whats your fitness regime between tramps?

[wayno]

do you even have a fitness regime?

what types , duration of exercise to you do to keep fit?

i do a 2 or 3 k run during the week, anything from one to three times, take the stairs at work during the day up to five flights several times a day, sometimes carrying computers with me.
take the stairs four flights at home....

in hte weekends walk on hills of varying steepness anything from an hour up to six hours in the weekend, normally do one to three hours... pace varies from 5 to 6 k's an hour...

[sthughes]

do you even have a fitness regime?

what types , duration of exercise to you do to keep fit?

i do a 2 or 3 k run during the week, anything from one to three times, take the stairs at work during the day up to five flights several times a day, sometimes carrying computers with me.
take the stairs four flights at home....

in hte weekends walk on hills of varying steepness anything from an hour up to six hours in the weekend, normally do one to three hours... pace varies from 5 to 6 k's an hour...

I rode my bike to Coles the other day, it took like 10 minutes and was much harder than driving, so I haven't repeated it. I usually go bushwalking to keep fit less unfit.

[Nick S]

Yeah I have no regime..
I play indoor soccer on a weeknight and occasionally take the mt bike around Kate Reid for a short ride.
But that's just me, I can't usually motivate myself to run around the block just for fitness reasons..

[Ent]

Hi

I once was a keen runner for a while but the injury rate put paid to that. Bit of walking around town and the Gorge but really best to hit the track. Hard though at times with work, family, and other commitments.

Cheers

[MrWalker]

I live in Launceston close enough to the Gorge to do a 35 min walk along part of the Gorge track, starting and finishing at home.
On the weekend when I have more time, if I'm not going anywhere special, I usually cross the Gorge into Trevallyn Reserve and take an hour or two on a longer loop.

I can't see any point in running as training for bushwalking, but I do walk a bit faster than I would on a day walk so I can get 10 hours worth of exercise into 30-60 minutes.

[Ent]

Hi MrWalker

You just have to love that stairway to hell up at the old powerstation. If think I am still fit after a lazy month that thing reminds me I that am not Good place to test some gear with the option of a latta if things do not go as planned.

Cheers

[wayno]

Yeah I have no regime..
I play indoor soccer on a weeknight and occasionally take the mt bike around Kate Reid for a short ride.
But that's just me, I can't usually motivate myself to run around the block just for fitness reasons..

you're on your feet long hours at work, i'll forgive you your sins this time,,,, say three hail mary's and ten our fathers....

[Tony]

0-30k running/mountain running (includes 2-3 flat 5k races and 2 mountain running races each month) and 100-200k road bike riding each week, works very well.

Tony

[photohiker]

100-140km per month hiking in hilly terrain. About an hour on the trail almost every day with about a day a week off one way or another.

[MrWalker]

You just have to love that stairway to hell up at the old powerstation. If think I am still fit after a lazy month that thing reminds me I that am not Good place to test some gear with the option of a latta if things do not go as planned.

I used to go that way quite often but now prefer an anticlockwise circuit of 1st Basin-Duck Reach so I go down the steps instead of up. The total climb ends up the same but it feels much easier.

[whynotwalk]

100-140km per month hiking in hilly terrain. About an hour on the trail almost every day with about a day a week off one way or another.

Wow Michael - I was about to commend both your discipline AND your graphics, when I realised that's about what I average too

I walk 5-6km per day. Some is in hilly bushland when my wife and I walk the dog, but most is on footpaths on the way to work. I do less on weekends. It doesn't make me "fit", but the legs and body (and heart?) are not quite so shocked when I take them on a long bushwalk.

I've found that a pedometer helps too.

Good thread Wayne!

cheers

Peter

[photohiker]

It's a good routine to get into. I pick up 250-350m elevation each day depending on my route and enthusiasm (usually that depends on temperature). It keeps me fit and doesn't put me into peak fitness, but then again I don't think that is a desirable outcome, too much risk of breakdowns. I'm trying to keep fit and healthy, not win the Olympics.

Funny thing is, I get sore if I walk too much on the flat these days!

Graphics are from Runkeeper, a smartphone app. Here's yesterday's elevation profile, stats say 330m elevation over the course:

[ninjapuppet]

WoW There seems to be some really fit people here. I sit on my bum all day at work, sometimes for 8-14 hours straight so the propensity to exercise after work is just not there most days. My weekends are crammed with actuarial exams so my life is as sedentary as can be...

But when a big trip is comming up, I hit the gym and give the quads a blast for at least 2 weeks with lots of interval training. I still usually struggle like mad on trip, but the enjoyment of the outdoors kills all pain.

[LandSailor]

Got myself a Fitbit recently. It works well. It tracks movement and also monitors sleep patterns. I will be very interested to take on my next hike.
The company doesnt sell them directly to Australia but you can buy them off Amazon. Currently my fitness regime consists of getting my 10,000 step badge each day

[doogs]

I prefer a classier sort of lady, but whatever floats yout boat s'pose
I am a chef and if you are half decent at your job you spend a lot of time running around (never trust a fat chef ). I tend to carb load during the week (drink beer) and any carbs I haven't burnt off at work gets burnt off walking Oh and I do a lot of running around with my kids (basically being a big kid!)

[Miyata610]

Rest, sleep, eat. Do boring chores.

[Nick S]

Yeah I have no regime..
I play indoor soccer on a weeknight and occasionally take the mt bike around Kate Reid for a short ride.
But that's just me, I can't usually motivate myself to run around the block just for fitness reasons..

you're on your feet long hours at work, i'll forgive you your sins this time,,,, say three hail mary's and ten our fathers....

Some days I'll cover lots of ground in the hospital but its not the same.. plus there is way too much Easter chocolate going around right now.

Good topic though Wayne, I've been able to get by on all my tassie trips without any pre training so far, riding on my moderate background fitness, but with a planned trip to Nepal this Sept I should make an effort...

[johnw]

I'm approaching 58 but turned into something of a fitness fanatic about 13 years ago. I've done a lot of distance running during that period, as well as bushwalking. Currently run 10km usually 3 times a week. In the process of ramping that up as I'm hoping to complete my first marathon in July. Have run a half-marathon once but this is a more serious objective, particularly as I had knee surgery about 18 months ago and only recently back to a normal running routine. I also cycle (road/urban) for exercise up to 3 times a week, usually around 15 or 16km each session, longer when I have time. Also have a dual suspension MTB and try and get out on that every couple of weeks, generally as an alternative to day bushwalking. I commute by train to work and walk the 3km each way from home to the station, and walk another 3km or so most lunch breaks. All of that keeps me fit enough for bushwalking, to the point where sometimes it can seem like a bludge (except on overnight walks or longer if I'm carrying too much stuff ). Planning to complete the 100km Oxfam Trailwalker later in the year with a team from work, but I guess that is a bushwalk/tramp of sorts so probably doesn't count as fitness regime. Will need to start doing some very long day/night bushwalks soon as training for that so finding time will be an issue.

Being one of those office bound IT types I found myself getting more and more unfit/unwell over the years. Was reasonably active when younger, did a bit of running then, played squash, tennis, golf etc. Most of that went by the wayside for a long time once wife and kids came along. So I made a decision to get fit and try and stay that way. I acknowledge that the regime I've established for myself is more than most people would want to do (or have time for). It requires a lot of self discipline on my part, but it keeps me less stressed and I don't seem to get sick very often; injured - yes , but not sick (touch wood). A bit like banging your head against a wall though, it feels good to stop now and then!

[pazzar]

Having used to be a distance runner, I used to run 15km 5 or 6 nights a week, and do a hill session once a week. Now after an injury that kept me from running for a few months, I have never found the motivation to get back into it. I walk or ride to work each day, which is not far really, only about 3km each way. I hope to begin running for 1 hour a night again, so I guess back into the 15km routine hopefully when my fitness increases. It's so hard to be motivated to keep fit after a long day at work, get home in the dark, then go for a run. The alternative would be an early morning run, but I don't do mornings well.

[wayno]

i try to follow regime of hard day easy day, thats what lydiard preached , i was reading about nouredine morceli, multiple world record holder in middle and long distance on teh track, on a hard day he would go extremely hard but on easy days he would take an hour to run ten k's, few elite athletes would train at such a pace, it would be far too slow, but it worked for him, so he recharged his batteries between the hard days,
i'd be lucky if i have more than one hard day a week though, i used to train hard every day but i got injured and ended up wit chronic fatigue , so i neer went back to that regime... i also read never train hard when you're tired or have sore limbs from previous sessions.

[Pteropus]

100-140km per month hiking in hilly terrain. About an hour on the trail almost every day with about a day a week off one way or another...

...turned into something of a fitness fanatic about 13 years ago...Currently run 10km usually 3 times a week...cycle (road/urban) for exercise up to 3 times a week, usually around 15 or 16km each session...walk the 3km each way from home to the station, and walk another 3km or so most lunch breaks...

Wow I wish I had the time and dedication to be like that. I am becoming increasingly office bound and this year have had less opportunities to get out in the bush. At the beginning of this year I went on a hike with a mate up Mt Maroon in SEQ and was totally buggered. Then a few weeks later was even more buggered climbing another steep hill. So I decided I had to start exercising, which I gotta say, I HATE excercise. Generally I prefer incidental exercise, like bushwalking itself. I can't justify paying for a gym. So now I have mainly started jogging, which is the worst. I find it painful. So far I run for about half an hour every second morning if I can. Though I end up walking for at least half of that anyhow at the moment. However I did notice that this morning I seemed to be able to run longer, so I must be responding. I walk 5ish kms home at least 3 times a week too. I also have a skipping rope, which I find useful if I don't have a lot of time for running. Whenever I have a choice between stairs or a lift, I take the stairs. But I wish I just had the superpower of unlimited fitness! (used to know a bloke with that superpower - he drank like a fish, smoked all sorts of stuff like a chimney, never trained and he flogged me up Pigeon House Mountain by 20 minutes once...)

[north-north-west]

Exactly what do you do with these tramps that requires such a high level of fitness? Or shouldn't I ask . . . ?

[jacko1956]

Fast food lunches my wife doesn't know about and lots of home cooking to build up the body fat needed for all those noodles....

[Phil]

I usually run to and from work a couple of times a week - so somewhere between 2-4 8km runs. I also like to throw a longer run in on the weekends but this doesn't always happen. Actually I've been pretty slack over the past couple of months and put on about 5kgs

I live about a km from Duck Reach Power Station in Launceston so most of my running is through the Gorge and Trevallyn Reserve areas. When running home from work I also run through the Gorge and up to Duck Reach before heading home which is a nice course.

Every now and then I'll track my run using the Everytrail app: http://www.everytrail.com/profile.php?user_id=225589

I especially like the 'trails' and not road running. Have gone in a few events this past 6 months; 20km Triple Top Mountain Run, 64km Bruny Island Ultra Marathon, Narawntapu (Four Beaches) 50km Ultra Marathon.

[MartyGwynne]

Oh god you guys are making me feel so fat and un fit.
I can only run 10km in just over an hour and have only run that far once!
I walk the dogs, go for a run, walk up the stairs at work (oh yes 20 stories high) and have picked out a little hill nearby called gentle Annie - she is a beast of a hill with about 4 stages of up. Each getting steeper up and down is about 9 km and takes me about 1.5 hrs or 2hr 10 min with 20kg pack on.
I guess it depends upon the walk I am going to do. If it is flatish I don't too much if it is going to be hard and lots of ups and downs then the more I do the stairs at work the better (called a plant inspection), I have occasionally cycled to work but that is 75 kms and a killer to cycle back home after nightshifts.
I must update my run keeper and get the elevation part of it so I can work out how high Gentle Annie is.
OK I will go for a run today after I wake up from Nightshift.
Marty wheeze and puff sweat sweat heart rate through the roof etc.

[Tex]

For the past 3 months I have been walking 10km once a week and occasionally 20km. I have definitely noticed my fitness improving, the walks are getting easier and i'm out of breath less.
There is a hill nearby which I use as a test to gauge my improvement. In 3.5km it climbs 373m.
I have noticed that my Quads tire easily so I have started rowing 2.5km 2/3 times a week on our rowing machine to try and improve my strength.
My last few walks have been harder than I expected so i'm not sure if i'm rowing too much or not enough or if the hotter weather has anything to do with it.

[emshep]

Wow. I'm very impressed by all of you! I have actually only just gotten back into bushwalking again recently as a way to improve my fitness. I am not a small person, in fact I'm quite the opposite. So about a month ago I decided that enough was enough and that I must do something about it. There have been plenty of times in the past that I have thought this and then failed miserably. So this time instead of having a strict regime to follow I've taken the stance that I am entitled to a certain amount of 'me' time every day no matter what others are asking of me. Every day now I do one activity that I enjoy like badminton, kayaking, swimming and bushwalking. Because bushwalking or kayaking are done as a family on the weekend, this has also made a huge difference in how we all get along. So many added benefits!

I know this wasn't really about how I stay fit for my walks, but still thought I'd put my two cents in anyway.

Cheers

Emma

[ofuros]

Early morning walks just before the sun rises, around 8-10kms in length in forest reserves close to my home.
Street walking 8-10kms in the evenings......not the tax free, paid variety, I'd have to give my body away for free to get any customers.
Usually 5 days a week, depending on my family & work life commitments.

[ryantmalone]

Wow. I'm very impressed by all of you! I have actually only just gotten back into bushwalking again recently as a way to improve my fitness. I am not a small person, in fact I'm quite the opposite. So about a month ago I decided that enough was enough and that I must do something about it. There have been plenty of times in the past that I have thought this and then failed miserably. So this time instead of having a strict regime to follow I've taken the stance that I am entitled to a certain amount of 'me' time every day no matter what others are asking of me. Every day now I do one activity that I enjoy like badminton, kayaking, swimming and bushwalking. Because bushwalking or kayaking are done as a family on the weekend, this has also made a huge difference in how we all get along. So many added benefits!

I know this wasn't really about how I stay fit for my walks, but still thought I'd put my two cents in anyway.

Cheers

Emma

Congrats on doing something about it! I lost control of my weight over the past 5 years, and although I'd always been able to hike at a not so healthy 110kgs, I found myself at 174kgs. I've been spending the past nearly four months doing something about it, and have a trip to Feathertop planned in Janurary. Keep it up!

As for my exercise regime, along with weights training that I do on and off, its mainly cardio at the Gym using the Treadmill, Crosstrainer, Recumbent Bikes, the Rower, and the Climber. For weight loss, I'll spend around 90 minutes 3 - 4 days a week on these machines. For hiking, I will walk at least 6 - 9kms on other days around my neighborhood, sometimes with a pack on, sometimes without, sometimes on the route with hills, sometimes not.

I'm also doing Couch to 5k at the moment, which although not as great for walking as such, it does help build up some endurance.