What does your hunting preparation workout routine look like?

[270.Rose]

Just wondering if any other ladies have hunting-specific workout routines or do anything special to train in preparation for hunting season??? As I'm researching what tags I want to put in for in 2021 I'm thinking about what those hunts are going to physically require, and would love to hear what others do, or don't do.
I'm a stay at home mom so I don't have access to a full gym, but I do home workouts with weights 5-6 days a week.

 

[F250]

My wife had been hitting a gym three times per week prior to Covid, that included a trainer/coach twice per month. Lately it is a daily hike of 2-4 miles on wooded trails we have cut. Horse rides mix in with hiking when weather permits. Her gym time was with her core horse riding lady group... they are a great source of inspiration for each other.

 

[270.Rose]

That's great! It's easier to stay motivated when you have friends to do it with.

 

[IDFireLass]

I garden all summer and try to go hike at least one day a week.
But finding if I try to get into tip top shape (other than round) I'm over stressing my joints. So I walk a fine line now at my age.
I try to ride my bike just about every day if the ankles will let me. Have just enough up hill at 5,000 feet a couple miles will get to me fairly fast.
I just keep moving and hoping for the best.

 

[Hunting Wife]

I divide my time between two towns most would consider “tiny”, with few to no real gym options but lots of outdoor options in one of those places. I have an elliptical at the office, and one at home so do that nearly every day, alternating running days with high resistance weighted pack days. I have to keep things low impact these days...lower back and knees don’t handle high impact stuff well. I mix in a little bit of upper body strength training but all I have are a couple of weights so a lot of it is just body weight exercises. Then I get outside as much as I can on weekends, either hunting or hiking or whatever just to be active.

When it’s nice out I’ll take the pack for a walk.

 

[270.Rose]

I divide my time between two towns most would consider “tiny”, with few to no real gym options but lots of outdoor options in one of those places. I have an elliptical at the office, and one at home so do that nearly every day, alternating running days with high resistance weighted pack days. I have to keep things low impact these days...lower back and knees don’t handle high impact stuff well. I mix in a little bit of upper body strength training but all I have are a couple of weights so a lot of it is just body weight exercises. Then I get outside as much as I can on weekends, either hunting or hiking or whatever just to be active.

When it’s nice out I’ll take the pack for a walk.

That sounds like a great routine. May I ask how you weight your pack? I'd like to do that but have had trouble with the weights leaving a bruise on my back when I set them inside it.

 

[Hunting Wife]

That sounds like a great routine. May I ask how you weight your pack? I'd like to do that but have had trouble with the weights leaving a bruise on my back when I set them inside it.

Combination of sand bags and bags of lead shot. Varies from 30-45 lbs depending on what I’m doing or what I’m preparing for.

 

[WyoDoug]

For me, I am focusing on getting my weight back down below 200. I am hovering around 240 now. I am also working on building up my endurance, cardio and then strength in that order. I also do treadmill on an incline using variable hill workouts to imitate walking on slopes as much as I can.

 

[MTelkHuntress]

Before Covid, I would go to the gym every day of the week as well as bike every other day. I much prefer biking to running...but I most certainly have tried my luck running up a mountain to beat an elk so cardio helps a ton. For now I havent gone to the gym and have mostly been taking walks every day and hiking a lot on the weekends as well as shooting my bow.
Snowshoeing in the winter in deep snow is certainly a workout. I put up trail cameras in the summer and that keeps me in pretty good shape, rotating which ones I check. Sometimes I'll do day fishing trips and bring my pack frame to put weight on it while I hike in to a lake.

 

[TOGIE]

if you have access to a stair climber and squat rack then you need nothing else

otherwise rides bikes and go trail running as much as time allows and soon you'll be outrunning the elk, 100% guaranteed

 

[HighDesertSage]

Not a woman, but I can tell you one remarkable solution that has worked wonders for me. About mid summer I switch over to light beer. I pay special attention to which beers have the best bang for your buck. Miller light seems to have the best alcohol to calorie ratio. This strategy has worked well for me in the past and I have been able to harvest 9 elk the last 10 seasons.

 

[270.Rose]

Not a woman, but I can tell you one remarkable solution that has worked wonders for me. About mid summer I switch over to light beer. I pay special attention to which beers have the best bang for your buck. Miller light seems to have the best alcohol to calorie ratio. This strategy has worked well for me in the past and I have been able to harvest 9 elk the last 10 seasons.

No alcohol here but thanks for the reminder that calories do count! I guess that elk hunting and homemade deep fried doughnuts filled with jam and cream are probably mutually exclusive?

 

[Pucky Freak]

My wife’s a stay-at-home mom for our 3 kids. She gets up at 345 every day to work out, alternating weights with cardio daily for 6 days, then 1 day off. She doesn’t hunt but she’d kick my behind on the mountain this fall if she did...

 

[270.Rose]

My wife’s a stay-at-home mom for our 3 kids. She gets up at 345 every day to work out, alternating weights with cardio daily for 6 days, then 1 day off. She doesn’t hunt but she’d kick my behind on the mountain this fall if she did...

She sounds like a great lady!

 

[Panda Bear]

Rose, I am sorry I missed this thread or I would have responded to you sooner.

We are right in the middle of trapping season, and running traplines can burn a few calories. I am always training dogs and working toward entering the Yukon Quest. We do enjoy curling, hockey, skating, skiing. A few hours on snow shoes or ski shoes can also burn calories . sorry, nothing like a gym, sounds like fun however

 

[Islander]

I ride dirt bikes and surf. Carry a 40 - 75 lb. pack a couple miles a few times a month. Not a workout, just camp-hunting year round. No gym or weight routine required. Active hobbies seem to me to be the easiest way to consistently stay in shape. At 58 there is no way I could motivate myself to tax my body in the gym as much as any of these three activities. Heart rate of 170 for an hour on a dirt bike. Literally can't imagine doing anything in the gym to match that.

 

[270.Rose]

Rose, I am sorry I missed this thread or I would have responded to you sooner.

We are right in the middle of trapping season, and running traplines can burn a few calories. I am always training dogs and working toward entering the Yukon Quest. We do enjoy curling, hockey, skating, skiing. A few hours on snow shoes or ski shoes can also burn calories . sorry, nothing like a gym, sounds like fun however

That sounds awesome! Do you have kids? If so are they involved? My youngest is 2 so I am trying to come up with outdoor activities that he can handle.

 

[AlaskaHunter]

Not a women but have had women friends up to Alaska for hunts.
Endurance and tough feet are some important factors.
Days are super long, but sore feet or "hitting the wall" can ruin a hunt.
I've had both happen with guest hunters.

I recommend hiking at least twice a week, preferable 3 times a week.
Hike with a backpack so you can tune-up the fit of the backpack.
Hike a fixed distance three times, then lengthen the distance a bit.
Rinse and repeat. The goal is to build endurance and toughen up feet.
Wear you hunting socks and hunting boots.

If you live in a flat area, hiking up and down stadium stairs helps
build the balance and muscles needed for hunting the mountains.
Boring yes, but listen to a podcast or audio book.

 

[EWpres]

Not a women but have had women friends up to Alaska for hunts.
Endurance and tough feet are some important factors.
Days are super long, but sore feet or "hitting the wall" can ruin a hunt.
I've had both happen with guest hunters.

I recommend hiking at least twice a week, preferable 3 times a week.
Hike with a backpack so you can tune-up the fit of the backpack.
Hike a fixed distance three times, then lengthen the distance a bit.
Rinse and repeat. The goal is to build endurance and toughen up feet.
Wear you hunting socks and hunting boots.

If you live in a flat area, hiking up and down stadium stairs helps
build the balance and muscles needed for hunting the mountains.
Boring yes, but listen to a podcast or audio book.

I agree with this 100%. Also, not a woman, but my girlfriend hunts elk with me.

Your feet will make or break you more than anything else. I don't care how much weight lifting or running you do, there is nothing that conditions your feet like putting on a heavy pack and climbing mountains. All the other workouts people have listed are great but if you don't break in your feet and get used to a heavy pack then you'll be miserable. I recommend beginning that process no later than 2 months before your hunt begins.

 

[Hunting Wife]

I find the most noticeable impact of training with a weighted pack is my neck/shoulders/chest/back. There are a bunch of little muscles that get used when packing loads that, at least for me, are hard to get in “packing shape” any other way. It’s less about strength and more about comfort. I find that I’m much more comfortable during the pack out and recover much more quickly when I include the weighted pack in my routine. When I haven’t trained that way, I can still pack the load but it just hurts more. You don’t have to train with full elk quarter weight, but it should be enough to feel it.