How to Prepare for Hiking & Backpacking Season: Training Tips

Here are my pre-season training tips to help build your endurance ahead of many adventures up the mountains.

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If you live where you experience all four seasons, you may have a favorite time of year. If you are like me, summer is my favorite season to explore the outdoors. The weather is perfect for hiking, camping and even road trips. But before I strap on my hiking boots, here are things I do to prepare for each hiking and backpacking season.

Things I do to Prepare for Hiking & Backpacking Season

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A common question I hear is, “How long does it take to get in shape for hiking?” While there might not be a “perfect” time frame for everyone, I have found about 3 months is sufficient for me to prepare my body for long hiking trips.

Two or three months of training might seem like a lot, but I have found it’s a sweet spot for me. My lifestyle is divided into two seasons: active and hibernation. During warmer weather you’ll find me hiking, camping, and enjoying the outdoors. During colder weather (looking at you winter) you’ll find me indoors making handmade soap, writing, reading and relaxing. And, oh boy, do I give my body time to rest; at least four months. I guess that explains the 10 pounds of extra weight I gain every winter. I blame it all on bread!

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Now that you know the long version of why I take dedicated training time to get ready for hiking season, here is how I prepare for hiking and backpacking two to three months in advance. No worries if you don’t have months to train. It’s never too late to start. The trick is to just start and be consistent.

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Here are 5 things I do to Prepare for Hiking & Backpacking Season

1. Change Eating Habits: Go on a Diet

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Nothing is as hard as changing one’s routine and structure. So, at the beginning of the year or several weeks-months before your hiking season/trip, I recommend changing your diet or eating habits. Not so drastic that you can’t sustain it, but enough for you to see a change in your overall health.

I do this by adopting a structured dinner diet. What do I mean? Instead of having my typical whatever I am craving for dinner, I change it to chicken and vegetables five days a week. My meals for breakfast and lunch remain the same. I eat three meals a day and snack throughout the day. Full disclosure, I have a huge appetitte!

If you follow me on Instagram you will realize bread is a MUST have for me. Team mkate all the way. As for snacks, I am all about fresh fruits: avocado, orange, peach, mango and sometimes chocolate.

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As I said, dinner is the only thing I alter in my diet while preparing for hiking and backpacking season. I make and eat a chicken salad; baby spinach, tomatoes, and vegetable herbs dressing. And for Mr. R, he has a chicken Caesar salad. Sometimes, we treat ourselves to Salmon or a Steak salad and trust me, this diet really helps. Weekends are spludge days for both food & drinks!

2. Go to the Gym: Exercise to get Fit

Dedicate a time that’s best for you and go to the gym (or use home equipment), 30-60 minutes a day. Make it a routine and I guarantee you will start seeing results. But of course, showing up isn’t enough! One needs to put in the work and effort needed. Building a set schedule of exercise instills discipline which is a skill that you can apply during hiking and backpacking season.

For me, I set aside 5 days a week, one hour a day to go to the gym with 30 minutes for the stair master and 30 minutes on weights. And no, I don’t have a personal trainer. I am pretty good at staying on routine and holding myself accountable. But if you can afford a trainer and need someone to motivate you to go to the gym and guide you through exercise, you should get one.

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What keeps me motivated is knowing if I practice and exercise months in advance, I will have an easier time on the trail and I won’t be huffing and puffing as much. To be totally honest, the gym isn’t particularly my favorite place. I would rather be out in nature exercising but given the cold conditions here in the Pacific Northwest, I need to be indoors during months of preparation for hiking and backpacking.

While at the gym, I mainly focus on strengthening my legs and increasing my stamina. Though my primary goal isn’t to lose weight but rather to gain tone, I also work on losing the weight gained during winter. Typically, most of my weight gain goes to my lower body, hips, and legs.

3. Go on Long Walks: Uphill/Stairs Preferred 

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Dedicate 30-60 minutes to go on a walk at least 5 days a week. You might even incorporate this in your work commute. If not, going on a walk before or after work will be a great routine to start.

Of course, this depends on the weather conditions where you reside. If you live in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) where it rains a lot, walking can be a bit tricky but that’s where the gyms come in. I live in Seattle, home of the mother of all rains (pretty much Muranga of USA) hence the reason I go to the gym during training season until it warms up and stops raining.

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You can go to a neighboring park or trail for exercise. If this isn’t an option, then climbing stairs in your neighborhood is your best bet. Sometimes, I even carry my backpack on my walks to strengthen my back and shoulders. And there is another tip for you to incorporate as you prepare for hiking and backpacking season.
 

4. Reduce Alcohol Intake  

I know the pandemic has had an impact on the best of us and some of us have added more alcohol to our diets. Nothing like a good drink after a long day at home or work. For many of us, we’ve consumed an extra drink or three a night as a stress reliever. Reducing our alcohol intake while preparing for hiking and backpacking season is also good for our physical and mental health. Just good health in general. So, be aware of your alcohol intake and consider reducing it.

In the 2-3 months of preparing for hiking and backpacking season, so far, I have had few indulgences, that’s not counting wild weekends with friends! Of course, there are the occasional drinks with a friend over lunch or dinner. That said, the number could change by the time I finish this post and press done! Hahaha…

5. Restock Items and Prepare Gear (Check out YouTube video on Camping Gear by Click Here)

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Last on my list of things to prepare for hiking and backpacking season, I suggest looking over and preparing your gear ahead of time to ensure a successful trip.

It would be a bummer if you realized your boots no longer fit or you don’t have any camping food for an upcoming trip. So, pull and dust out all your hiking and camping gear and check that you have everything you will need.

If you are in need of a hiking items checklist, here I made one for you for FREE . I also made a checklist of camping gear I use that you can download here for FREE

For me, at the beginning of the year, I go through all our hiking/camping gear and recheck items to make sure everything looks good and that I have enough supplies for the season. I am talking about food, wipes, snacks, sunscreen, etc. This year, I needed to buy an extra pair of socks, a beanie hat, hiking clothes, and an entry packing pass. I also needed a new backpack and thanks to Osprey Packs, I got my new Ariel 65 pack. Don’t have a hiking or camping backpack, check out Osprey brand.

Extra Tips: Dancing

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Dancing is another great way to get fit for hiking season. So bust the radio on…who am I kidding….Turn on YouTube or Spotify and just dance for 15-30 minutes a day and you will be surprised how much sweat you can break. So, break a sweat through dancing right in the convenience of your home. No gear, membership, travel time or special equipment needed. Just dance! I am yet to make time for dancing but its activity I would like to add to my routne.

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There you have it, my comprehensive list of tips on how to prepare for hiking and backpacking season. It’s important that I mention that I am not a fitness coach. However, having close to five years of hiking experience, I think it’s safe to say during those years, I have learned a thing or two and I hope you found this information helpful.

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Please do share on the comment section, I would love to hear how you prepare for hiking season or how you plan on preparing for backpacking camping trips.

I wish you a great hiking and backpacking season and hope you share your travel experiences with me on social media. You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook YouTube and Stellar at travelwithirine. Happy hiking!