Treadmill workouts for Trekking (No Running Required!)

Love them or hate them, treadmill workouts are often a big part of a hiker's or trekker's training. And while people can argue the fact that they "don't mimic real hiking", "change your gait" or "have no downhills" (which are all true) - for the pure sake of convenience they are here to stay.

While I don't inherently have anything against the humble treadmill, I DO have a problem with 'coaches' telling trekkers to do running workouts on them.

I really believe that, unless you are already a regular runner, running is NOT a great way to train for trekkers...

And can really grind you up!

So next time you decide to include some treadmill work in your training...

Whether is is because it is raining outside, you are short for time or simply just love training in the gym...

Try one of these workouts:

4 Treadmill Workouts For Hikers
(To Get You Fit, Strong and
Ready To Conquer the Trail!)

The Leg Burner

This workout is designed to help improve your muscular endurance - which is the is the ability of a muscle to produce a relatively high percentage of its maximum force for many repetitions without fatiguing.

This is obviously very relevant for trekking and hiking!

The Workout:

• Crank the treadmill up to its highest setting
• Load up your pack with water bottles
  (You want to find a weight/speed where your legs are burning burning - but you can still carry a conversation.)
• Walk on the incline for 8 minutes
• Rest for 2 minutes
• Repeat 3 times

Each week you do this workout either add an extra interval or add some extra weight to your pack.

The Hill Climber

Are you always huffed and puffed when going up hills? This workout is for you.

This workout is designed to improve aerobic power - which is the maximal work rate your can sustain while still using oxygen as a fuel source. So this is very important to develop!

The Workout:

• Crank the treadmill up to a high include
• Walk for 3 minutes (this should be relatively tough, but you don't have to by lying dead on the ground afterwards)
• Rest for 90 seconds
• Repeat 4 times

 Each time you do this workout, either increase the speed slightly or add an extra repetition

The Engine Builder

Aerobic capacity the single most important aspect of fitness for trekkers to develop. And the way to develop that involves long periods of low intensity work. And admittedly this can be a bit dull...

So try this workout to give it a little extra spice to the monotony.

The Workout:

• Load up your pack with 10% of your body weight
• Begin walking on the flat (choose a speed where you can maintain a conversation but not sing a song)
• Every two minutes, increase the incline by 1% (if needed, adjust the speed to maintain the same intensity)
• Once you reach the maximum incline, start decreasing the incline every two minutes
• Repeat for 60 minutes

Each time you do this workout, either add an extra 10 minutes or increase the weight of your pack

The Zen Master

Had a big week of training already? Stressed at work? Or simply can't bring yourself to push a big session today? This workout is for you.

This workout is designed as a lower intensity session, which will relax, calm and refresh you. Once you are done with this, you will feel like a new person!

The Workout:  

• Put the treadmill on a small incline (only 2 or 3%)
• Choose a comfortable walking speed
• Put your focus on staying with abdominal breathing
• Walk for 30-60 minutes
  
  

If you want to add some extra challenge to this, every 4 minutes hold your hands above your head, for 60 seconds, while concentrating on maintaining your breathing

You now have a list of simple, effective treadmill workouts to add to your training for hiking toolbox. So next time you are on the treadmill, forget about running and use one of these. And you can be confident you are making the best use of your time - without grinding your joints up!

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