So you want to start hiking, but you’re not sure how to prep for that first big outing into nature?
That’s OK… the good news is you can prepare your body with some really simple at-home exercises, in fact, all you’ll need to do is add a few more minutes to your normal workout routine and you’ll be making a BIG impact on the trails in next to no time!
In addition to your normal workouts, you’ll want to add these exercises that add an additional focus on developing and extending your cardio and muscular endurance, bullet-proofing your knees, strengthening your legs and developing better balance and coordination.

What you’ll need: mini bands, a step, and a comfortable weighted vest.

Extending & Developing Muscular & Cardio Endurance
This one’s super simple, just get moving more!
Whatever you can already do, just add more! More walking, more stairs, more jogging, more hills anything that extends your time in aerobic exercise. There are many ways to do this, add a morning or evening walk, take the stairs at work, if you already walk- but don’t want to run- add a weighted vest for more impact. If you already power walk- why not add a Km of jogging for every Km of walk, whatever you already do- just add a bit more!
However, it’s important to note: you do need to heed the 10% rule, only add an additional 10% each week or you run the risk of injury.

Build Lower Body Strength
If you’re going to hike in the UAE, you’re going to be climbing, and whether that’s sand dunes or craggy mountains, they both demand good lower body strength. Step ups offer a lot of ‘bang for your buck,’ as they’re a great way to develop pretty much all the muscles of the lower body, plus core and balance. It’s a unilateral exercise so it works each leg individually giving weaknesses, and poor balance and/or coordination no place to hide!
You can start small on a step or small box and gradually move to a bench or adding weights. Start simple and increase reps and difficulty gradually.  

The Hips Don’t Lie
Sitting in the car, at work, on the sofa etc. make most people’s hips weak.  Weak hips don’t just affect the hip area, but significantly impact our balance, coordination and athletic performance, plus can significantly impact the joints further down the chain, with additional knee and ankle issues.
For all round hip strengthening I love the mini banded hip clock exercise. This low impact strengthening exercise not only activates the glutes, but also targets the deep external rotators, improves posture and balance and reduces the chance of injury.

The Core of the Issue
Everything we do benefits from a strong and effective core, but hiking even more so. Just think about walking on uneven ground, steep descents on gravel trails, balancing on narrow paths and climbing uneven stone steps, all these activities require a strong and effective core for balance and power.
For this I love the bear pose. Its back protective, hits the core like you can’t imagine and has loads of variations from simple through to tough, all while requiring little space and zero equipment.

Bullet-Proof Those Knees
Our knees can really let us down out on the trails, and often we have no idea its going to be an issue until we’re descending after a long day and a tough climb. A safe and effective way to build resilient knees is to spend a few minutes each session walking backwards, either on the ground or treadmill.
Walking backwards increases the knee’s range of motion, plus builds the supporting muscles and helps develop better balance and coordination. In fact, it’s so good it’s an integral component in most knee medical rehab programmes.
Ideally start by adding few minutes each workout and building up slowly.

If you would like more information on personal training sessions with a focus on hiking and trail running, here in Sharjah, drop me a message at curstyptsharjah@gmail.com.

For more information on hiking for beginners in Sharjah and the UAE see: here
Why stop at hiking? Checkout my top 5 reasons to start trail running as you age: here