Many of you have surely chosen to take a trip in which hiking is the main activity, for example the Camino de Santiago, the “Idiazabal Cheese Route”, or the Transguadarrama … This type of tourism is a perfect option to enjoy nature and, in addition, continue to move the body actively.

On these trips there are those who do about 12 km. daily even those who do more than 25 km. Everything will depend on the characteristics of the chosen route and the physical conditions of the person doing it.

In this of the physical condition the trainers of FAST can help you the previous months

HOW DO I PREPARE?

When we go hiking, one of the most important issues is to have a decent cardiorespiratory capacity that allows us to keep an adequate and maintained rhythm throughout the activity. For this, our Fitness Reduce Program could have managed to increase your oxygen consumption. As we have said on more than one occasion, some experiments by Dr. Gutierrez have shown that this parameter is multiplied considerably when a biosuit is used, so it can be a good help to be in shape, so that we do not lack breath during the kilometers that we are going to face.

But this is not all, since for the walk to be efficient, and to reduce the rate of injuries, our muscles must be prepared. The resistance force is decisive. Quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes form the main trident on which we will focus in FAST, always taking into account others, such as the abductor and adductor muscles, other hip flexors, the calf and foot muscles, as well as the stabilizing muscles of the foot. trunk. Programs such as Antiaging and Equilibrium will begin by approaching strength training, and its resistance, above all because they act on the fibers that make us stay active for a long time and / or maintain the same posture for a long time.

In a next phase we would train with the ems Tonic Program , where your muscles would take shape, gain strength and become a little faster. In this case, strength training would evolve, from concentric contractions (when a muscle generates tension while its origin and insertion approach) and isometric (when a muscle generates tension while its origin and insertion remain at the same distance), up to many weeks then challenge with eccentric contractions (when a muscle generates tension while its origin and insertion are separated).

This evolution is necessary because one of the most common problems in hiking is the descent, since the eccentric muscular work is multiplied, for that reason the muscular damage is precipitated and potentially exposes to musculoskeletal injuries. Therefore, during your workouts, in addition to strengthening your muscles, it is necessary to do exercises that make your lower limbs capable of coping with repeated eccentric work.

But we should not start a training program by performing repeated eccentric contractions, and less simultaneously with electrostimulation, since the muscle damage could be great and our body could not be prepared for it. According to Pombo et al. (2004), with electrostimulation, first it would be necessary to perform isometric and concentric training, and then eccentric (always accompanied by a previous period of eccentric training without electrostimulation). Do not worry, our personal electrostimulation trainers will reorient the programming so that it is individualized and safe and thus we achieve our goals. Find your nearest electrostimulation gym and get ready to walk.

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE DO?

Of course, we must go on walks, progressively increasing the mileage and pace, on terrain that increases the difficulty of the route profile until it resembles what we are going to do on our trip. You should not base your training only on electrostimulation, hiking and FAST can be a perfect combination.

Hiking can be a weekend “hobby” to disconnect from the routine and keep fit. Science tells us, for example, that it “plays a significant role in reducing weight and systolic blood pressure in obese women” (Kang. 2014). This can be very relevant to reduce cardiovascular risk in older people.

OTHER TIPS FOR YOUR HIKING PRACTICE

Walking downhill and carrying external load (a backpack, for example) has been shown to increase the risk of pain and injury (Bohne and Abendroth-Smith. 2007). Therefore, the use of poles helps reduce the perception of effort and maintain muscle function after days of walking (Howatson et al., 2011). In addition, the use of canes can be beneficial to increase caloric expenditure, since it increases energy production without increasing the perception of effort (Saunders et al., 2008). According to Bohne and Abendroth-Smith (2007), the use of canes “will help reduce the load on the joints of the lower extremities”.

Now you have it clear, if you like hiking, complement it with FAST and you will be much fitter on your next routes. Find your nearest electrostimulation gym, we are already more than 50 electrostimulation centers in Spain : Leganés, Marbella, Benidorm …