Getting fit for the hills

polranny

Well-Known Member
Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get fit for the hills when you live in an area where there are no hills?
 
Yes, it's challenging & an issue I have as I don't necessarily have time to jump in the car & drive for miles just to walk the dog & keep fit. What I do to help for this is walk briskly carrying a weighted well-fitting pack. 2 litre water-bottles are ideal and you can build up to the target weight (& if it gets too much you can tip some out). I try to do 10k with 10kg at least a couple of times a week but nothing beats actually going hill-walking when you can. I find it more helpful (& less damaging to my back) to walk further with a modest load than try to walk for a shorter distance with a heavier load.

I suppose if you wanted to get really serious & be the laughing stock of your locality you could tie bungee cords between your legs for extra resistance.....
 
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Had to walk back to the car at the top of a steep car park yesterday. Thought I was having a heart attack. Reckon it's time to get back on the spinner & rower before my November trip. I usually find a few weeks of decent cardio vascular on these 2 machines (30 minutes steady sessions on each every other day) plus some lengthy walks gets me back to a point where I can survive a full week on the hill. If nothing else it keeps me ahead of the rest of the guys in the group who are 8 years younger.
 
Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get fit for the hills when you live in an area where there are no hills?


Move...........
















Best guess would to visit a local gym and ask them, my manual job keeps very active also out foxing on foot, beating, wildfowling (that gets the heart rate up getting out and back) rough shooting and out with the Spaniel!!

I do notice some of the wildfowling members who work in offices on work parties and setting up our summer clay shoots running out of steam quite quickly.

Tim.243
 
If you are a gym member then get on the running machine at around 5KPH and crank the incline up to 12-15%. Power walk on that for 20 minutes or so, that will work a sweat up hehe! You can also wear a weighted pack while you do this.

The other good gym machine is the Stair Master, and again 20 minutes on that (you can also set it up for intervals with slower and faster paces) will get your heart going.

I usually do both at the gym - The power walking gives you stamina, and then the interval training has the benefit of reducing your recovery time between intense bouts of exercise.

If you dont have gym membership then climbing up stairs in a tall building or car park would help, and as others have suggested get out walking with a weighted pack on.

I'm in this boat too as I'm up to Scotland next year and I want to have my cardio up to scratch when I go!
 
Its all about pacing yourself, no good trying to be man mountain and walking at a pace that wears you out to the point where you cant hold the rifle steady when you are on a beast.
I find coming down hill harder than going up, mainly because my knees are not good. Don't carry to much crap with you either. Good waterproof and wind proof coat, trousers, good walking boots, gaiters, hat, gloves, knife, rifle, ammo, binoculars, drag rope, chocolate and a bottle of water. Many clients bring the kitchen sink with them, so keep it light and sensible.
 
Its all about pacing yourself, no good trying to be man mountain and walking at a pace that wears you out to the point where you cant hold the rifle steady when you are on a beast.
I find coming down hill harder than going up, mainly because my knees are not good. Don't carry to much crap with you either. Good waterproof and wind proof coat, trousers, good walking boots, gaiters, hat, gloves, knife, rifle, ammo, binoculars, drag rope, chocolate and a bottle of water. Many clients bring the kitchen sink with them, so keep it light and sensible.

As said - slow and steady, and not carrying too much. I keep fit by running, 15 to 20 miles a week. When out on the hills, whether it's foxing or otherwise, it's all at a nice slow pace.

There's a saying in high-altitude mountaineering : every step, take a small break. Following the same advice stalking on the hill isn't a bad idea.
 
Weighted pack and wear out your stairs carpet, after a couple of weeks only use every other tread
In order to get the strength and endurance to do something you either have to do it or mimic it to the best of your ability that's why boxers don't do ballet training "if you get my point" both are very physically demanding but in very different areas.
Regards
Jimmy
 
I am getting in shape for Montana, but although i have hills, i can't do anything about the altitude.
All i can suggest is some running, and walking with weights, i put 4 pint milk containers in my rucksack filled with water, and as you get fitter increase the amount you carry.
Squats with weights will help also.

It is helping, i bumped some fallow yesterday (well actually the noisy cows frightened them) and they ran over a hill, i followed, running, i almost got the crosshairs on one as it went in the wood, i couldn't have done that 6 months ago, not bad for 56 years!

Cheers
Richard
 
stairs stairs n more stairs ,back in the day when playing rugby we used to carry a pack and go up and down every set of stairs we could find.It hurts at first but you notice the changes as the training goes on.You can get ankle weights like joggists use but dont overdo it and warm up first.
 
stairs stairs n more stairs

I agree that nothing gets you fit for walking on hills and moorland like actually getting out and doing it, especially that soft moor with molinia tussocks.

However climbing stairs does help and a lot of people work in buildings with stairs or maybe even live in a block of flats. Where I'm working is 7 floors so it is a simple matter to wander up and down a few times or to have a run at it at lunchtime or similar. The big advantage with the stairs is they are free and if you work in a building with stairs then there are probably "back stairs" somewhere used as a fire escape that you will have to yourself.

It was an ex-para who pointed this out to me, as I was moaning about not being able to keep fit for the hills, he was working night shifts and would climb the back stairs and do sit ups or press ups or similar on each floor. Start gently and do that for a year, increasing the number of times you climb the stairs, and you'll be doing mountain marathons in no time.
 
I am getting in shape for Montana, but although i have hills, i can't do anything about the altitude.
All i can suggest is some running, and walking with weights, i put 4 pint milk containers in my rucksack filled with water, and as you get fitter increase the amount you carry.
Squats with weights will help also.

It is helping, i bumped some fallow yesterday (well actually the noisy cows frightened them) and they ran over a hill, i followed, running, i almost got the crosshairs on one as it went in the wood, i couldn't have done that 6 months ago, not bad for 56 years!

Cheers
Richard

Ah Montana I am very jealous would love to go over there. I went as a kid and can remember it but sadly had no interest in fishing or shooting then. As for the altitude take some viagra along them help immensely with it if you get sick. I spend 6 months a year at 2000m+ and have never been affected with altitude issues so I suspect its as much mental than anything especially if you're in a shitty weather system. That being said I have a lady friend who scales 6k+ mountains and she swears she struggles really badly.
 
Thanks everyone. Luckily I don't live in a bungalow. I can walk all day here where it's flat but when I start walking up hills then I'm quickly shattered. I told my wife about carrying extra weight to get fitter and she said I was already doing that, and with more than 10kg!
 
Does anyone have any good ideas about how to get fit for the hills when you live in an area where there are no hills?

Have you got a local Parkrun? (http://www.parkrun.org.uk) Don't worry if you are not a runner, many people start by doing a run/walk combination. Parkrun is a brilliant idea and it has inspired many people to get out and do a bit of fitness.

I am a bit surprised that so many people are suggesting carrying extra weight, most of us are doing this already around the middle, and adding to it only risks injury unless you are training for a specific event or proffession that requires it. Better to go a bit further or work a bit harder rather than carry weight.

As has been said, for real hill fitness work nothing beats walking in the hills, a well known Army hillwalking club do quite a bit of it in their selection process but, any improvement to your cadio-vascular fitness will help. Running is best but rowing and swimming are great too and have a lesser impact on your joints.

I agree with the advice on carrying less clutter when you are actually stalking especially if you are going with an Estate Stalker. I would add that finding and using the right boots helps enormously.
 
Its all about pacing yourself, no good trying to be man mountain and walking at a pace that wears you out to the point where you cant hold the rifle steady when you are on a beast.
I find coming down hill harder than going up, mainly because my knees are not good. Don't carry to much crap with you either. Good waterproof and wind proof coat, trousers, good walking boots, gaiters, hat, gloves, knife, rifle, ammo, binoculars, drag rope, chocolate and a bottle of water. Many clients bring the kitchen sink with them, so keep it light and sensible.
The only thing that I would add to assist in decending from a hill/mountain is a pair of sticks/(quad pod, or the like), or in the alternative a single long staff. I do a bit of hill/fell/mountains walking/scrambling, I use extending walking poles, and as Malc said it's the decending that is harder, steady pace, resting in between, it's not a competition!!
 
Treadmill test.
Requires a good treadmill that will do 15% elevation.
start at 3.9 mph/6.2 KPH at 0% and increase elevation by 3% every 2 minutes. Stop after 12 minutes. Add weight as required,
 
The only thing that I would add to assist in decending from a hill/mountain is a pair of sticks/(quad pod, or the like), or in the alternative a single long staff. I do a bit of hill/fell/mountains walking/scrambling, I use extending walking poles, and as Malc said it's the decending that is harder, steady pace, resting in between, it's not a competition!!

Agreed although they can be a bit of a pain when stalking. If you want to prove the benefit of using a pair of sticks for walking purposes simply stand on a set of bathroom scales and read your weight then place the sticks on the ground as you would when using them. Even the slightest downward pressure causes the weight on the scale to reduce dramatically. This is the weight that you are taking off your knees by using them.
 
Use the stairs at home and at work, else you will get " bungalow legs"
Walking is so much harder when you are climbing against gravity.
Dont let some young stalker set the pace for you,
Go steady at your own pace, rest frequently and observe.
A strong stick is as good as a third leg.
if you overdo it climbing youll get pain and cramps in your muscles,
coming down your knees will suffer.
what about those Fell Runners:oops: How do they do it

As for altitude.
Last time I went to Colorado I was ill for about 48 hours with altitude sickness.
by day 3 I was getting better, day 4 I felt fit again....... aclimatisation
 
This thread made me chuckle, it brought back memories of my first trip on the hill , we arrived at our digs at about 5.00pm and excited about the next few days stalking we got sat in the bar before we knew it 11.00 arrived. Now what I can tell you is that the last thing you want to dragging up that hill no matter how fit you are is a hangover, lesson learnt , but I found the biggest thing is as said carry essential items only.
 
Sit ups and two weights 2-1/2 pound each one each hand for my arms back and legs,still overweight and knackered,:drool:
 
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