WHY YOU SHOULD GET IN SHAPE BY WALKING
10 Key Points for hiking to get in shape
Be sincere to yourself and get a complete assessment of your entire health.
Use common sense and know what you can and cannot do. Test your leg muscles and lower back. Start slowly with early morning or late evening walk to strengthen your heart rate.
New hikers are likely to get these common injuries; ankle sprains and ankle rolling, also lower back fatigue
If you are really ready to go on a hiking expedition, then you need to follow these common sense steps that will put you in the right shape for the long haul.
5. Walk on dirt or sand to get your ankles, knees and muscles stronger.
6. Use a leg elastic resistance band to strengthen your leg muscles. Learn to use balance disc or base ball to stabilize your muscles.
7. To boost your muscle strength, try to keep your back straight and leap slowly over lunges and squats.
8. By building your lower back and muscles, you can handle uneven surfaces with ease. For your upper body strength, do sit ups and push ups to fortify your lower back. Practice on a treadmill or stationary bicycles at home if you have them or go to the gym as the case may be. Learn how to increase the volume capacity of your lungs, since you may likely be hiking along elevated rough terrain during your walking expedition. Also checkout this supplemental resources to exercise and loose weight in the process.
9. In getting ready for your backpack hiking trip, the following checklists must be complete; Weigh your backpack content and make sure it weighs 20 lbs or less. Look for a solid flat bench in the park or a step at home 6 to 12 inches high. While facing the step, raise your right leg up to your knee level without touching the step. Repeat with your left leg. Repeat the cycle 8 to 16 times, and followed by 2 to 3 minutes rest. Strap the backpack and check your balance when pretending to climb the steps. Increase from 3 to 5 lbs a week depending on your body weight and height until you can comfortably walk around the hallway or your house with ease with the backpack on your back.
10. Below is a checklist that will enhance your readiness for a long hiking trip. Do a 1.5 to 2 mile hiking on the side walk or near any large park 3 to 4 days a week. If you are a beginner, your muscles and feet will feel pain like never before. But as you consistently repeat the next day for 1 to 2 weeks, you will start building physical strength and your mental indurance will shot up to adapt to your anticipated expedition.
10 Point Advantages of hiking to get in Shape
Enhances cardiovascular fitness and can lower blood pressure.
Hiking can also lower blood sugar levels for those who have or are susceptible to type 2 diabetes.
According to WebMD, hiking can help stem the negative effects of osteoporosis and arthritis by increasing bone density and loosening up stiff joints.
A UK study published in 2011 found that hiking and other "green" (read: outdoor) exercises help reduce anxiety and improve mood condition.
Nice views, fresh air, and the sounds and smells of nature.
Boost your hips and lower legs, since walking is a weight bearing exercise.
Build strength in your gluts, quadriceps, hamstrings, and muscles
Help control your weight
Walking can help clear your mind due to the fact that looking far to see trees and cloud in nature provides an aura of calm throughout your being.
Boost your mood. "Research shows that hiking has a positive impact on combating the symptoms of stress and anxiety," says Gregory A. Miller, PhD, president of the American Hiking Society. "Being in nature is ingrained in our DNA, and we sometimes forget that."
Other Tips You Need To Know
Go for some good hiking boots or cross country-running shoes which offer much better support and grip on rough terrains.
Check this out if you don’t know any hiking spots near you: “AmericanTrails.org” offers a state-by-state database of national recreation trails in the U.S. to help you find the best hiking spots.
The best aerobic activities for mature athletes are brisk walking or jogging, swimming and cycling.
Setting your treadmill at a higher incline is also great preparation or just walking up a few hills on your evening stroll.
Strap on your pack and practice “step ups”. This will really get your calves and back ready for the weight you’ll be carrying on a hike! Walking up and down the stairs with your pack is also great training.
The key to reducing excessive sweating during your hiking is to "Wear very thin, long nylon pants," as recommended by Werner, who prefers Railriders' Eco-Mesh Pants for their cooling mesh side vents. ExOfficio's BugsAway pants, long-sleeved shirts and hats are also a fine choice; they're breathable, provide excellent coverage and pack the added punch of the built-in insect repellent permethrin. (Just try to) suck on that, ticks and mosquitos
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6 Reasons Why Walking is Great for Women
Walking is often overlooked as a cardio activity because it is something we do every day. So much emphasis is placed on hard workouts like CrossFit and running, that most women forget that walking is one of the best forms of cardio out there.
While it cannot be denied that the results that you get from walking will come much more slowly than what you’d get with high-intensity training, the fact of the matter is that you will get results. If your diet is clean and you’re at a caloric deficit, walking can be a very effective form of cardio. The points below will state why women who have led sedentary lives or prefer less strenuous workouts should adopt walking as a form of cardio trail
1. Easier & low impact Walking is easier to do and you’ll not be panting and gasping for air like you would with running or other strenuous forms of exercise. If you’ve not exercised in a long time, walking will be a great way to start getting active. If you’re overweight, it will also be easier on your joints. You’ll be less likely to develop joint pain or delayed onset muscle soreness. Ideally, your walks should be brisk and purposeful. This will get your heart pumping and boost your metabolic rate.
Strengthens your joints and bones 2. Walking prevents or delays the onset of osteoporosis and osteoarthritis by strengthening the bones. Women with these problems have noticed an improvement in their condition when they started walking three to five times a week.
3. Make exercise a habit One reason so many women give up on their weight loss and fitness journey is because they start skipping workouts. Once they do that, they feel guilty that they’ve let themselves down and they end up quitting. The truth of the matter is that they often dread the hard workouts. Changing to a more healthy diet and commitment to a consistent exercise will help you loose weight While high intensity interval training and weight training are very useful for getting fit and healthy, they are strenuous and require determination. Women who do these forms of exercise have usually inculcated the habit of regular exercise. That’s how they stick to the program. Habit is what keeps you going when motivation starts to wane. However, women who do not have that habit will throw in the towel because it just seems too torturous to train so hard. Walking, however, is an easy form of exercise. 30 minutes of walking is nowhere near as intimidating as a 30-minute high intensity interval training session. So, women who fear tough workouts can still adopt walking and benefit from exercise. Even moderate exercise is better than no exercise. Once you develop the habit of walking regularly, you may try short runs and so on. But when you’re starting off, walking is much easier to adopt.
4. Helps relieve stress
Stress causes a plethora of health problems. Walking helps to relieve stress. It gets better if you walk somewhere scenic where you can appreciate your surroundings. It’s a wonderful and natural form of stress relief.
5. Promotes better sleep
It’s also a great way to overcome sleep disorders. Studies have shown that people who walked 3 to 4 times a week for 4 months were able to sleep faster and for longer periods. The goal is to walk early in the day so that your body is calm by bedtime.
6. Burns calories and fat
Walking burns calories too. It may not burn as many calories as other types of training but it does burn calories and that’s what matters. As mentioned earlier, some exercise is better than none. If you’re at a caloric deficit daily, you’ll still lose weight. It may take longer but you’ll get there. The price to pay for speed is exertion and tough workouts. If you’re willing to be patient, walking will help you shed all the excess pounds and get you to your ideal weight in time. These 6 benefits should convince you that walking is a wonderful form of exercise. Even for women who engage in high-intensity activities, replacing a workout with a walk every now and then will give your nervous system a break from the continuous stress placed upon it by hard training. If you’re inactive, do start walking today. Your body will thank you for it in future.
Take a Hike: Hit the Trail and Get in Shape
By Tom DiChiara
Here's logic that's hard to argue with: If aerobic exercise is good for your health (it is) and the wonders of nature are myriad and beautiful (they are), then it follows that experiencing these marvels together would be a pretty desirable scenario (oh yes). As luck would have it, there's a very simple way to achieve this miracle: It's called hiking. So turn off your Blu-ray of Planet Earth, get over any of the excuses you may recognize from the list below and experience the majesty of Mother Nature firsthand.
But... I'm WAY out of shape. This is actually a reason to hike, not an excuse not to. Hiking, which can include everything from walking a flat nature path to climbing Everest, enhances cardiovascular fitness and can lower blood pressure. "Going up and down hills gives the heart a great workout," board-certified family physician and avid hiker
Dr. Ray Sahelian tells WebMD.
See additional information.
Read More: How to Get In Shape for Hiking
From: www.backpacker.com
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Read More: - www.backpacker.com
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