WEEKLY TRAINING TIP #6

Many apologies from your electronic personal trainer!  My folks visited and then I came down with the summer cold.  This morning it dawned on me that I had failed to send out my electronic training tip.  Egads!!  So here is your final tip....and one that you can use for any activity in the Wood River Valley.  Best wishes and have a grand time on Idaho's tallest peak.  -Diane Olson, MBA, CFPT

Athletic movements require a coordination of power production and stabilization from many muscles to produce a specific outcome. Therefore, when choosing strength training exercises one should minimize the use of isolated movements (e.g. leg extensions) and instead focus on multi-joint, proprioceptively challenging exercises that coordinate movements using the entire body.

WEEKLY TRAINING TIP #5

Hiking is an activity with neuromuscular as well as mental, social and spiritual stimulation in the most diverse and inspiring movement environment available on the earth. It does not get any more total body than that! (My little brother has escorted me and "pulled" me up some of the most beautiful peaks around us.) However, there have been many times when my back was competing with my mental focus.

Normal gait requires a balanced counter-rotation of the upper body. According to Tommi Paavola from PT on the Net, rotational range of motion of the thoracic spine is important because otherwise the rotation happens somewhere where it can cause problems (i.e., lumbar spine). But normal gait becomes a little more complicated with steep hiking.....loaded with a backpack....even a relatively light backpack. (In simplistic anatomical terms, thoracic is the upper back and lumbar is the low back.) What happens when we carry a backpack? The bigger the pack, the more it immobilizes the arms from swinging and the thoracic spine from rotating. The lack of rotation will eventually become a problem when the lower back or the hip starts to hurt. (The weight of the pack itself compresses the spine and makes things worse.) Enhancing and maintaining the thoracic rotation is specific to hiking and should be part of the hiking training program. Here is an example of one exercise you might use to strengthen that muscles around the spine:

WEEKLY TRAINING TIP #4

An interesting biomechanical detail emerges when we look at the ankle in ascent or descent situations.Walking uphill causes the foot and ankle to absorb and produce force in considerable dorsiflexion and often without a typical heel strike of gait. Downhill ground contact starts with the heel strike and proceeds into plantar flexion before the center of gravity moves over the foot. As the pitch of the uphill increases, the hip needs to flex more in order to keep the center of gravity over the foot. The opposite happens moving downhill as the foot reaches forward to meet the ground in order to slow down the downward momentum.

Walking on a flat surface or stepping up or down on a flat surface (i.e., stairs) does not necessarily cover the full range of motion required in hiking, either in the ankle or the hip joint.

For high altitude hiking enthusiasts: The following exercise will help prepare you for Borah.

WEEKLY TRAINING TIP #3

Optimizing ground contact is important for hikers since we are repeating that movement over and over and over......etc. Optimal ground contact requires flexibility, mobility and strength from the foot and ankle complex (during loading and unloading). The ankle is required to move through large ranges in each plane of motion. Lack of movement ability or stability in these patterns eventually affects your body higher in the anatomical chain. Don't we know it!! Eventually the knee, hip or back become a cranky traveling companion. Proper function of the ankle complex is an essential piece of equipment for a hike. So here is your next exercise. Enjoy!!

WEEKLY TRAINING TIP #2:

Dear Expedition Inspiration hikers, many of you have already "bagged" several peaks in this area. For those of you who haven't undertaken one of our amazing summits, I thought you might like ro review some essentials.

When training for a hike, especially at an altitude, specificity of training is the key. Initially, the concern IS the altitude. Training requires several weeks at an altitude of at least 5,000 feet. (We're lucky.....take a few jaunts up Baldy and it will help prepare you.)

Other training measures are:

• You must train wearing the clothing you will be wearing for the hike; this is no time to get blisters from new boots a few hours into your hike. You need to experiment with your socks, underwear, shirts, pants, waterproof or thermal clothing. Will you need Vaseline for wear spots, or will you use micropore? Heaven forbid you are caught thinking, “What do you mean these boot aren’t waterproof?”
  
  
• This also includes backpacks, which are loaded with the same equipment you will take hiking. Not only is it important for the musculoskeletal and metabolic training effect, but you also need to get used to wearing the backpack, feeling the specific aches and pains and spend time getting the straps and packing right BEFORE you are half way through the hike.
  
  
• You will have to attempt to train in similar climates; hot destinations require training in heat (e.g., the heat of the day) and cold destinations require training at colder periods (e.g., between 1 - 5 am).
  
  
• Your hiking must be that…not going up and down on a stepper. You must prepare your neuromuscular system for walking on uneven ground that slides out below your feet, lifting the feet a little higher than usual to step over rocks or uneven pebbles…etc. Prepare your hips, knees and low back.
  
  
• You need to ensure that your diet is supporting the level of activity, especially your iron intake. You cannot afford to be anaemic when the O2 gets scarce. We can discuss carbs, protein, etc. later.
  
  
• Finally, I like to remind clients to prepare mentally. This includes training with no head phones and training for long hours. It will do little good training for two hours a day every second day when you will be hiking for eight to 10 hours ...or longer. After reaching the summit, it's the hike out that is most often fraught with mental and physical fatigue. This is where mental ability must stay focused in order to overcome or avoid unnecessary injuries. (It also makes the cold beer in the car more enjoyable.!!) —Diane Olson, MBA, CFT, ACE, AFAA, AIFE certified

WEEKLY TRAINING TIP #1:

Watch our website for weekly strength training tips! Call 208-726-6456 for more information or sign up to receive email notice of each week’s hike. Email ei@expeditioninspiration.org