View Full Version : Who can describe or explain the lock step to me?
I am still quite the Newby and I feel like this could be a game changer for me. I have only heard it referenced a few times but nothing in detail or description. Would this be a help to me since I run out of air going up steep hills?
Are you referring to what I call a resting step, a method used to take a split second rest each step going up steep hills.
johnnybgood
11-17-2015, 17:45
Measured steps at a unhurried pace.
Are you referring to what I call a resting step, a method used to take a split second rest each step going up steep hills.
Yes, that's what I mean. I googled it but didn't get a clear picture.
Traveler
11-17-2015, 17:51
Its easier to demonstrate than to describe (if I get this wrong someone please help). The lockstep technique is used during long climbs, usually on steep but fairly even or predictable terrain (when each step is approximately the same length and/or height). When the uphill foot is placed, the leg pulls the body up then is straightened and the knee is "locked", supporting the body, the downhill leg rests as it swings forward, then becomes the uphill leg. The technique can allow you to cover a lot of ground, though a little more slowly, without having to stop.
The rhythm is kind of like, step, pull, lock, swing, step, pull, lock, swing. I usually try to establish a rhythm in my head that I can maintain easily and just keep that pace regardless of where my feet have to fall during the process. With trekking poles, I don't use this technique as much, though on long uphill slogs I will sometimes use it. It does take a little practice, and there may be some youtube videos on the technique out there somewhere.
Measured steps at a unhurried pace.
Waling up a steep hill really slowly burns my muscles just to death. It does save my breath, but my legs burn so bad I still have to stop. My goal is to not have to stop at all. Currently, I really get a good momentum going on flat or downhill terrain and let that carry me a ways up the hill at the same pace if I can, then just push through to the top if I can manage, but I am usually struggling for air when I get there, if I even make it to the top without stopping.
Slo-go'en
11-17-2015, 18:54
What I find helps on steep accents is to pause and take a deep breath every 3 or 5 step. If you pause on an odd number of steps, you alternate the rest leg. Counting your steps also gives you something to do with your mind to keep it distracted.
4eyedbuzzard
11-17-2015, 19:06
Video of kick step (for snow) and lock (rest) step https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5cFBkuMpmE
There are a lot of videos out there, but many are of obviously very fit hikers who do it so quickly that it is hard to observe the knee lock.
My key to climbs is to take the smallest steps possible. I climb stairs at two at a time, but on a hike I really try to take baby steps on the climbs. This really helps with stamina.
After a year of hiking and struggling up hills, I learned the rest step from the video linked above. While I'm still a fairly slow hiker, I make much better time up hills and feel much better when I get to the top. If you haven't learned it already, study this video. It will make a difference and your hiking will be more enjoyable.
Interesting. I'll try it sometime soon.
dudeijuststarted
11-17-2015, 20:00
I think "old man" when ascending. Short gait, if i'm breathing too heavy or my heart is pounding i'm going too fast. Not only do you get to the top without stopping, but you are going slow enough to enjoy what's around you instead of being p*ssed off.
Just Bill
11-17-2015, 20:11
The term comes from mountaineering-
It's the downhill leg that is locked on the resting phase.
You take a step up and lock your downhill knee. In steep terrain you may even turn your downhill foot 90* to the slope if needed for better traction.
You then lean forward and rock (kip) your body quickly while pushing off with the downhill foot and shifting weight to the uphill foot and completing the motion by standing up until both feet are even. Switch feet on the next step after a pause. It's a quick motion that is fluid with practice
A kip is a bit like the trick you use to do a cheater chin up- by rocking your body and kicking your leg you use the motion to make the upward motion easier.
It's a thinner air, heavy load hauling technique for pacing yourself while ascending.
All that said... while the term is used in hiking it's a bit extreme.
A true rest step is usually a step up with one foot with the back leg locked and pointed uphill.
If you then lean forward and rest your arms on the uphill knee it will give you a slight calf stretch- which is the muscle that usually gives out first (before the quads). It's easy to practice on a set of stairs if you like by simply stepping up one stair tread at a time. Alternate the lead foot with each step. This motion doesn't have the kip, it's simply measured steady steps with a light calf stretch at each rest.
The AT is tough. Coming from the flatlands the hills always get me even if I'm in decent shape.
Take a few steps and rest, breathe evenly and pay attention to your heart rate. If you redline your engine (max heartbeat) it will take you longer to recover so don't push. A true rest step, or even pulling over and doing a brief quad stretch will help flush the lactic acid from your muscles that is making them scream. Air and blood. If your breathing or heartrate are out of control so are your muscles... so take it slow until they catch up. The small stretches of calf and quad help open the muscles up so they can flush and recover.
Eventually you'll find yourself taking a few more steps each time until like most hikers you'll find you "one-shot" most hills after a few weeks of walking. If you're "one stepping" every hill... probably best to get some more fitness training in on the flats or incline treadmill.
Eventually you may also find that many efficient hikers learn to "rest on the flats". Once your fitness and trail legs are up a bit you'll feel better if you one-shot the hill and rest on the ridge by continuing to walk. This flushes your muscles and prevents cramping like any cool down after a run or workout does. Dumping your pack and collapsing is a bad idea. Despite how bad you may feel when you top out, most folks find that (besides the fact you're still moving forward) that 15 minutes of restful walking leaves them feeling great and ready to walk. While 15 minutes of dump and slump leaves you dreading getting back up and ever walking again. If you do happen to top out right at that great view; stand around a minute with your pack on and walk a little until breathing and heartrate return to normal, then set the pack down. If you do stop for a break, stretch a little bit while you're hanging out.
Building the trail legs simply takes patience, you'll get there.
And even fit hikers run into climbs on the AT that require a rest (or twenty) so don't be down on yourself for it.
rocketsocks
11-17-2015, 21:16
On steep terrain I walk about 10 steps then rest for maybe 20 sec...
rocketsocks
11-17-2015, 21:17
...for the ones that can't walk and chew gum.
Cool technique, worth a try. I just go really slow uphill. If I'm breathing hard at all, it's too fast. Then I try to book it across the ridge.
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shelterbuilder
11-17-2015, 21:46
If you're having trouble getting up the hills, then here's another little trick. Try pacing your steps to your breathing. When you are cruising along "on the flat", most folks can take 2 steps (I'm counting a "step" as "left-right") before they have to breathe. But you need more oxygen to climb because you're working harder, so every time you take 1 step ("left-right"), take a breath. On REALLY steep hills, you may want to breathe twice as fast, but no matter what your personal breathing rate is, try to time it to your steps. You may have to "count steps" at first, but after a while, it becomes second nature. The overall effect will be that your pace will slow down, and the lactic acid in your legs will have more of an opportunity to be cleared. (For the record, I've tried the "rest-step", and while it does work, I find that this technique works better for me. HYOH.)
Lone Wolf
11-17-2015, 21:55
hikin' ain't technical. it's just walkin'
MuddyWaters
11-17-2015, 22:16
Succcinctly, every time you take a step, straighten knee and pause momentarily.
I find that tortoise beats hare on uphills. It does no good to race to top only to collapse and rest 20 min. You are also much fresher at end of day if you maintain slow constant pace, than getting badly winded and having to stop and rest repeatedly.
Slow down to pace you can maintain, and you can hike more miles per day than if you keep having to stop and rest.
A litttle max exertion is good for conditioning though.
HeartFire
11-17-2015, 23:17
What happens with the 'rest step' is that when the one leg has the knee locked, and is supporting your weight, you are using less oxygen - when your knee is bent, your muscles are working to support your weight, but with your knee locked, your skeletal system is holding you up and using a lot less oxygen to do it.
So the rest step technique not only slows you down a little, but also uses less O2, which allows you to go farther,. longer.
Feral Bill
11-18-2015, 00:21
Think of going ridiculously, cartoonishly slow. Then go even slower.
slbirdnerd
11-18-2015, 12:08
Lock step has been invaluable to me on the ups. I add to that breathing in a rhythmic pattern (not unlike lamaze, ok, goofy but it works) and chanting or softly singing something. I was a band geek in school, so I tend to count 8's. Makes the climb go by faster. Also, don't just stare down at your feet--look to the front and sides if you can safely do so and it takes the focus off the uphill battle. While constant, steady progress at whatever pace you need to go is advised (rather than stopping every 20 feet gasping for breath), I also like to stop and turnaround once in a while to see where I've been, the trail behind me, gives you a view or vantage point a lot of people miss out on.
I count steps as well. Sometimes it's by 8, sometimes by 10. A "step" may be one or two steps, generally a left-right. I also try to guess what the count will be when I reach a leveling-out point or a bend in the trail. I stop as often as I need or want to, but the stops are less frequent as my fitness level increases. I don't aspire to be a fast hiker; slow and steady works well for me.
MuddyWaters
11-18-2015, 12:55
Think of going ridiculously, cartoonishly slow. Then go even slower.
+
And get a song or mantra stuck in your head..
This has all been very helpful. I think I understand the concept of the rest step and I do plan to give it a shot in the very near future. Thank you all for the helpful hints. It's also good to hear that others with much more hiking experience and at much higher fitness levels also heave and gasp on those serious inclines! It's not just me... though I know I have the distinct appearance of someone who is about to die, while you all just appear to be a bit winded. :)
I was hiking at Kennesaw Mountain the other day and saw a fairly large guy coming up as I was going down with a black tshirt on that said in huge white letters " I CAN'T BREATHE!!" I laughed out loud and told my husband I have to find one of those and wear it every time I hike.
atraildreamer
11-18-2015, 17:02
In addition to the lock step, you might try modifying your breathing. Here is a link to an article found at: www.jwbasecamp.com (http://www.jwbasecamp.com)
http://www.jwbasecamp.com/Articles/Breathing/index.html
While this lock step/rest step/mountaineering step discussion has been very informative - a word of caution may be wise. If you have knee cartilage issues (formal term is Meniscal injuries) and or arthritis on the bone end of knees - locking can sometimes cause grinding that result in inflamation and further bone degredation. Other times it may actually relieve stress on the joint. One must be careful, be aware of past knee history, listen to the symptoms and what your body is telling you, and run this by a healthcare provider if any issues occur. No pain no gain is fine for a brief period of time and brief doses of Vitamen I; however, long term pain can result it chronic issues. You can now return to your normal scheduled programing. lol
My goal is to not have to stop at all.
I'm hiking up a long steep hill. It's difficult and from time to time I have to pause to give my legs and lungs a rest or to take a swig of water. And I turn around from facing the mountain to looking back down the mountain to where I have come from or across long expanses of mountain country if I'm above tree line or the tree canopy isn't too thick. I can feel my heart beating hard in my ears, in my hands, all over my body really.
There are very few moments in life that make me feel as alive as I feel in moments like these. When I conjure up memories of highlights of hiking trips my mind goes to those seconds I stop and pause and look around in my struggle on the way up -- much more than to moments at the top.
It's good to stop from time to time on the way up a mountain.
I know I haven't addressed the rest-step topic you asked about, but I thought this was worth saying.
JumpMaster Blaster
11-18-2015, 20:35
The term comes from mountaineering-
It's the downhill leg that is locked on the resting phase.
You take a step up and lock your downhill knee. In steep terrain you may even turn your downhill foot 90* to the slope if needed for better traction.
You then lean forward and rock (kip) your body quickly while pushing off with the downhill foot and shifting weight to the uphill foot and completing the motion by standing up until both feet are even. Switch feet on the next step after a pause. It's a quick motion that is fluid with practice
A kip is a bit like the trick you use to do a cheater chin up- by rocking your body and kicking your leg you use the motion to make the upward motion easier.
It's a thinner air, heavy load hauling technique for pacing yourself while ascending.
All that said... while the term is used in hiking it's a bit extreme.
A true rest step is usually a step up with one foot with the back leg locked and pointed uphill.
If you then lean forward and rest your arms on the uphill knee it will give you a slight calf stretch- which is the muscle that usually gives out first (before the quads). It's easy to practice on a set of stairs if you like by simply stepping up one stair tread at a time. Alternate the lead foot with each step. This motion doesn't have the kip, it's simply measured steady steps with a light calf stretch at each rest.
The AT is tough. Coming from the flatlands the hills always get me even if I'm in decent shape.
Take a few steps and rest, breathe evenly and pay attention to your heart rate. If you redline your engine (max heartbeat) it will take you longer to recover so don't push. A true rest step, or even pulling over and doing a brief quad stretch will help flush the lactic acid from your muscles that is making them scream. Air and blood. If your breathing or heartrate are out of control so are your muscles... so take it slow until they catch up. The small stretches of calf and quad help open the muscles up so they can flush and recover.
Eventually you'll find yourself taking a few more steps each time until like most hikers you'll find you "one-shot" most hills after a few weeks of walking. If you're "one stepping" every hill... probably best to get some more fitness training in on the flats or incline treadmill.
Eventually you may also find that many efficient hikers learn to "rest on the flats". Once your fitness and trail legs are up a bit you'll feel better if you one-shot the hill and rest on the ridge by continuing to walk. This flushes your muscles and prevents cramping like any cool down after a run or workout does. Dumping your pack and collapsing is a bad idea. Despite how bad you may feel when you top out, most folks find that (besides the fact you're still moving forward) that 15 minutes of restful walking leaves them feeling great and ready to walk. While 15 minutes of dump and slump leaves you dreading getting back up and ever walking again. If you do happen to top out right at that great view; stand around a minute with your pack on and walk a little until breathing and heartrate return to normal, then set the pack down. If you do stop for a break, stretch a little bit while you're hanging out.
Building the trail legs simply takes patience, you'll get there.
And even fit hikers run into climbs on the AT that require a rest (or twenty) so don't be down on yourself for it.
Good info!
peakbagger
11-18-2015, 20:42
It took me awhile to figure out that the best way to climb is to maintain a steady pace, the worst way to climb is what I call "stop and go" hiking where someone hikes until they are breathing too hard and has to stop. The rest step is useful for steep sections or in general anytime that you are breathing hard. The trick with the rest step is that its darn near impossible to go fast but it keeps you going consistently. Initially when going uphill you will shift from regular walking to a rest step with the goal not to get to the point where you have to stop. Initially it feels strange but if you keep it up you will find that you are using the rest step less and less and able to take moderate slopes at a regular pace, reserving the rest step for only the real steep sections.
hikin' ain't technical. it's just walkin'.
hikin' ain't technical, it's jest walkin'.
The first line is a post from this thread.
The second line is the "Dialectizer. (http://www.rinkworks.com/dialect/dialectt.cgi)" translation of the following phrase from English:
"Hiking isn't technical, it's just walking."
:)
Lone Wolf
11-18-2015, 21:19
bust my balls all ya want but i'm right. as always
My key to climbs is to take the smallest steps possible. I climb stairs at two at a time, but on a hike I really try to take baby steps on the climbs. This really helps with stamina.
Works for me. I simply adjust my stride to match the slope. In the extreme case it could be just a few inches per step, but it's progress.
What I find helps on steep accents is to pause and take a deep breath every 3 or 5 step. If you pause on an odd number of steps, you alternate the rest leg. Counting your steps also gives you something to do with your mind to keep it distracted.
I've been counting steps for more than two decades. I've met others who do the same. And still others who think we're crazy.
Typically, I do it on ascents, when hiking alone. It keeps my mind free of less important stuff, like world peace and paying bills. Haha. Seriously, it helps me get up the hill, by letting me challenge myself to do "just 100 (or 500) more steps."
Like most, I seem to get about 2,000 steps to a mile over most terrain. Rocky and/or root-filled terrain is another story. It is almost eerie how my step-counting has often come damned close to equaling mileage shown in guidebooks and on trail signage.
I'm hiking up a long steep hill. It's difficult and from time to time I have to pause to give my legs and lungs a rest or to take a swig of water. And I turn around from facing the mountain to looking back down the mountain to where I have come from or across long expanses of mountain country if I'm above tree line or the tree canopy isn't too thick. I can feel my heart beating hard in my ears, in my hands, all over my body really.
There are very few moments in life that make me feel as alive as I feel in moments like these. When I conjure up memories of highlights of hiking trips my mind goes to those seconds I stop and pause and look around in my struggle on the way up -- much more than to moments at the top.
It's good to stop from time to time on the way up a mountain.
I know I haven't addressed the rest-step topic you asked about, but I thought this was worth saying.
That's exactly what I keep telling my husband, but he is old school Army and wants me to just push through it just a few more steps.... which I would love to do, if only I could breathe!! :)
squeezebox
11-19-2015, 14:19
LSD long slow distance
MuddyWaters
11-19-2015, 15:04
I've been counting steps for more than two decades. I've met others who do the same. And still others who think we're crazy.
I count out whole miles as approach destination sometimes. 1000 paces. Ive counted up to 5 miles or so before. Just occupies mind and makes time pass, like the same tune over and over.
Pedaling Fool
11-19-2015, 17:21
LSD long slow distanceYes, LSD training is important, but equally important is VO2 MAX training, both threshold and all out sprints (going deep in the red). Most people concentrate too much on LSD and ignore the stuff that makes you want to puke, but it's that stuff that really is the icing on the cake when it comes to health and fitness.
A little intro into VO2 MAX https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEKj5avQfUY
Google "Rest Step" video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAQzYtggvWM
Pedaling Fool
11-19-2015, 19:02
I've watched a few of these rest stop videos and the more I look at them, the more I'm convinced that this is something to NOT practice. I think the body compensates enough for when you're tired, by doing things to allow certain parts to rest. And if not, then just don't hike so far, build yourself up slowly.
However, to attempt to make these movements with resting pauses in them part of your "natural" walking stride is just unnatural -- this is re-inventing the wheel, except in this case the new wheel is square.
There's a reason why the knee doesn't lock ever time, it's highly inefficient and actually uses more energy in the long term. The best way to get up steep hills is the old fashion way, build the body to be able to sustain constant movement going up hill. As you do that you will become so much more efficient at climbing than trying to make this rest step method part of your normal practice. There is no reason to practice being tired.
Here's another one of them videos, It's just wrong. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAEmAT_Nt8Q
Pedaling Fool
11-19-2015, 19:05
...Here's another one of them videos, It's just wrong. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAEmAT_Nt8QSorry, that was the wrong video, here's the correct one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt17m_KtJ-A
johnnybgood
11-19-2015, 21:20
Actually the "rest step" is something as simple as walking at a constant gait using proper body mechanics . What I think is happening is all this discussion on knee lock is quite possibly taken out of context , exaggerated for training purposes on one video I saw to make what should be a "natural body movement " look unorthodox and therefore "unnatural " .
Pedaling Fool
11-20-2015, 08:43
Sorry, that was the wrong video, here's the correct one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt17m_KtJ-AActually, the technique this guy is describing is not natural. I understand how the knee lock issue can be taken out of context and he addresses this in the video -- I understand it's not really a knee knock; however, it's also straightening the knee more than you would naturally do to maintain a fluid cadence.
We do lock the knee while walking on flat/level surfaces, but as the surface incline is increased we naturally keep the knee bent. See this video, albeit it's much steeper than most areas of the AT, but that just means greater knee bend, less steep inclines, such as much of the AT our knees won't be bent as much, but still have a bend. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0ZvI0fNFhU
Pedaling Fool
11-20-2015, 08:55
BTW, I do remember on occasion, especially when I got back into backpacking using this technique, not because I learned it (never saw this before), but just out total exhaustion, when the body looses its fluidity and your gait becomes totally unnatural -- it's just natural when you become exhausted.
I very well remember those times of taking one step at a time and standing completely straight up, then taking another step only to do the same thing; at times I was making less than 1 mph. I know with practice it can be done faster, but not nearly as fast, nor as efficient as a natural uphill gait.
However, we should not be training ourselves to walk how we do when exhausted.
Traveler
11-20-2015, 09:48
I've found using the "lockstep" on steep terrain is a great help, but for me its not a true knee lock. In my experience with it, the full lock becomes more of a partial lock, used mostly to keep a certain cadence or rhythm to the pace and keep the uphill foot from taking to long a stride. I don't think the lockstep provides a lot of resting moments as much as its useful to slow your pace to a level you can sustain it for long periods of time.
jackwagon
11-20-2015, 18:07
I find that the best way to explain how I implement this, and how it works best for me, is that I place my forward foot, but hesitate about a third of a second before I shift my weight to that foot. This provides enough of a rest, and my rear leg has already done most of the work. Once I shift my weight, then my forward leg transitions naturally into the lifting phase until my other foot is placed, then the hesitation again, etc.
English Stu
11-21-2015, 18:40
I think I have this right. I learnt it as the mountaineers step. Because of the effort uphill mountaineers in deep snow with a pack seem to have developed this step naturally. Not always necessary but a useful thing to know when it is very steep.
Done well the step slows your speeds effect on the beating of the heart and therefore breathing/oxygen needs i.e it keeps the heartbeat constant and energy expenditure the same as on the level. Over distance this control has the effect of keeping the effort smooth; otherwise it is like doing interval training.
I tried the lock step yesterday on a hike to Mr. LaConte via the Alum Cave Trail in GSMNP, which has some steep sections. It seems to help me, I think, if only in that is forces me to slow down a bit. That has been a harsh lesson for me - I had returned to hiking after many years of sedate living (ok, probalby 30 years, but that's another story) and have had a tendency to try an translate my fairly brisk hiking pace over level ground to uphill sections, which predictably just kills me. I've found that a steady, fairly slow pace on the steep uphills really works well for me.
Speaking of counting paces, etc., what often happens with me is that some song will pop into my head that mimics the pace I'm hiking at. Often, these will be songs I would never listen to by choice, or even dislike. Yesterday, it was 'What Part of No (Don't You Understand)' by Lorrie Morgan. No idea where it came from.
Just as I was about to go up Sassafras in Georgia, a nice hiker told me that it was the first "real" mountain on the trail and that I should take baby steps, rest often. I was pretty out of shape when I started the hike and that was great advice for me. I baby-stepped all the way across Georgia and most of North Carolina. On tough sustained climbs I sort of naturally adopted that lock step gait, but I didn't know it was a thing until someone told me. Eventually your steps get bigger and you rest less often.
I think you have enough for the definition here. I will only add that for me, depending on how steep the climb, I may just slow down as noted above or just count out some number of steps and stop, take a swig of water or a couple of deep breaths while I enjoy the scenery then tic off the number of steps again. Lactic acid builds up and makes things painful. As I got older I found my body clears it slower than it did 20 years ago. That short stop allows it to clear so the next # of steps are usually a bit quicker and less of a challenge. I end up at the top at about the same time give or take a few minutes but usually feeling pretty good and ready to keep trucking. (For full disclosure, I am not a real experienced hiker at all but do other sports that require long efforts so just applied what I learned to hiking and seems to work for me.
I'm going to have to try this at Stone Mountain one day.
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Odd Man Out
12-05-2015, 18:00
I'm not sure if what I do is a lock step or what as I've never studied or been taught. I just figured out what works and it sounds quite similar to what Just Bill described in detail. For me it's not about resting or knee lock but momentum upward and leverage. When I've done leg presses on weight machines, I've noticed that the weight is easier to lift as you leg gets more extended
If you adjust the seat so your knees are at a 90 deg angle at the beginning of the press, it's harder to lift the same weight if your knees are at 45 deg. So on a steep climb, when I plant my uphill leg, my knee is bent at an inefficiency sharp angle. When I lean forward to transfer my uphill leg, it bends eve Orem then I have to do a one legged press, lifting my whole weigh (and pack) with one leg that is at a biomechanical disadvantage. So what I do when forced to to step up a big hill is to plant my uphill foot. Then I flex my downhill knee a bit a push off with both legs. The downhill leg has better leverage at first and propels you up and forward. At the point your downhill leg comes off the ground, your uphill leg has to do all the work, but since you are already moving up, that leg doesn't have to work as hard. It just has to keep you moving, eliminating the force needed to accelerate you. Eventually your uphill leg extends to the point it as a mechanical advantage and the rest of the step is easier. The flex of the downhill knee at the beginning of each step gives a rocking appearance. Down up down up.
Traillium
12-05-2015, 20:44
Interesting thread …
I've done some race walking. Marathons, half-marathons. I've developed a fluid hip-swinging arm-driving style short- & fast-step that helps these 65-yr bones move quite well.
So now getting into hiking, I'm finding some useful carry-overs, exploring what does and doesn't work for carrying a pack.
One thing that doesn't is my race-walking cadence of over 140 steps per minute. Nope. Not happening with a pack.
What does transfer very well is leaning my hips into the terrain. I do not hunch forward. I tilt the front of my hips up and push them forward. Then gently lean my body slightly forward until I fall onto my foot as I move it forward. I aim to have my front foot land almost under me, quite flat footed. I fall into my front foot.
That's essential over where, but especially helpful going up hills.
I lean my hips forward into the hill, raising my forward foot up and a bit forward until I fall forward onto hit. My forward hip is slightly raised up and my torso muscles, my core, acts with my upper leg to move forward and up. I fall up the hill with short steps.
It's hard to explain … But it works for me.
Another look at it from the side, and you'd see that my bum isn't sticking back outwards and down the hill. My pelvis is pushed forward into the hill.
Bruce Traillium
SkeeterPee
12-05-2015, 21:22
Sorry, that was the wrong video, here's the correct one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt17m_KtJ-A
That is not what I saw for the rest steop. It seem opposite of the rest step. See this video which shows both a kick step (for snow) and the rest step. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5cFBkuMpmE
You are resting with your back leg locked out. when locked out, your both legs get a rest using this.
I do an odd number of steps and even take a slightly longer break to get through long steep climbs. very steep, I do 3 steps, less steep, I will do 5 7 or even 9 if not very steep.
Pedaling Fool
12-06-2015, 07:58
That is not what I saw for the rest steop. It seem opposite of the rest step. See this video which shows both a kick step (for snow) and the rest step. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5cFBkuMpmE
You are resting with your back leg locked out. when locked out, your both legs get a rest using this.
I do an odd number of steps and even take a slightly longer break to get through long steep climbs. very steep, I do 3 steps, less steep, I will do 5 7 or even 9 if not very steep.
Those two methods really are no different, just different sides of the same coin.
Regardless of which method one likes is irrelevant. My point was that I see no reason to practice those steps, because people naturally adopt them when they do become tired (I remember on several occasions walking like that guy, because I was fatigued), there's no need to practice these methods; practicing that technique will cause you to incorporate it into your normal gait. That to me is a big mistake, because your body wants (and needs) to flow naturally. There is no need to practice the gait you adopt when you're feeling fatigued.
Anyone that has spent any time on the AT knows that once you get your legs you flow up hill, but practicing either of those techniques will only throttle back that natural flow. Best way to hike is the old fashion way -- build up the body.
That's exactly what I keep telling my husband, but he is old school Army and wants me to just push through it just a few more steps.... which I would love to do, if only I could breathe!! :)
For training, pushing through it helps raise or maintain your fitness level.
But for trying to make it the top of that damn ungodly steep kill me now mountain.
Rest step, or even resting BEFORE you are wiped out seems to be better for me. I think that the build up of lactic acid can be flushed/absorbed/dissipate from your muscles better.
Im sure it's not all the bud lite consumed through the years that kills me on a steep set of switchbacks either.
i like to count also(ex army here), go until I start to feel a little breathless, but not burnt out and then do as another poster said and turn around look behind me. Bonus if I can lean back standing up against a tree to take the weight off.
Putting the pack down and hoisting it back up, or playing "I'm a dying jellyfish" laying in the middle of the trail makes it harder for me.
i also agree with walking it off when you get to the top flat area. (Though, I'll make an excuse in a heartbeat to blow that off too!)
I was taught the "rest step" for mountaineering on 10,000' mountains.
There is no locking the knee. What complete idiots are teaching that! Wrong!
That will destroy your knees!
It is simply weight shift to all the weight on one foot, and then the other, when the foot is flat on the ground.
It is not exactly a trudge, but it does work well for heavy backpacks.
The most apt description I have heard is while I was taught the "rest step" - shift all your weight side to side when your foot is flat on the ground, that's it, walk like a bum.
nitewalker
12-07-2015, 10:22
Come hike the White Mtns in New Hampshire and I'm sure you can practice all those steps and I am positive you will figure out what the rest step is....side step, rest step, lock step, baby steps, baby switch backs you name it and you will use it...
As I read once, "you cant go slow enough, uphill". Seems to be accurate.