Backpacking Fitness

Strengthen joints and banish sprains for good.

Few devour distance like Joe “Stringbean” McConaughy, who holds the overall speed record on the Appalachian Trail. Here are his tips for wringing more miles out of the day.

Build up your abs for better balance and all-day comfort on the trail.

Skip the dumbbells and the gym membership. This year, whip yourself into shape with nothing more than your backpack.

It’s not all in the legs. Strengthen your upper body to boost your balance and better control your poles and pack on rough terrain.

Leave it to the pros to have the outdoor world figured out. These tips are what turn hikers into guides—and guides into heroes.

Want to perform like a guide? Start training like one.

Start the season right with this quick daily workout, and you’ll be ready for the trail in no time.

Stay in shape with these workout tips, and advice from a fitness hero.

Fight the sedentary lifestyle and get a move on with these exercises and essential skills.

Get ready for the long fitness haul with these skills, workouts, and essential info.

Build your fitness foundation with this essential physiological info, tips on eating right and exercises for staying in prime hiking shape.

Go further, ride better, and have more fun by using science to optimize your cold-weather fueling strategy.

Start spring in better shape than ever by working on your weaknesses.

Yes, there's a better way to put one foot in front of the other. Improve your stride, trek farther, and end leg and back pain with our guide to the new science of healthy hiking.

Humans did it for thousands of years. But is barefoot walking right for you? The experts sound off.

Are you dealing with aches and pains? The problem could be right on your feet.

With a high school reunion coming and a gut to lose, our writer tries to remake himself on the trail.

Free-the-heel fans call it the most elegant way to get down a mountain. Can our man learn to turn?

Forget CrossFit. Forget hot yoga, Soulcycle, Soloflex, and your Body Pump class. There is no better short-duration, full-body workout than postholing. With a pack on. While snowshoeing. Uphill.

If you’re after the perfect balance between speed and savoring the sights, sounds, and Christmas-tree smells of the winter world, then go straight for the middle way with cross-country skiing.

Slice across a white tapestry of untouched snow via backcountry skiing and experience the mountains’ grandeur in a new way.

Cross log bridges and other tricky terrain with the grace of a ballerina.

Get fit for your next adventure even while you're stuck in town with these tips from a pro trainer.