Hiking outdoor is beneficial for many reasons. Apart from bringing up nice views, fresh air but also peace with the sounds and the smells of nature, it’s an activity that helps you to keep fit and to stay healthy.
Where to hike?
Generally, hiking is an outdoor activity that you can on the hills, on the forests and the mountains. And in France, there are numerous attractive places where you can hike. You can for example go for some Alpes’hikes, Loire hikes, etc. Apart from the rich landscape, you can also benefit a healthy air and meet beautiful people that share your favorite activity.
But if you cannot afford time to get out for some hiking with your friends or family members, you can also stay home and train yourself with your own equipment. What really matters is that you can train and try to keep your body moving.
What can hike bring to you and to your health?
Hiking is good for the general health. Apart from its being a cardio workout, it also contributes to the lowering of the risk of heart disease. It can also help you improve your blood pressure and blood sugar level.
Besides, hiking is a good sport to boost the bone density because walking is before all a weight-bearing exercise. If you get accustomed to hiking, you build strength in your glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings and also the muscles in your hips and lower legs.
Otherwise, hiking is also benefic to strengthen your core, to improve balance but also to control the weight. But that’s not all. In fact, when you tend to practice regularly hiking, you ameliorate you ameliorate you mood. According to some researches, hiking presents a positive impact on combating the symptoms of stress and anxiety.
How to do perfect hike?
Before going to hike, you should prepare your mind and your body. You can also get in mind that you have planned some strategies in order to get the best from your trip. For that, remember to always start slow, especially for beginners. Local and short hikes can then be sufficient.
After, you should use poles by digging into the ground and moving hardly the upper body muscles so that you can work harder in this zone and get a stronger cardio workout. After, don’t be afraid to climb the head of the hills.
If you climb a 5% to 10% inclined hill, it equals to 30% to 40% increase in calorie burn. When you bump it up, you can work muscles and improve balance and stability. And finally, don’t forget to weight yourself down. If you carry weight during your trails, it will bring your fitness and level on track.
How to hike safely?
Hiking is for sure one of the safest sport that you can practice outside. But it’s always better to take some precautions before going as accidents may happen for any precise reason. So, it is recommended to go on hike with a buddy. Even if you enjoy hiking alone, hiking with a friend or a group is beneficial if you happen to get hurt, or lost or tired in remote places. Once you are fully trained and more familiarized with the road, you can go on hike by yourself.
After, before hiking, you should also get accustomed to the Trail map. It also goes without saying that you should check the weather, dress and pack according to it. If you are surprised by storms during the hike, always follow the marked paths and trails. Accidents may quickly happen in these cases of sudden weather changes.