Something completely outside the type of training I usually do.

And it’s been great so far.

I’ve been learning new skills, taking a different approach to training, and doing things that are a bit more technical and complicated than what I’m used to.

But it also made me realise something important.

I need to complement that training with my fitness work.

Just like with hiking, where we talk about training outside of your hikes, I need to be doing training outside of these sessions to make sure I’m in the best position possible.

So I sat down to write out my program.

And what a good coach will always do is reverse engineer the goal.
Start with the end in mind.

Look at what you’re doing and ask, how do I best complement this with my training?

Now, I’ve never trained for this type of sport before. I’ve never trained anyone for this type of sport before. So I really had to think it through.
I listed out everything I needed to develop.

• Muscle strength (so I can exert a large amount of force)
• Power (so I can be explosive)
• Muscular endurance (so I can sustain repeated bouts of moderate force)
• Aerobic fitness (to get through long sessions )
• Higher intensity fitness (to perform in various situations)
• Mobility (as I am tight and restricted in certain areas)
  
  

Suddenly, I had this long list of things I needed to improve.

And honestly, it felt overwhelming.

How do I fit all these elements into a week?

I’m not a full time athlete.

I run a business.

I’m busy.

Sound familiar?

In the end, because this is what I do for a living, I managed to slide everything into a solid 16-week plan.

But it got me thinking.

This was overwhelming for me. And I do this professionally.

So if you’re a hiker listening to this, trying to figure out all the different aspects of fitness you need to be at your best, I get why it feels tough.

When you reverse engineer hiking and its demands, there’s a lot to cover.

Proper training and preparation for hiking include:

• Muscular strength (to support your joints and reduce injury risk)
• Muscular endurance (so your legs can keep going all day)
• Lower body training
• Upper body training
• Lower limb training (e.g., muscles below the knee)
• Core work
• Balance and stability
• Flexibility and mobility
• Aerobic conditioning
• Higher intensity conditioning (for tough climbs and hard sections)
• Preparation for pack carrying
• Readiness for ups and downs and rock scrambling

That’s a lot.

So if you’re thinking, how do I fit this into a week when I’ve only got a couple of hours to train, you’re not alone.

Maybe you’ve got a busy job. Maybe you’ve got a young family. Maybe you’ve only got 45 minutes here and there.

It can feel overwhelming.

And that’s the intention of this episode.

It goes in two directions.

First, for those of you who like figuring things out on your own.

Use this as a checklist.

Are you currently training:

• Strength
• Muscular endurance
• Lower body
• Upper body
• Lower limbs
• Core
• Balance and stability
• Flexibility and mobility
• Low-intensity aerobic work
• Higher intensity conditioning
• Pack carrying
• Specific trail challenges you’ll face

Go through it. Write it down. Tick things off.

If something’s missing, ask yourself how you can incorporate it into your week or month.

Second, if you’re listening to this and thinking this is a bit overwhelming, just like I felt a few days ago, then maybe it’s time to get some help.

This is what I do all day long.

Over the years of training hikers, I’ve tested, trialed, and perfected systems to make sure all bases are covered, no matter the situation.
Whether you have 10 hours a week to train or only an hour and a half, I know how to make it work.

If you want to give yourself the best chance of a safe, enjoyable, and successful adventure, I’d love to hear from you.

If you wanted to find out more about our online personal training for hiking (which will cover all of these bases for you) you can check out the Online Summit Program here:

Online Training For Hikers

Yours in trekking,

Rowan