How to prepare for challenging hikes in outdoor and adventure fitness

Outdoor and adventure fitness is outdoor recreation, done outside, most commonly in natural settings, typically for physical exercise, general wellbeing, and spiritual renewal. The lessons answer how to prepare your body and skills for challenging hikes. They build understanding of the fitness, balance, endurance, and gradual preparation that hiking calls for.

2 articles, 1 video, 1 book · about 15 min of reading and viewing

The reading path

1. Read
   

   outdoor and adventure fitness · Wikipedia · 7 min read

   Trekking can involve day hikes, overnight hikes or extended hikes. Physical preparation includes cycling, swimming, jogging and long walks. Mountain biking requires balance, core strength and endurance. Riders also need bike-handling skills and the ability to make basic repairs to their bikes. In many cities, recreational areas for various outdoor activities include natural parks, parks, playgrounds, sports facilities and areas with free sea access, such as Venice Beach in California, the Promenade des Anglais in Nice or the waterfront of Barcola in Trieste. Outdoor physical activities can help people learn new skills, test stamina and endurance, and participate in social activities.

2. Read
   

   Get your hiking muscles in shape - Harvard Health · Harvard Health Blog · 3 min read

   Hiking is especially taxing for the muscles in the legs and core. The page advises preparing muscles for a hike, especially if it has been a while since hiking on uneven terrain. Hiking takes muscle strength as well as good balance, endurance, and cardiovascular fitness. The advice is to start with a daily walking regimen on level ground.

3. Watch
   

   How trail designers build good hikes · YouTube · 5 min watch

   How trail designers build good hikes.

4. Book
   

   Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail · Bookshop.org

   Wild by Cheryl Strayed describes Strayed's 1,100-mile (1,800 km) hike on the Pacific Crest Trail in 1995 as a journey of self-discovery, offering a personal account of an extended hike.

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