A walk uphill, no matter how slowly, works the body as intensely as running. It boosts our heart rate, burns up calories and sparks the flush of endorphins known as the ‘runner’s high’. However, hill climbing doesn’t affect our ability to appreciate the landscape, nor does it have the same impact on our joints as running does.
Walking up hills activates different muscles from those we use on flat land. Our abdominal, hip, glute and back muscles engage to stabilise our skeleton, because, as we climb, we lean forward to help propel ourselves upwards. We work our glutes, hamstrings and calf muscles much harder when we walk uphill, in fact, using every muscle in our lower body. The steeper the climb, the more we use our abdominal and back muscles to keep us upright. We also use the muscles at the sides of our waist (the obliques) as we twist our body and swing our arms.
All this exercise is excellent for our core, especially if we walk across varied terrain where our body must rebalance with every step. We also connect more with the pumping of our heart.
Differently to walking downhill, when we work against gravity, lengthening our muscles (eccentric contraction), walking uphill makes our muscles contract (concentric contraction).
Austrian researchers have found that, when comparing the blood-sugar, cholesterol and triglyceride levels of both uphill and downhill walkers, both had reduced LDL (bad cholesterol), whereas only uphill walkers had reduced triglycerides (fats linked to heart disease and strokes). Interestingly, downhill walking is twice as effective at improving glucose tolerance and removing blood sugars. They found that downhill walking may be good for diabetics or older people new to exercise.
Another study has shown that combining regular walking with brisker walking can make us more efficient walkers. Generally, older walkers use more oxygen and get more tired when trying to keep up with younger walkers. However, the study shows that more efficient older walkers combine regular walking with more intense exercise, such as cycling, running or hill walking once or twice a week. This more demanding exercise boosts the health and function of mitochondria (the powerhouses of our cells), and the better our mitochondria, the more efficient our movement, and so, the less tired older walkers become. So, hillwalking is the epitome of combined movement, with climbs, descents and walks on the flat.
In addition, the higher we are, the air is thinner, becoming rarer and more stimulating, possibly making us feel lighter, and allowing us to walk more easily. The views allow us to use our eyes in panoramic mode (calming us by connecting up the two sides of our brain). Hills provide us with solitude, silence and scents. However, hill walking mostly give us a sense of satisfaction and physical accomplishment.
Here are some tips for hill walking:
- Use poles to provide a full body workout, to work the arms and shoulders and take some of our weight. They can also delay feelings of tiredness on long climbs. On descents they can reduce the weight on our knees and hips. Shorten them going uphill and lengthen going downhill.
- Find a slow, steady rhythm.
- Shorten your stride both up and downhill.
- Be sure to have well fitting boots with good ankle support (add more with socks or insoles) to take some of the downhill impact.
- Go with a friend as hills seem less daunting when in company.
- Start slowly and build up speed and duration as your back muscles strengthen (if you have lower back pain while walking uphill).
Source: 52 Ways to Walk: Annabel Streets – Bloomsbury Publishing