Snow Lake

Snow Lake
Snow Lake Backpacking Trip

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Doing the Turkey Trot Up Tiger Mountain (Exercise Specificity)

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I hiked up Tiger Mountain with some friends before going off to stuff my face with turkey and other assorted great food. The next day I was a bit stiff and felt some mild soreness in my muscles, even though the hike was only a few hours and at a moderate pace, but at a fairly steep incline.

This brings me to my next topic, exercise specificity. Simply stated, exercise specificity is the principle that your body will adapt to whatever you specifically train it in. I used to hike just about every weekend and do hikes three times as long as Tiger Mountain at a much more rapid pace. Lately, I have not been any slug either. I weight train every week and include squats and various other leg exercises in my strengthening routine. I do four or five kung fu classes per week and practice tai chi about six times a week. But all these activities are different from hiking. Your body will adapt to whatever you subject it too. So if you want to be a top notch hiker, you must hike. If you want to gain strength, you must do strength training. Or if you want to be a tennis pro, then you better play lots of tennis.

So, when you are considering what you want your exercise routine to be, figure out what your fitness goals are, and see if the routine will accomplish those goals. Do you want muscular legs with good endurance and to be outside, then hiking might be a good activity for you. Do you want increased flexibility, general toning of your muscles, and do you like to interact with other like-minded people, then a yoga class might fit the bill. Do you want all around endurance and a competitive team sports atmosphere, then joining a soccer league might satisfy your yearning for excitement and get you fit at the same time. Whatever the activity you pick, make sure it fits your lifestyle and your goals, because this will help you stick to it and see the results you want.

2 comments:

  1. Great advice, Paul. I'm interested in climbing Mt. Rainier someday, and I've thought a bit about what kinds of gym work can help me prepare. Thanks for the reminder that there's really no substitute for just DOING it (the activity in question) -- taking care, of course to work up gradually (per your post below).

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  2. For hiking/climbing you can do progressive resistance training by carrying successively more water filled containers up your training routes. Then if you get thirsty, you can drink some of them. :)

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