Hiking to stay in shape

The greatest merits of climbing mountains are that we can breathe the fresh air and exercise while appreciating nature. Hiking is an aerobic form of exercise that can improve the function of your heart and lungs.

Hiking also helps increase muscle endurance in your legs and waist.

It is therefore useful exercise for people who easily become tires due to insufficient exercise. Moreover, hiking provides benefits for mental health. 

Precautions when climbing

The way you walk will vary depending on the terrain, weather and time of day. What is more important is that you walk comfortably without feeling fatigued.

Climbers should walk by placing the soles of their shoes as flat as possible to the ground. They should reduce the weight-bearing impact by landing on the ground heel first on an uphill course. In addition, hikers should also maintain consistent breathing and pace. If you rest for a long time after climbing quickly, you will become tired more easily and the mental aspect of climbing will be tougher. That is, you may need more energy when you have to walk again after a long rest. Therefore you should rest for the shortest increments possible until you have attained your goal.

With regard to speed, middle-aged people are generally recommended to walk approximately 3 km in about 40-50 minutes. This speed is about half of that at which we walk on flat land. It is recommended that beginners walk for approximately 30 minutes and then rest for 5-10 minutes. If possible, however, they should rest in a standing position rather than sitting. But if your legs are very tired, you should rest seated with your feet up slightly.

Climbers should pay special attention when on a downhill course where accidents such as falls frequently occur. On the downhill course, pressure is put on the joints of the lower extremities equivalent to three times the body weight. Climbers should therefore consider flexing the knee to a greater extent than during normal activities and walk slowly by reducing their stride. This can reduce the load on the ankle and knee.

Therefore, it is also good for reducing fatigue and preventing a fall to disperse the impact using a climbing stick. In the selection of mountain and the course, climbers should consider the level of their physical strength. To obtain the effects of hiking as a form of exercise, they should climb a mountain within an hour if they climb every day. If they climb about once a week, they should select mountains they can climb within three to four hours.

But if you only climb on the weekend, you will not see the effects in terms of exercise. This is because you must exercise at least three times a week to enjoy the benefits. If you climb only on the weekend, you can do similar aerobic exercises for approximately 30 minutes more than two days a week, including power walking, biking or jogging.

With regard to shoes, climbers should avoid shoes with very high heels. If possible, they should wear climbing shoes. Otherwise, they should wear sports shoes with a good cushioning at the bottom to fit their feet.

By Park Won-ha

The author is a professor of Sungkyunkwan University School of medicine and doctor at Department of Rehabilitation Medicine of Samsung Medical Center. ― Ed.