010 A.T. Thru Hike Workout: Strength Training

Type: HIIT workout

Workout:

• Warm-up — 30 seconds of Jumping Jacks, Worlds greatest stretch, Arm circles, and cross-body stretch.
• Strength focus: 3X 15 Single leg hip thrusts
• HIIT: 1–2–3–4–5–6–7–8–9–10 reps of the following
  - Front squats (55 lbs although use what you have)
  - Burpees (with a push up)
• Cool-down: Stretching for 10 minutes

How’d it go: You know those people in the gym who make a lot of noise to pump themselves up? I never thought that would be me until today. I hate burpees, but I love them for conditioning. It’s good to work out explosive movements when you build a good strength base. Although that doesn’t mean they don’t suck while you’re doing them.

I was struggling hard while doing these and almost did just eight sets instead of doing 10. This self-talk of trying to make things easier or doing it half-fast is something I want to get better at. When you’re on the trail, there are going to be days where you want to quit. If you hate your life for a consistent two weeks, then yeah, maybe you should reconsider continuing. If it’s just a bad day, what’s going to stop you from taking a time out and realizing it’s been raining for two days, and maybe you need to take a zero to recharge yourself? The purpose of working out beforehand isn’t just physical but mental as well. You have to be mentally tough and find a love for suffering. EMBRACE THE SUCK! :)

If you’re wondering how I did the front squats, I have a barbell at home, and I cleaned the bar before I squatted with it. Now you don’t have to do that much weight. I just decided to push myself today with the equipment I have on hand. You can use any dumbbells you own or use bodyweight.

Notes: Use what equipment you have and don’t quit on yourself.