Ya but how many toenails does he have left? Every time I've hiked > 15 miles at a time they start turning purple
What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
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Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#12After doing 2000-mile treks on the AT and PCT, I can say that hikers generally get their "trail legs" after roughly 500 miles or one month. Damascus VA and Tehachapi CA are big spots for zeroes and recalibration, and then you're off to the races. This post is excellent in showing the changes in those first 500 miles, but doesn't go on to show much about what happens after. That peak performance is maintained very wel…
Do you have any data or articles or anything?
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#13Ya but how many toenails does he have left? Every time I've hiked > 15 miles at a time they start turning purple
Sounds like you're doing it wrong...
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#14Ya but how many toenails does he have left? Every time I've hiked > 15 miles at a time they start turning purple
Is this with toenails trimmed and shoes with enough room in the toe box?
For a couple of years, I hiked in shoes I thought of as really comfortable. On long walks (especially 35m+ in a day), I'd get blisters around my heel and sore toes. I just figured that was what happened when hiking a lot.
Changed shoes (same brand, but larger and better cushioning) and haven't had those problems since.
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#15Ya but how many toenails does he have left? Every time I've hiked > 15 miles at a time they start turning purple
Do you have any kind of circulatory problems or blood sugar issues or anything like that? Because the feet take it really hard from things like that. Gravity and the way the circulatory system is designed causes the feet to be one of the biggest victims of any kind of blood related disorder.
I do a lot of walking these days, and my foot health has improved dramatically. My toenails are also healthier and I have less edema in my feet and just a lot of changes.
There are other things that go when you hike a lot. But my guess would be that you have some kind of medical condition and blood-related in some way is the first thing that comes to mind.
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#16Secrets to fitness revealed! 1: Stand up 2: Go outside 3: Walk around a lot
Things do tend to be needlessly complicated, don't they? But the data provided in the article is a nice contribution.
I think the complication comes in trying to balance exercise with everything else you want to do. Not everyone has the interest or the means to go on a 30 day hike.
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#17I've done quite a few very strenuous, multi-week races on bike, including riding the Colorado Trail in 7 days [0], and riding to, then summiting all the Colorado 14ers in 34 [1] - as well as participating in the Tour Divide [2] twice. I would call my fitness before these races as "peak", but I wouldn't call myself anything but near, "onset of over training syndrome" afterwards. The only thing I experienced similar to…
I'm willing to bet money that the single determining factor that led you to different results was the amount of sleep. 5 hours is not even enough for a sedentary person, much less someone riding a bike all day. The more you work out the more sleep you need. I'm guessing the author got at least 8 hours a night, or however much was enough to fully recover.
I'm reading a book on breaking the two hour marathon and one pro (I cant remember her name at the moment) sleeps 16 hours a day when her training peaks
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#18Ya but how many toenails does he have left? Every time I've hiked > 15 miles at a time they start turning purple
I've done lots of hiking, the longest being the John Muir Trail last summer, about 220 miles over 17 days, and never had any toenail problems. I haven't heard any complaints from fellow hikers either (although tons of complaints about blisters). Sounds like an issue with your shoes, perhaps they're too small or the footbox is too narrow. Feet swell a lot when you hike so most people size up.
Re: What Happens to Your Body on a Thru-Hike
#19Secrets to fitness revealed! 1: Stand up 2: Go outside 3: Walk around a lot
4: Be restricted in your calories by having to carry everything on your back.