Can you build muscle while hiking?

It is known that you can’t build muscle with regular walks, but can you build muscle while hiking? I did some research and decided to share my findings in this article.

It is true that you will not build muscle with regular walks, but what about hiking? Does hiking build muscle? How different is hiking from regular walks? It all depends on the trail, the weight of your backpack, your pace, etc. The short answer is: yes, you can build muscle while hiking. However, it is not the most effective way to build muscle and there are limitations. Chances are that you are more interested in toning your muscles. And hiking is a lot more effective for toning your muscles than building them.

 

How do we build muscle

Before finding the answer to the question “can you build muscle while hiking” we have to know how muscles are built in general.

After doing exercise with a certain intensity, you will create micro tears in your muscle tissue, resulting in damaged muscle fibers. Protein will be responsible for repairing the damaged muscle fibers. The repaired muscle fiber will be increased in thickness.

This means that there are two things needed to build muscle: micro tears (by doing intensive exercise) and protein (from eating the right food).

 

When do we create micro tears

We create micro tears after doing exercise with a certain intensity. So how intense should the exercise be and what kind of exercise are we talking about? Let’s take a look.

Walking is obviously not intense enough to create these micro tears, this is the reason that you can’t build muscle while walking.

So what about hiking? Hiking can be intense enough to create these micro tears. There are multiple factors that come into play: the weight of your backpack, the trail itself, your pace, etc.

There is a big difference when hiking uphill with a heavy backpack and hiking on a plain surface with a lightweight bag. Hiking downhill also requires more muscle usage, especially when it is a bit more technical.

It also depends on your experience level. If you climb mountains every day, your body will eventually get used to that and micro tears will not occur as often. When it comes to muscle growth, you want to keep surprising your body, don’t do the same things every day. This is why bodybuilders often change their routines, they don’t want their body to get used to it.

Note that, even when you hike uphill with a heavy bag, you will not come close to the results you could achieve in the gym.

Long story short, you will create some micro tears and that could result in some muscle growth if your hike is intense enough, but the results will still be limited.

 

What muscles do we use while hiking

Most people think about legs when they hear the words “muscles” and “hiking” in the same sentence. This makes sense, of course, but you do not only work out the muscles in your legs. On a high intensity hike, you will use your entire body.

Let’s go over some of the muscles we use while hiking.

• Quadriceps: One of the most important muscles for hiking. The quadriceps are situated at the front of the thigh. They are responsible for the forward motion and straightening the knee. This group of muscles is constantly engaged while hiking.
• Hamstrings: The hamstrings are situated at the rear of the thigh. They are also responsible for straightening the knee. Just like the quadriceps, the hamstrings are constantly engaged while hiking.
• Calves: I do not expect anyone would be surprised to find calves on the list. However, calves are mainly used when walking uphill and are less stressed when walking on flat terrain.
• Glutes: The glutes are mainly responsible for supporting the torso. The glutes will be given a much more intensive workout when the hiker is carrying a heavy backpack and walking uphill.
• Hip muscles: Hip muscles are responsible for extending the thigh at the hip, they also help with supporting the lower back and the glutes.
• Abdominal: Often referred to as “the core”. These muscles will help keeping your body straight while hiking with a heavy backpack.

 

Toning vs building muscles

By now, you should have realized that hiking is not optimal for building a lot of muscle. However, hiking is very effective at toning your body.

“To tone up means to reduce the appearance of body fat by tightening up the muscles and giving them shape. Bulking up means to increase muscle mass and make the muscles bigger”

source: www.ptonthenet.com/articles/Toning-vs-Bulking-Up-2889

The optimal way to increase muscle mass is to do very intensive weight lifting. For example: three times six reps with the heaviest weight possible. The optimal way to tone up is to do a lot of reps, but a lot less intensive.

When you think about it, hiking is almost like doing a lot of low intensity reps in the gym. Therefore, hiking is optimal at toning your body and not very effective at building muscle mass.

Also, hiking is perfect when it comes to burning fat. When you burn fat, your muscles will become more visible and your body will start to look more muscular. So it is not because you will not build a lot of actual muscle that you can’t look more muscular.

If you want the legs of a bodybuilder, you should probably hit the gym instead of the trail. If you just want a nicely toned body (especially legs), then hiking is perfect for you.

 

How to gain more muscles while hiking

if you read the part about “What muscles do we use while hiking”, you probably know that there are two factors that come into play when it comes to increasing muscle activity: backpack weight and elevation.

So if you want to increase muscle growth on a hike, you should get rid of your lightweight gear and find a challenging trail. The most important thing is to find a trail with a lot of changes in altitude.

Additionally, you should eat enough protein to repair the damaged muscle tissue. Since you will be hiking a lot, this means you should also consume a lot of protein. For most people, this is an issue, the snacks/meals that they are eating throughout the day do not contain enough protein.

To deal with this issue, I generally like to bring some protein powder on my hiking trips. I include some powder in my meals/snacks or I simply make a shake once in a while. This really helps me with reaching my recommended amount of daily protein. I try to get at least 30% of my calories from protein, and I will recommend you do the same. If you are not familiar with healthy macro ratios, check out this article: How to eat healthy on the trail.

I realize that some people don’t really like the taste of protein powder (shakes). For you guys, I would recommend bringing protein bars as snacks instead of regular high-energy bars. It’s not as good as bringing protein powder (because they still contain a lot of carbs), but it will certainly help. Also, protein bars can actually taste very good, equally good -or sometimes even better- than a regular snack (Okay, I’ll be honest, most people don’t agree with me on this one).

Not convinced? No worries, there are other high protein snacks out there! Also, make sure to eat healthy balanced meals with enough protein.

 

Use trekking poles while hiking

Using trekking poles while hiking is a great way to improve the upper body workout that you are already getting.

Trekking poles will increase the usage of the muscles in the upper body, resulting in more toning of these muscles. Note that using trekking poles has a lot of additional benefits. Especially if you have bad knees, you should be using them anyway.

The usage of trekking poles will also make you burn more calories (apparently up to 20% more calories burned). However, you feel less exertion and it’s better for your joints. It’s a win-win. You can learn more about this in this article: Walking Poles: Burn More Calories, Feel Less Exertion.

If you are interested in buying trekking poles, my go-to recommendation are the trailbuddy trekking poles. They are one of the best value-for-money products you can buy today. You can check out the latest price on amazon: trailbuddy trekking poles.

 

Conclusion

So, does hiking build muscle? Well, building muscle while hiking is definitely not impossible. However, it is far from optimal. If you want a bodybuilder’s body, you probably want to hit the gym instead of the trail. That being said, hiking is perfect when it comes to toning your legs, and even your entire body.

In contradiction with what a lot of people think, you do not only use the muscles in your legs when it comes to hiking. Quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, glutes, hip muscles and the abdominal are the most important muscles/muscle groups.

The intensity of the trail and the weight of your backpack can influence your muscle growth.

Keep in mind that gaining muscle goes hand in hand with eating healthy. In this case, you might mainly be concerned with your protein intake, but a varied diet is crucial. You can read more about it in the following article, How to eat healthy on the trail.

Also, always make sure to use proper hiking shoes. Using poor hiking footwear increases the chance of having injuries or pain during your hiking trip, which will limit the potential muscle gain. If you don’t have proper hiking shoes, I would highly recommend buying a pair. No worries, this doesn’t have to be expensive, in fact, I wrote an article about the best cheap hiking shoes and the best cheap trail runners, with these picks, you can’t go wrong.