Heavy Pack Training

[char]

I'm looking for some ways to train to pack 100+ pounds 3-6 miles in varied terrain. The obvious solution is to start packing around weight and add onto it until I get up to my desired weight.

 

I can only really get out and hike once or twice a week, so what are my options? Has anyone trained for this before? Any sort of cross training with weights that might be good?

 

Obviously I can strap a pack tp my back and get on the treadmill at the gym but I'm looking for other ways to approach the problem.

[Toast]

Why would you want to do this? It's asking to screw up your knees, your back or twist an ankle

 

If you want to train for climbs, just hike and aim for elevation gain. Mt Si, Teneriffe, Mailbox, Granite, McClelan Butte, Pilchuck, Muir... are all good choices for that. In fact, any of the ski areas for that matter. Pack extra water if you want weight. You can dump out the water to go lighter on your descent, but I really think the whole lug a hundred pounds idea is a bad one.

[slothrop]

Well, the treadmill's not exactly "varied terrain". You could just put on some shorts-over-polypro and walk up and down Queen Anne with a pack on, adding weight as you get stronger. Seriously. (Except for the polypro.)

 

Your back, legs, neck, and shoulders will get tight doing this, so some yoga or stretching will help, as would a regular massage. My girlfriend's a massage therapist, so if you need a good one, just ask me

[Chad_A]

Just curious, why 100+ pounds? Maybe there's ways to get that load a tad lighter.

[Toast]

Sorry, I misread you post. You want to know how to train to be able to lug 100+ lbs over varied terrain. The ideas above are still valid. Core exercises will be a smart addition. Pick up a set of of ski poles or trekking poles. Those'll be invaluable for managing a heavy load. You'll be borderline anerobic on uphills, so run stairs at Greenlake or Husky Stadium or the Pav. Work up to running them from half an hour to an hour straight. Make sure you have comfortable boots with good ankle support and a blister kit. And watch your back (back to core exercises... there's a thread on here somewhere about those.) Crossfit clinics would be your best ticket to structured training.

[MountaingirlBC]

A friend of mine gave me a big plastic wine bag (the kind you use for making home made wine) and it works great for weighting my pack. Has the added bonus of being dumpable when you get to the top of things so you can save your knees on the way down.

[powdrx]

I would throw your pack on and go find a long flight of stairs. Walk up and down till you are tired. There is a great set of about 270 stairs just east of the interstate off the LakeView Exit in Seattle. Have fun with the 100lb pack!!!

[layton]

don't use the treadmill, use the stairmaster with the weight on. i've done that and it works good.

lunges with weights in both hands work good too...or with your pack on.

whatever you do, plan on looking and feeling pretty stupid at the gym.

[Rad]

Wear your oxford and khakis, go to a tall building, ascend via stairs, descend by elevator to save your knees some hardship.

 

Similarly, carry a lot of water up a hike (Si, Granite etc) and then dump it at the top.

 

There is a great set of about 270 stairs just east of the interstate off the LakeView Exit in Seattle.

 

Yep. Actually, that's a local favorite of mine because I live nearby. It got even longer now that there's a "park" under I5 that connects up with East Lake. It can be crowded.

 

There are actually long staircases sprinkled around Seattle. Poke around for others.

[iluka]

When I've tried to get ready for some extended backpacking trips with heavy loads, I've filled up my pack (big heavy textbooks and several gallon water bottles) and headed over to Husky Stadium and walked up and down the aisles in the lower part of the stadium (if you walk around the concourse, you'll usually be able to find an aisle where the gate is open and you can get to the interior of the stadium). It makes for a pretty good workout.

 

I agree with one of the other comments that the load will increase the chance of back, ankle, knee problems etc. but if you've got a trip coming up where you're going to carry this weight, you'll be happy to have done some training with that much weight rather than putting it on your hips and shoulders for the first time on your trip.

[snugtop]

Just put Slothrop's girlfriend on your back.

[crackers]

I second the stairmaster and the lunges with weights. It will spare your ankles and knees the brutal impact of the load. Hiking up and down conrete will probably lead quickly to osteoarthritis which is not the goal, is it?

 

I'd recommend doing intervals on the stairmaster. I would also recommend going swimming or stretching for ten minutes or so after each workout. If your body's not used to it, you will get seriously worked.

 

If more people do it, maybe we'll look less stupid in the gym.

[slothrop]

Just put Slothrop's girlfriend on your back.

 

Part of my usual training regimen.

 

Good point about not walking around on concrete, though. Discovery Park's got some softer trails. Walking/running on the beach will either make your ankles super strong or sprain them trying.

 

I'm curious, too, about why you'll be carrying so much weight. Trail maintenance with a chainsaw? Rescue work? Ranger School?

[Bronco]

HEAVY DEADLIFTS WOULD BE PERFECT FOR THIS TRAINING!!!

 

Seriously they would. So would side bends with a heavy dumbell held in one hand, overhead squats, and medicine ball throws. To pack a hundred pounds 6 miles your body better be ready for some serious impact. You'll want to intensify up your training regimen significantly. A high pain tolerance would be good too.

[Ade]

I would seriously consider trying to pack 50+ pounds 6-12 miles. In other words to two carries.

 

Sort yourself out a big pack with water containers and go hike some hills. Deadlifts are definitely good to build core and specific leg strength.

[crackers]

I'll agree on the deadlifts and overhead squats.

 

In all honesty, i don't think thats all that much weight, and the real thing would be time. That is said with the caveat that i'm 6'5" or so and 180 or so...If you were 140, that'd be a LOT more weight relatively.

[char]

I guess I should add that this is going to be a low frequency event for me. Maybe 6-7 times this summer. It's for a fire crew I'm going to be on.

 

I weigh in at around 140# so this is going to be a lot of weight for me. Basically I'm trying to avoid actually carrying that much weight while training to save my knees, back, etc. But I still be able to do it when the time comes.

 

I'm currently doing lots of running, 3, 2 hour sessions in the gym a week and out hiking once or twice a week with weight.

 

I'm thinking 70 pounds is a good weight to train with and attack the rest of it with weight training. I'd like to enter the season healthy.

[MountaingirlBC]

yikes. Make sure you do a lot of work to strengthen your vastus medialis to save your knees. The leg extension machine is the best way I've found to isolate this muscle. I'm 124lbs and start to crumble at about 73lbs. Hopefully being a dude gives you a little more wiggle room.

[crackers]

I'm taking a wild guess here. Am I close? Good Luck.

 

90 pounds 3 miles 90 minutes flat terrain, 45 pounds 3 mile 45 hour?

[tomtom]

I've trained my Heavy Pack to sit *AND* stay.

 

Performance in roll over has been rather random, though.

[joel20]

Really the best way to train for that is not to wear it but to hit that stair master, leg extensions, and squats. Work on your cardio with sprints and that stair master, no weight. Never run with that pack on. When you do wear the pack only put in about 40lbs so that your joints can can benefit from having just enough stress to make the stronger. Go running on trails, practice your land navigation skills in the woods with your pack on. Also, never fully extend your front leg when walking with your pack. One thing that I can't stress enough is to stretch and drink lot's of water and replace your salts because no matter the temperature you'll have furnace on your back.

 

Really though, what requires you to carry that much gear. Whatever it is you should really question how much fun your having with it and whether it's worth the price of wrecking your body.

 

Also make sure to take a first aid kit including a SAM splint, tape, an ACE bandage, and quite a bit of ibueprofen. That and to stop when it starts to hurt in a bad way. Make most of your load water so that you can either drink it or dump it when you need to. If you take that pack up a mountain dump the weight before you start going down it to save your joints. Glucossamine chondrotin may also help you out.

 

My job requires me to carry loads often in excess of what you're describing. Often in the dark usually having a guarantee of wading at least one shit canal and it's always a big suck fest. I always ask myself if it's worth wrecking my body over or getting blown up in the process. I just happen to think no, the Bush twins dying rich and powerful is not worth it. That's not to say that it's never fun but it's not worth it either.

 

Still I can't see the need for anymore than 60 pounds of supplies in the civilian world. I absolutely hate anymore than 30lbs of pack weight. It doesn't hurt, it just seems really innefficient.

[Ade]

I guess I should add that this is going to be a low frequency event for me. Maybe 6-7 times this summer. It's for a fire crew I'm going to be on.

 

OK. So I guess "Wait while I go back for the other half of my load" isn't an option.

 

Have you considered CrossFit? I've been doing it for a three weeks* (3 x 1hr) and am already seeing results. I'm adding in a fair amount of cardio work (4-5 hrs a week in >1hr blocks) but not able to go alpine climbing due the the weather. My run time up Tiger is already back down to my personal best, largely I think due to the strength training.

 

You'll already find a lot of regular firefighters doing CrossFit, along with law enforcement and the military. It'll definitely give you the back, core and lower body strength you need as a basis for your 100lbs and 3-6 miles. In addition its focus is all round fitness which I assume would be useful when it comes to actually fighting fires.

 

Take this workout for example...

 

400m run

15 x (1 dumbell clean and 2 dumbell push presses)

400m run

12 x (...)

400m run

9 x (...)

 

Or a similar combination of resistance sprints interleaved with deadlifts.

 

It'll mess you up, make you harder to kill.

 

Have fun

 

Ade

 

* I was actually doing it before that but injury and illness prevented me from going consistently.