Last Updated on June 17, 2022 by Ecorf
There is more to life than the office and parties. The wonders of nature can be fully enjoyed when you immersed yourself outdoors. One of those activities that can give you the opportunity to appreciate the views and experience the life that the city cannot offer is hiking. Hiking is not an easy activity; but if you prepare well ahead, then, it can also be so rewarding. In order for you to be fully ready, it is necessary to know which exercises help you prepare for uphill hiking.
Table of Contents
Difference Between Uphill and Downhill Hiking
Hiking consists of two note-worthy directions on the elevated terrain: Uphill and Downhill. The difference between the two is already obvious (the movement versus the pull of gravity), but the techniques to be used properly can be more or less similar. When you train for uphill hiking, you also prepare for the downhill hiking too.
In Downhill hiking, since gravity is working for you, the body can relax more. The most worrisome thing is not to topple over for gaining more downward momentum. In Uphill hiking, more effort is needed to accelerate the body along with the things brought for the adventure. More muscles will have to work, joints will experience more stress, and inner organs will demand more oxygen to operate normally.
Exercises for Uphill Hiking
There are appropriate exercises that can strengthen the body parts being burdened on such an activity, in order to avoid getting injured or any medical issues along the way. Before hitting the gym, you have to assess the current limits of your body.
Self-Assessment
- Have Full Knowledge of your Current Medical Problems
It is important NOT to forget your medical problems. Hiking may be simple, but the activity demands a lot of work from the body and focus on the mind. A semi-healed fractured bone, a low blood pressure, a high cholesterol count, or even episodes of vertigo can affect the mental preparation and will lead to lesser performance. Being optimistic is good, but the assurance is better.
- Measure your Normal Heart Rate
The heart will pump more blood when exercising. Make sure the preparation will be according to the capacity of the heart to avoid unnecessary failures.
- Find the Center of your Gravity
Not all bodies are the same, even if you factor the same in the gender. However, in every body type, there is always the center of gravity or core. The core is the basis for your balance. When you travel even across elevated terrain, your adjustment will be based on the location of your core.
- Acknowledge the Measured Mass
When hiking uphill, the body mass is not the only consider how much force is needed to be exerted. The contents of the backpack, no matter how essential they may be, are also included. The body has to be trained to endure the travel with heavy loads.
- Take Note of Fluid In-Take and Bathroom Tendencies
Your fluid intake is a factor in how your body will replenish while enduring such an activity. The movements also have to be accommodating how you relieve yourself, for it may hinder you from gaining the rhythm in hiking. Having a bladder aching to burst out will make your knees miserable, and a grumbling anus can make your trip messier. Learning how to maintain a good bowel movement while preparing will become handy and essential for the activity to come.
- Diet Planning
Diet plays a major role in the success of your preparation. There are foods needed to take to provide the body the needed nutrients and energy for the tiresome hike. There will be also foods that you need to avoid at all costs since they will affect the physical capacity and mental concentration as well. Planning what to eat has to include the eating circumstances when you will be hiking so that the body can adjust naturally.
Preparatory Exercises
- Core Exercises
Planks are effective ways to improve the core muscles. Having a solid core improves your sense of balance, therefore enables you to make a wide range of motions properly. As you encounter tripping on some camouflaging rock or creeping tree branch, through your core exercises, you can gain easy recovery and possibly avoid even nasty injuries.
- Flexibility Exercises
Tension in some muscle areas can contribute to having a short breath. Doing more than simple stretching can soothe the tension, making the body more capable of doing a variety of movements, like doing other exercises, moving naturally, hiking like reaching out for retying a shoelace, pointing out directions, or even screaming in times of emergencies.
- Cardiovascular Exercises
Cardiovascular exercises are the same movements we necessarily do every day, like walking, running, jumping, and even playing intense moving sports; but this time, in a longer manner and in more challenging situations like inclined planes or with resistance bands. These sets of exercises are for building stamina. The importance of having to train for a longer period of time regulates the breathing pattern naturally. The body will soon adjust how much oxygen to take-in and exhaust, making your organs pump blood in a less stressful manner. Stable footwork will also be developed while doing these exercises.
- Muscle Training
Squats have many variations. They can be done simply in the comfort of your room or at the expense of your gym membership. Squats develop muscles on your lower body, making you stronger in carrying those knees or lunging for a big step. Strengthening also the upper body through pushups, pull-ups, or even use of dumbbells is encouraged in order to have that needed boost in carrying heavier loads. Be cautious in overdoing them. The limits of doing the upper body exercises will be based on your current physical activity to carry a load heavier than the weight of your backpack.
Benefits of Uphill Hiking
There can be many benefits to Uphill Hiking. The well-trained body will be pushed to its limits further. Aside from that, you can travel from places that only your feet can take you that not even cars and bikes can reach. Furthermore, you will be enjoying that fresh air along with the beautiful scenery you constantly see on your computer screens.
Outdoor activities may not be an easy day job, even how tasking the preparations are, but I bet it will add meaning to your life. If you have any questions regarding preparation for an uphill hike, feel free to ask. If you have additional inputs, you are free to share them as well.
