Training at home

[Frosty]

For those of you who train throughout the year, and I know not everyone feels this is necessary, do you ever just load up your pack and walk around your neighborhood? Since I can't get to a trail except on weekends, I have started doing this along with riding my bike and doing some strength training. My S/O is embarrassed that I do this since we live in the city and the hills I use are in an upscale neighborhood. Am I the only one who does this? Just curious.

This is an excellent idea. I walk around town with a backpack a lot. Sometimes I walk to the grocery store and carry food back home in my backpack. At first I wondered if people would object if I walked around the store wearing a backpack, but no one has said anything so far.

[Shadowmoss]

Zak is not only young and fit, but was just recently in the military. Marines, was it Zak? That might be another reason why he thinks nothing of 20 miles days. I imagine he has never not been in shape. At least as an adult.

[modiyooch]

this summer while hiking grafton notch to gorham, I was glad of the rock climbing training that I have had previously.

[Roland]

this summer while hiking grafton notch to gorham, I was glad of the rock climbing training that I have had previously.

Your rockclimbing training may have enhanced your conditioning, but let's be careful not to mislead newbies into thinking the AT through the Mahoosucs requires technical rockclimbing skills. We don't want to scare anyone.

On the other hand, climbing in/out of the Notch will get their attention.

[modiyooch]

I'm just glad to know that I can support myself on a pebble of a rock, or itty bitty crevice.

[Tennessee Viking]

I was strength training in the spring with about 4 liters of water, all my emergency supplies, and some extra clothing. With it being the summer, I switched out to my day pack.

I used to go on my group hikes and maintenance outings with a big pack. Everyone thought I was crazy, but I told them I was trying to get ready for sectioning, and they went gotcha.

[Nest]

Zak is not only young and fit, but was just recently in the military. Marines, was it Zak? That might be another reason why he thinks nothing of 20 miles days. I imagine he has never not been in shape. At least as an adult.

No, I'm not a Marine. Was in two branches of the military, but knee injuries ended those careers very early. I was fortunate to be the older part of my generation. The part of the generation that actually played outside and rode a bike 10-14 hours a day during the summer. I'm sure most of the people on this thread were just as capable, if not more, when they were my age.

[jrwiesz]

For those of you who train throughout the year, and I know not everyone feels this is necessary, do you ever just load up your pack and walk around your neighborhood? Since I can't get to a trail except on weekends, I have started doing this along with riding my bike and doing some strength training. My S/O is embarrassed that I do this since we live in the city and the hills I use are in an upscale neighborhood. Am I the only one who does this? Just curious.

Always, 20-25 lbs. pack to the library, with the books to exchange, walking instead of taking the car. We're lucky to also have a rail-to-trails that is a 9 mile loop, or an 11 mile one-way to the state park in our vicinity. When I walk the loop I'll take the pack, when I bike the loop I'll take a lighter set-up and go for aerobic intensity. I try to do this at least twice a week, more if the schedule allows. I get occasional query or odd looks, but why care. Most of those people wouldn't "get it" anyway. I say train for the trail, then when you get to the trail, it is most enjoyable and not training for the first portion.
Isn't that why one hikes? Enjoy!

[gsingjane]

Hi Cyndie, I am your age (actually 3 years older) and if I didn't train year-round for backpacking, I think the wheelchair loop portion of the AT in CT would be too hard for me! As a wall climbing instructor for Girl Scouts, I see middle-aged women all the time who are asked to do physical things, and you would be depressed to see how few of them will even stand up and do some stretching or run around and do a field game, much less consider putting on a harness and trying to get a few feet up a wall.

I think walking around with a loaded pack sounds like a good idea, as long as you have enough foot support and you don't slam your way into a foot injury with too much pounding on pavement. I love the ideas where people do grocery shopping or library book carrying with their pack... good training and ecologically sound, too.

I don't do walks with a pack, but I have been upper body and mid-section training for a couple of years now and it has helped tremendously. Especially for women, especially as we age, we just don't use those arm, shoulder, chest and back muscles, and I've found that even half an hour, three times a week, has made a giant difference in easy it is to pick up and carry a pack. It also helps with that flabbiness (particularly on the upper arms) that seems to set in at a certain age. Mid-section/core I don't need to tell you... if you've had any kids at all, you know those muscles didn't maintain themselves all these years, but fortunately they will respond to training relatively quickly.

I expect you're getting in your cardio, but of course (in addition to some basic flexibility stuff) this is the other side of the equation. I haven't ever backpacked without an aerobic base, but can't imagine that getting up, down and over hills without some degree of fitness would be much fun. The good news is, all this stuff can keep you so much younger, keep your attitude bright, a spring in your step, and really fend off a lot of the bad feelings that come along with getting older. There's not much you can do about the wrinkles (particularly those of us that spend a LOT of time in the sun) but at least from the back, people will think you are considerably younger than you are. And you will feel so, too!

Jane in CT

[-SEEKER-]

[quote=Auntie Mame;418273]Go, Cyndie, go!! I'll be out there doing the neighborhood stroll with my pack on...
Well, I've now had three people ask me what I'm doing. One guy had no clue, and the other two wished me luck. A neighborhood fireman that I've talked to before saw me and shouted out that "The AT is a long way away" to which I replied that I had until April to get there. I like your neighborhood stroll comment Auntie Mame. As for my guy at home I think he's cool with the idea now since I told him if I didn't go back and hike the AT, I was going to move down south and live near it. Thanks for the responses everybody!
Cyndie

[Fiddleback]

Another option is to get a treadmill and set it at a steep angle, load your pack up, put it on and speed walk a few miles. I dont know how steep the hills are by you but pretty sure the treadmill will give you more of a workout.
Dont know if its worth going out and buy'n one to do this but if you got one...... give it a try and let us know if it works.

A treadmill is part of my daily exercise schedule...when I find the will power to do my daily exercise. I just recently started using the incline feature and was really impressed (or depressed) by the major difference. I've got it set at the max 10% incline and it took a couple weeks to build back up to the same length of time I was doing on a level track and I'm still not back to the same speed (I know...I'm a wuss). FYI, a 10% incline exceeds that of the steepest (posted) roads in Yellowstone NP although I'm not at all convinced it's more than the trails I've faced here at home.

None the less, I've always read that exercise is specific. That is, if you want to train for something you must do it or, at the least, closely replicate the activity. If you want to train for cycling, you must cycle. While exercise should always be rounded and comprehensive, I'm in agreement with others in this thread...if you want to train for backpacking you should, at the very least, get out and carry a pack.

FB

[taildragger]

Hey, thats how I train, I'd go, throw maybe 40lbs in my pack (young and dumb) and would walk a couple of miles everyday after school. I also started to load my pack with all my books and laptop and walk around campus with it (gotta lot of strange looks, my other hiker friends thought it was brilliant and started to do the samething).

One thing that I would look for in your case is a good set of steep stairs. Walk those to build muscle. Personally, I like to get out with a loaded pack (somewhere in the 40lbs-50lbs range, once again, older but still young and dumb) and do some scrambling. Most of the people on Breakneck think that I am absolutely crazy for attempting some freeclimb sections with a full pack on, but it really has made my legs more like iron, and slows my pace down to the rest of the group.

Lunges and squats are also good for strength, you can do them at home, make sure to stretch well before hand. Focus on reps and not weight here.

And as for strolling in an uppity up neighborhood in Ohio, well, they've gotta warn the little wii playing kids about hiker trash at some point in their life

[jesse]

I am fortunate to be able to walk two blocks in my neighborhood, and be in the Kennesaw Mountian National Battlefield Park. With trails thru woods, with some moderate hills.
I walk/run about 1hr everyday. I do not carry my pack. I think your legs will get conditioned by walking uphill without the pack. The pack greatly increases the chance of injury, while giving only moderate benefit.
Like you said, decreasing the weight of the pack will help.
I am by no means an expert on human anatomy, but I don't think you can condition joints with heavy exersice, like you do with muscel.
BTW, no hike should ever be considered a failure. Good luck

[johnny quest]

get one of those walmart camelback knockoffs, throw out the camelback and put in chain. yes chain. work your way up in weight. then head to the nearest football stadium. do muds. slowly.

[Blissful]

I trained as best I could. Started by doing running several years before the hike until I injured my ankle. Then went to walking. Carried my backpack on occasion around the nieghborhood, but I too felt a little strange doing that, so didn't do it much. My cardiovascular status was okay when I started. But nothing gets you as ready as hiking every day, day in and day out, for six months. The best training you can get. Start slow then build up. By 6-8 weeks you are a hiking machine.

My 16 yr old (now 17) went straight from couch potato to the trail with no training. Had some tough days out there, sure. But he finished and I'm so proud of him for hanging in there. Now if I can get him Not to return to couch potato status...

[Grinder]

Cyndie,

After you get a base level of fitness, something like the stairs will be a real eye opener as regards your trail fitness.

I went to the local highschool stadium and walked the stairs. it was a 50 foot climb each time up.

Since you can expect 500 to a 1000 foot climbs fairly routinely, something like 10 to 20 reps is appropriate. Sometime along you way, do it with the pack weight you plan to take with you on the real hike.

It was the loaded climbing that got me on my first hike. I was gasping and wheezing like I had never trained a bit.

Miles of Smiles
Tom

[-SEEKER-]

I'm hearing a big push for the stairs. At this point I am trying to avoid them until I am more comfortable with my knee situation. The going down part really scares me since I'm still not totally pain free. My SO/ boyfriend? (it seems there is no good title when you have been together 12 plus years but aren't married) owns a six story building with two additional floors underground so I have the perfect situation for this winter. p.s. I hope it doesn't sound like I'm whining, I am fine with my situation. I was just curious as to what others do.

[Doctari]

I'm hearing a big push for the stairs. At this point I am trying to avoid them until I am more comfortable with my knee situation. The going down part really scares me since I'm still not totally pain free. My SO/ boyfriend? (it seems there is no good title when you have been together 12 plus years but aren't married) owns a six story building with two additional floors underground so I have the perfect situation for this winter. p.s. I hope it doesn't sound like I'm whining, I am fine with my situation. I was just curious as to what others do.

In Cincinnati there are a few "good" hills, the steepest are in Clifton: Ravine & Straight streeets that go from McMicken to near Deaconess Hospital. Plus many city parks depending on where you live. All with no or few stair steps. What part of Cinti do you live in?

Or see my PM.

[Marta]

Cyndie--I did NOT walk around town with a backpack before my hike. I did four miles of slightly hilly walking M-F. On weekends I went into the mountains and hiked with my backpack, either day hikes, or overnighters.

I DID work seriously on reducing packweight from 45 lbs. in 2002 to starting the 100-Mile Wilderness with 32 lbs. as my full packweight, with food and water. I also kept my daily mileage way down for the first half of the hike.

Injury was my first and foremost concern. I knew that, at my age, I would not bounce back quickly, if at all, from a serious injury. Pain was acceptable; serious injury was not.

Pain was an indication that I needed to slow down and ease off the pace. For example, a lot of hikers, especially younger hikers, take a jackrabbit approach to mileage, cranking out 20-30 mile days, then taking a series of zeroes in a row. I did a lot of low-mileage days and rarely took zeroes. You can hike the whole Trail in six months if you do 12 miles/day.

I'm getting off track here...IMO it is not necessary to practice a lot with the pack...if you've invested the time and thought towards reducing your packweight.

Good luck!

[rafe]

Listen to Marta.

For "training" I do a bunch of bike riding. I've got a 12 mile loop that I do maybe three or four times a week (while in "training" mode.) The loop takes about 45 minutes to ride. It's got a few minor hills, maybe 300' vertical, all told.

With regard to miles per day, Marta really nails it. IMO, the key is consistency. I'm a wee bit older than Marta... and I was able to do 15 miles per day long term average over six weeks -- but I took NO zero days.

Here's how I figure it: If did 17 miles on Monday and 18 miles on Tuesday, I've put five miles in the bank (2 extra miles Monday, 3 extra on Tues.) So (for example) if I've got 8 miles in the bank at the end of Saturday's hiking, I can slack off with 7 miles on Sunday and still maintain a 15 MPD average for that week.

I never did bank enough miles to take a full day off. But the key for me was to force myself to "earn" slack days by "banking" miles. Somehow, that worked.

My loaded (max) pack weight was around 26-28 lbs.