Experienced backpackers and medical experts share the thru-hiking health effects they’ve seen and felt first-hand on the trails.
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Shilletha Curtiss lungs were screaming, and her legs were cramping.
I was like, Im not ready for this!
Dr. Cory Nyamora, PsyD, is a sports psychologist and the founder of Endurance—A Sports & Psychology Center.
I didnt have the muscle tone.
I didnt have my abs, she says.
Kristi Foxx is a physical therapist at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.
Fast-forward six months to the White Mountains of New Hampshire: My legs were like rocks, recalls Curtis.
My arms were fit from using my poles to push me up the hill.
I was carrying maybe 25 pounds on my back, and it felt like nothing.
And instead of needing a break at every blaze, it was more like every 10 or 20 blazes.
(Blazes are trail markers, FYI.)
Its no surprise that embarking on a thru-hikean end-to-end backpacking trip on a long-distance trailchanges your body.
Dr. Cory Nyamora, PsyD, is a sports psychologist and the founder of Endurance—A Sports & Psychology Center.
The health effects are both physical and mental, with results that last long after thru-hikers return home.
It helps you develop a sense of confidence in yourself and resilienceand the capacity to endure suffering or pain.
Shed trained by hiking six miles with a full backpack daily, plus strength-training and sometimes taking twoJazzercizeclasses back-to-back.
But I didnt have much experience in the way of long-distance hiking, she says.
I had to figure it out on the trail.
Eventually, the muscles adapt and grow far stronger.
All the girls I hiked with on the trail, we looked built by the end, Curits says.
The men looked like bearded skeletors.
Although the muscles typically fade back to normal after the hike is over, the intense physicality lasts.
Even now Im in the best shape Ive ever been, says Storey, now 74.
The trail taught me about the mind-body connection.
And gave me a leg up in embracing the vicissitudes of growing older.
I love having that kinesthetic relationship with my body as a woman.
My appetite from the jump was ravenous, says Curtis.
I was eating 15 to 20 snacks a day.
She also experienced weird cravings, like raw lemons and candy.
Sugar and fat cravings are typical because the body wantsand needsthat quick energy.
But eating so much high-calorie, processed food causes its own problems.
Digestion is a big issue, says Foxx.
You have to carry lightweight grab-and-go snacks.
She called her brother, an experienced thru-hiker, to tell him she was going to quit.
He said, you better get a Snickers at the next stop,' she remembers.
She listened, refueled, and kept going.
For Storey, however, not being able to eat enough ended her trek after three months.
I was so emaciated that I was losing muscle, she says.
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The feet get particularly beat up
Few hikers make it through a trail unscathed.
Hiking up mountains with a heavy pack puts a lot of load on the bodyparticularly during downhill climbs.
Injuries from slips and falls are not uncommon.
Everybody on the trail takes a ton of Ibuprofen.
We call it vitamin I,' says Storey.
Probably the most common body part to take a beating is the feet.
My thighs got stronger, my arms got tonedand my feet got weaker, says Curtis.
Blisters from sweaty socks and rigid shoes are more likely than not.
You have to protect your feet, says Foxx.
Wash your feet, look for skin breakdown, and let them breathe.
I usually struggle with acne but my skin was glowing on the trail, says Curtis.
I also put a lot of mud on my body to shield it from the sun and mosquitos.
Not all skin fares so well.
It can be a lot of skin rubbing and wear, says Foxx.
You have to be sure to get the right fit.
Mental strength gets majorly challenged
Theres a common saying on the trail: Embrace the suck.
It gets heavy sometimes to be out there, says Foxx.
Being that vulnerable grew my resilience, resourcefulness, and confidence, she says.
I learned how to be happy even in intense discomfort.
Dr. Nyamora suggests hikers make a plan ahead of time for when things dont go well.
Be prepared to want to quit, he says.
And be clear with yourselfthese are the reasons I will quit.
Yet the constant exercise and exposure to nature also has its mental health benefits.
Being out on the trail was the best Id ever been able to cope, she says.
Youre pushed to connect with strangers, he says.
Some hikers end up sticking together as a tramily.
Its like a socialist society in the forestwe help each other out, says Curtis.
Post-trail depression can hit hard.
Idont think you ever really are the same after doing something like that, she says.
One coping mechanism: to just keep hiking.
Today, Curtis is in the middle of the 3,028-mile Continental Divide.
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