Training for walking

[sarge]

Slightly different topic here - I would be interested to know what people do to train for extended walks? or if people bother training at all?

My experience has been that when there is 6+ months gap in between longer walks (i.e. greater than overnight) I struggle with knee and ankle injuries if I don't conduct a training regime 4-6 weeks prior to setting off. My training usually consists of putting on a pack each night and walking a few kms in the streets around my house, streching a bit.

Can anyone suggest any other strengthening exercises for pack walking?

[alliecat]

Stair climbing - with and without a pack. I find that if I don't do this then the first bit of steep uphill I encounter on a walk is much more painful than I care to admit I guess that during my normal day and even walking the dogs around my neighbourhood I just don't use my leg muscles in quite the same way as I do on a steep track, so that's the bit I need to train for.

Also, I need to train my feet to get used to walking on rough surfaces. If I don't do this I get very sore soles quite quickly. So I make sure I regularly walk on rocky tracks just to keep my feet a bit used to it.

Cheers,
Alliecat

[norts]

I am lucky I have a a good hill/mountain behind me with a fire tower on top of it so I walk to the top of that about 4 times a week when I am training for a big walk. Its about 5 ks round trip. If it is going to be a hard walk I will add to this walk with side tracks on the way.
I use an old h frame pack I found at the tip. I have taken the old sack off it and tied a 20 litre container to the frame and fill the container with dirt. Works well. My neighbours look at me strangely.

Get bored with the walk but it does get me fit. Those rainy cold nights trudging up South Sister can be very demoralising. My dogs enjoy it alot more than me.

Roger

[whiskeylover]

Hey Norts, I think we met you up on South Sister once and we did look at you strangely too! I think because of your footwear not the pack - We can't talk as we were walking the last bit in clip in mountain bike shoes - not very safe on steep slippery rocks! I do a bit of cycling too as well as walking uneven ground in my hiking boots (Scarpas) - walk the dog about 5km most days, and if planning an extra long trip try to get in some day trips up the Western tiers regularly beforehand to avoid that nasty hurting muscles thing that happens if you don't climb hills often enough. I find not only is my fitness and therefore enjoyment of the walk is affected but also my confidence on scary bits deteriorates if I haven't been doing enough rough ground walking.

[norts]

What was wrong with my footwear?
I think it would have been army boots
Were you with Rod and about to go to the pancake palour?
Roger

[whiskeylover]

Yes, that was us and the pancakes were very yummy. I remember thinking that Army boots would make my feet very sore if I was planning the sort of walk you said you were training for - was it the Western Arthurs you were doing? How did it go?

[norts]

You have a good memory. Yes it was the Western Arthurs. Had a really good walk, weather was great and the views were magnificient.
The training paid off as I found it easier than the last time that I did it.

Roger

[tas-man]

Hi sarge, I agree that it is a good idea to prepare yourself for longer walks by building up your fitness and endurance, and there is no short cut to just getting the pack on and walking the streets or doing shorter trips beforehand. On my Easter trip to SW Tassie this year, which was arranged in January, I was "encouraged" by my one of my intended late 60's walking mates in Melbourne to test my fitness for the trip. When staying with him in Melbourne in January I went with him twice on his training route up the 1000 steps Kokoda Memorial track in the Dandenongs Fern Tree Gully, no packs.
http://www.starnewsgroup.com.au/story/54943
http://www.worldisround.com/articles/281780/index.html
He was planning to work up to doing daily trips up and down with loaded pack before the Easter walk, so I though I had better do something similar so I didn't get left behind! I worked out a route in my local area that took in a section of 1 in 5 slope road that gains about 150 metres in less than a kilometer, and was able to work up to carrying my 20kg pack up and down up to 7 times in one session prior to the walk - being the equivalent of climbing the Ironbounds in 2.5 hours! Did the circuit at least 3 times a week in the lead up to the trip. It was worth the effort as the walk was much more enjoyable not having to struggle up the "ups" as much as if I had done no preparation. Lost weight around the waist at the same time so was a double bonus! Just have to remain motivated to keep it up. Easiest way is to keep planning for the next walk - bought Chapmans new SW Tassie book yesterday for continuing inspiration.

[Son of a Beach]

For training, I go jogging 4 or 5 times a week for at least 2 weeks prior to the walk, if I can get myself motivated. The jog includes a steep uphill and downhill section. This seems to help me alot, although the muscles used are not exactly the same as walking with a heavy pack, jogging with no pack seems to do a reasonable job. Of course it doesn't help my shoulders and back to get used to carrying a load.

If I'm going on a particularly hard walk, and if I have the luxury of arranging it, I'll plan a short walk a little before the hard walk. This is the best preparation anyone can make.

Eg, Just before walking the Western Arthurs and Eastern Arthurs and Federation a few years ago, my mate and I did a circuit walk in to Pelion and Mt Ossa (via Lees Paddocks and Reedy Lake), including carrying full packs to the summit of Mt Ossa, and down a different (untracked) route from Ossa and then out via Kiaora Creek, Mersey River and Lees Paddocks (3 days, 2 nights). We deliberately stocked out packs up with luxury food and drink to get used to carrying the heavy weights we'd need to take on our longer walk.

[norts]

I like to walk on as much uneven ground as possible before a walk as it help train your ankles, knees etc to cope with the track. As I am walking on the forestry road up to South Sister I will walk in the drains at the side while my dogs walk on the smooth road. There is something wrong with that picture!
My biggest problem is after a walk I don't keep up the training regime and basically fall in to a slothful heap until I have my next walk organised.
My last walk was early June and I went for my first last night. It was wild up on South Sister.

Roger

[Son of a Beach]

My biggest problem is after a walk I don't keep up the training regime and basically fall in to a slothful heap until I have my next walk organised.

Despite my best intentions, I also suffer from failing to keep up any fitness regime I get on for more than a few weeks at a time. Unfortunately, pushing the chair in my office back and forth on its coaster wheels doesn't seem to do much for my fitness.

[corvus]

OOPS !! are we supposed to train for our walks ? that's whats been wrong with me
Seriously it is reasonable to think that some pre walk training should be the norm however a busy life somehow precludes that luxury

[whiskeylover]

I find opening a bottle of wine in the kitchen, walking to the couch and pouring and then the action of drinking prepares my liver quite well, while the effort of getting the next bottle would be considered as useful as climbing stairs. So after all this exercise is it possible I need to do more repetitions of these actions, to prepare for longer walks?

[tasadam]

I should but I don't - that is I don't do anything different to my normal fitness regime, which probably isn't enough.
But my fitness usually ends up surprising me - when I'm doing something I enjoy, there's usually a bit more of a spring in my step.
And it is surprising how your fitness improves as a multi day walk progresses.

The 9th and final day of our Overland track adventure last year was particularly tough, though. Thinking of that makes me want to do something in preparation for a planned south coast adventure.

I can't recall any injury I have sustained on a walk due to a lack of pre-walk fitness. Could be just lucky. Could also be something to do with my 62kg frame.
But with in excess of 25kg's on my back in the mud at Lodden Plains about 4 years ago was one time I think a bit more fitness and body strength could have helped. Oh, perhaps my struggling with the weight there was due to my being released from intensive care from a head injury 6 days prior... Or perhaps I was overloaded.

I think in general if there was anything I should work on in prep for an overnighter it is leg muscle strength. That would also help my left knee cope with the 3 operations and meniscus partial removal it has had.
But I'm not getting any younger and I should probably look after my overall fitness better.

[Penguin]

Getting a bit older and creaking a bit more I find that I have to do more before a hike. But I have always had to fight to keep a bit of fitness. A combination of a bit of old fashioned weights in the gym and wandering around town with a 18kg pack on my back. fortunately (?) I live on top of a hill so the walk home is a 15 to 20% gradient with a rise of 80 meters. Just a good way to get the heart started. Also I get to walk along the rocks on the beach on the nightly circuit. I agree with the earlier comment that pounding the pavement is not the same as walking on a rough track.

Once upon a time six weeks of work would get me fit enough for a week long walk, now it is more like three months.

But we are all different. One of my walking companions has the occasional tug on a pipe, does a bit of walking before the hike and easily outpaces most thirty year olds. Natural talent, great lungs and a good walking style are a great benefit.

Oh and then there is the reduction in pre walking alcohol intake......

[corvus]

Heaven forbid !! extruding Red Wine (or and Vodka ) in my case is part and parcel of the walk especially up on to our plateaus it is a cause of much amusement to my younger walking companions but in truth only slows me down to an enth degree of their pace as I can pick it up on the flat to match the best of them .
However again in all seriousness getting fit for the walk should be important especially if you are desk bound which I am not.

[whiskeylover]

Penguin______Reduction ???? Is this so that when you drink on the walk that it takes less to have effect ?
On the otherside. I have found that used to train a lot cycling, and when walking the legs would get a little sore but the lungs and heart would allow me to push up the hills hard and crack a brilliant pace .Since I have nearly stopped riding the legs squeel and I sound like a steam train and my heart is pumping like a milking machine . I think that regular walking helps but getting the heart rate up a little has more effect .Anyway I find that even if i'm not as fit as I used be ,it is great to be outside and in the Tassie wild and enjoying the pain (anyway what is pain its only in your mind)

[sarge]

On my Easter trip to SW Tassie this year, which was arranged in January, I was "encouraged" by my one of my intended late 60's walking mates in Melbourne to test my fitness for the trip. When staying with him in Melbourne in January I went with him twice on his training route up the 1000 steps Kokoda Memorial track in the Dandenongs Fern Tree Gully, no packs.

I live only about 15 minutes away from the 1000 steps. Tried it once - charged up with a full pack (20+ kg) and made it about 10 steps before I had to stop for a break. Luckily there are very interesting plaques conveniently positioned every so often so you can stop for a break and pretend to read them,... I mean, yeah stop for a breather. Incidentally there is a rather nice 10k circuit walk once you reach the top it ends up back at the southern end carpark- enjoyed that much more!

[sarge]

So far so good have kept to my training pack walking each evening (well for four days in a row anyway). It feels a bit strange walking the streets with my pack on people look strangely and (for some reason) dogs bark at me more.....

I dont have many hills so am working on shortening my time for 4.5km - have knocked 3 minutes off to get it in 46 mins now with a 15kg pack. Might increase pack weight after another week.

[whynotwalk]

Call me a slow learner, but I've finally learned that walking is the best preparation for bushwalking. I walk to work most days, a bit over 5km, and sadly away from Mt Wellington (which today looks particularly inviting in its snowy glory!) Not only has walking every day improved the ease with which I can bushwalk, it's also helped me to lose 13kg and feel as fit as I ever have (as I approach 55 years of age). My theory used to be that the first day's walk would fix you up for the rest of the walk. Sometimes that worked, but often the results were painful, and who knows how badly I was buggering up my joints etc.

Of course red wine at the end of the day is also good for your joints, your heart, and your general well-being.

cheers

Peter

[Penguin]

It feels a bit strange walking the streets with my pack on people look strangely and (for some reason) dogs bark at me more.....

Walking the streets of Penguin at 7.30pm last night with a pack on (I am so not fit) passed a couple of the local lads carrying goon. Well at least I entertained them for a while.. Must be wrose in the bigger places.

I used to cycle alot in Melbourne. I have been abused, spat at, had cans (full) thrown at me and run off the road. It always amazes me that if anybody is a little different, and vunerable, it seems to be an open invitation to some to be abusive and intimidating.

The problem in a smaller community is that everybody wants to stop you to chat about where you are intending to walk - it can make it a very slow journey..

[walkinTas]

Call me a slow learner, but I've finally learned that walking is the best preparation for bushwalking.

I totally agree. I should try walking to work. Loosing 13Kg would be handy too.

[johnw]

My usual training regime may seem a bit extreme. However, I do it for multiple reasons. A major reason is fitness for bushwalking. Another relates to working in a sedentary profession and the consequent lack of fitness/health/weight gain that quickly results if not addressed. The other is staying fit and healthy while getting older.

I walk and run 6 days a week. Generally this involves about 9km/day of urban walking on weekdays. In addition I normally run 5km in the evening 6 days/week. I compete in a couple of fun runs and similar events during the year of between 10km to 14km distance. When training for those events the running schedule gradually escalates to race distance at least twice before the event, over a period of 8-10 weeks.

I bushwalk somewhere almost every weekend. Mostly these are day trips of between 10km and 20km, with an occasional overnighter. I do it for enjoyment and relaxation and don't usually find fitness an issue, even with a heavy pack. I generally keep my daypack heavier than necessary. Although this is counter-intuitive to walking as light as possible, it helps make the transition to a heavier pack on a longer trip less daunting.

As some others have said, building up heart/lung capacity seems to assist in carrying the heavier loads required on longer trips. If contemplating a multi-day trip I try and do at least an overnight trip carrying and using all the intended gear. We did a 3 day trip and an overnighter in anticipation of 7 days on the OLT, and also did a long day trip with about 400m altitude gain carrying the full 21kg load that we each expected to carry. We got some weird looks that day.

I agree that walking with a pack is one of the best methods of preparing for walking. The more you are able to do should result in better fitness, but build up to it gradually. Making fitness training a regular habit helps preserve the time and effort invested.

I used to cycle alot in Melbourne. I have been abused, spat at, had cans (full) thrown at me and run off the road. It always amazes me that if anybody is a little different, and vunerable, it seems to be an open invitation to some to be abusive and intimidating.

Sadly I've also frequently endured the same sort of anti-social behaviour when running. Usually car hoons who will go out of their way to scream obscenities from the opposite side of the road. I just wonder what sort of mental capacity these morons have.

[kantonysen]

I take our dog on walks before breakfast to keep a little fit. Immediately after the walk on 3 or 4 morning I do some pushups and exercises with dumbells for 15 - 20 minutes. Having a sedentry job the upper body tends to loose its condition.
Thirty five plus years ago used to go jogging to keep fit for trips such as going into Federation Peak via the Yo Yo track in 4 days.

[corvus]

Oh wow you folks put me to shame and as someone in their sixties I just tend to do it and suffer the the occasional consequences later which don't last more than a day.
I have done 5 day walks and gone back to work on the Monday ,pulled a Hammie on the OLT and walked out the next day (Arm River Track) and gone back to work so I guess its a mind thing.
I am not totally sedentary in my job and I do use stairs and park and walk wherever I can I keep watch on my weight but don't diet and address the bottle more than I should however I have a PMA and have been recently walking with some younger folks who inspire me to enjoy life whilst you can and tho I might be slow on the rise I can make them puff on the downhill

[DarkenRahl]

If I'm going on a week long walk I'll go for a couple of weekend walks in the weeks prior otherwise I just suffer on the first day and steadily improve from there on in. Occasionally I'll be fortunate enough to get 3-4 overnight walks done in a month and on these rare occasions I have raced friends to the tops of hills with my backpack on I've felt so great. It feels good when you are fit but alas I am all to lazy when I'm not bushwalking.

I also often start a weekender with no sleep either due to the hours I work (10pm - 6am). Makes it easy to get to sleep that first night...

[shanehugh]

A good option for us with young family members is the child carrier backpacks. Slide a 2 year old into one of these and walk some of the steeper tracks around your area. Fitness scales as your child grows!!!
Just got to work out a way of keeping our 5 and 8 year old out of it.

[under10kg]

I need to train for walks otherwise my knees play up on hills.
I have found using 2 pacer poles a great help in this issue and they are my tent poles too.
I generally do a I hour walk every second day and play tennis 2 or 3 times a week on walk rest days as my general fitness routine. I try to do some yoga but am usually pretty slack.
I am fortunate that I can do a hour walk on my property that has some hills and rain forest.
I did wear a heart monitor once and found the hills really give you the workout.
After 2 months of 2 to 3 walks a week I did a fitness test and I was in excellent category for a 35 to 40 year old and I am 53
As I walk at a moderate pace and never jog, I think the hills developed my fitness in a easy way.
It has uneven slopes that help train my ankles as I use runners when walking.
When walking with my bushwalking club I find I am much fitter than just about all of them and they want to put rocks in my 4 kg pack.
I usually walk with no pack but to train for a big walk I slowly increase the weight in my pack.
For two months before a walk like the arthurs or NZ, I try to do a longer walk once a week of 20 kl or so.
Without the longer walks each week I find my endurance for walking 8 to 10 hours is pretty bad.
If I am walking in NZ with climbs over 1000 mts I do some day walks like up mt Barney and Mt Warning.
There is some information on the net about training for the marathon that can be applied to walking.

[llareggub]

Before an extended walk say three or four months before ,I take Friday afternoons off [I work for myself] and train on Mt Wellington.
I walk from the start of the Lenah Valley track at the bottom and head up the Old Hobartian Track to the Hunters Track turn-off, to Junction cabin then back down to the bottom via the Lenah Valley Track.I start off carrying about 7 kg then 10kg ...12kg...15kg...20kg....and finally about 25kg.I also time myself to make sure I don't slacken off ! I usually fill my pack up with water and carry it on the whole circuit but I'm thinking off ditching the water at the top to save my old knees on the way down.The circuit takes about 2.5 to 3 hours and the Old Hobartian is fairly steep so its a fairly good work out.We are off to the Western Arthurs in January so I better pull my finger out and get some serious hill climbing under my belt!

[corvus]

llareggub,
You are not allowed to use rude words on this forum like 25kg pack ! oh well bu%%*# been said now