Unleash Your Adventurous Spirit: How I Build Strength and Stamina for Outdoor Exploration

You can’t effectively challenge your body in the great outdoors unless you are out of shape. Of course you can use it as a tool to get in shape, but it is more enjoyable when you are strong enough to take it head on. You get to see the best views and overcome terrain that you would never have thought possible. 

Of course there are many ways to stay fit. There is no one size fits all approach. You need to take some time and think through what you need to accomplish your goals. Train upper body, train lower body, train cardio.

You need to be running and sprinting. Being that I like to go up and down mountains, having a high cardio base is important to me all year round. For me I do 3 days of distance running and a day of sprints per week. It keeps my heart and lungs in top form. Of course there is the added benefit of being able to eat more and stay within my calorie count. 

Lifting is a bit on the lighter side of some you will see on the internet. I lift 5 days a week, with four exercises per day. That’s it. Chest, Legs, Shoulders, Back, Arms. I’m not lifting for competition, just lifting to make sure that I can be strong enough to outlast most people and whatever I’m carrying on my back through the wilderness. It really is that simple. 

If you are a true beginner, the best thing for you is to just start walking and bodyweight movements. You will just need to get your body going. Starting off, you are going to want to learn the movements of your body, and of course to shed some of that fat. Which is why you need to start restricting your calories. Make it as simple and easy as possible. 

After you do that for a month, then you can start branching outward (unless you have lots of weight to lose, then just keep going). You want to start training towards what you want. Are just wanting to hike and go see some really cool places? Then you need to start carrying your ruck on flat to small hills. Get used to the weight on your back. But don’t load it to the max right away. Start off with 20 pounds, then each week add a little more to it. 

The biggest thing to this, is making something that you will stick to. If you don’t stick to it. Make it a habit to get into. You aren’t always going to feel like doing it. Do one warm up set if you aren’t feeling it. It will push you forward to finishing your training. But it is why when starting you don’t want to go all out, because it is unstainable. You have to break bad habits by making new ones. So if all you can get out and do is 30 minute walks and a set of pushups, do that. Start building it into your life today, and by the end of 6 months you are going to be way better off for it. 

So here is what a typical week of training looks like for me:

Sunday: Rest or Hike

Monday: Chest 

• Bench 3 x 6-9
• Incline Bench 3 x 6-9
• DB Flys 3 x 10-15
• Pushups 2 AMRAP
• 3 - 6 mile run

Tuesday: Leg

• Squats 3 x 6-9
• Hip Thrusts 3 x 8-12
• RDL 2 x 6-9, 12-15
• Calf Raises 4 x 10-15

Wednesday: Shoulders

• OH Press 3 x 8-12
• Shrugs 3 x 8-12
• Lat Raises 3 x 8-15
• Chest Supported Rows 3 x 10-15
• 3 - 6 mile run

Thursday: Back

• Pull Ups 3 x AMRAP
• DB Pullover 3 x 12-15
• Deadlifts 3 x 6-9
• Barbell Rows 3 x 8-12
• Sprints

Friday: Arms

• DB curls 3 x 12-15
• Hammer Curls 3 x 8-12
• Tricep Pushdowns 3 x 20-30
• Tricep DB Kickbacks 3 x 10-15
• 3-6 mile run

Saturday: Hike

Now I can guarantee that this is not the most effective or efficient workout program, but I can finish the lifting part in about 45 minutes and I can stick to it, which is the biggest thing for me. You just find your weight to start off with, work through the rep ranges and then add weight and start over at the lower end. 

Of course, another big thing to all of this is eating. How much you eat and what you eat is a very big issue. With what I do throughout the day, I can usually eat about 2500-3000 calories, which is really nice seeing as I love food. This will be different for everyone. 

I wake up, make my coffee (the most important part of the day), then I will drink a protein shake and eat a cup of Greek yogurt. Usually starts me off with about 50 grams of protein for the day, which makes it easier to get the rest of your protein in. I like carbs and will eat more than most, as I have a lot of energy going out. But I make sure to hit my protein goal of 180 grams on average. Some days I’ll get 200, some only 160 but it averages out for me. Again I’m not trying to compete, just make sure that I’m taking care of myself and it lets me do what I love to do. 

Anyway, that is how I keep going all year long. It doesn’t wear me out too much, gets me in good shape and lets me do what I love to do, which is the most important part. I’ll adjust parts here and there depending on how I’m feeling but for the most part I like to stick to it as close as possible. 

Let me know if you have any questions and definitely share how you are staying fit to hit your goals out there.