There’s nothing more relaxing and therapeutic as a leisurely hike through the woods. If you have the proper shoes, socks and clothing (a bit of bug spray doesn’t hurt, either), then you’ll be hard-pressed to find any exercise quite like your body’s most natural form of exercise. Did you know that it is certainly possible to walk your way thin? We’re not suggesting that you should leave home, pet, family and belongings to hit the open road permenently, we’re just saying that once you’ve established a routine, walking and hiking through nature is a natural weight-loss exercise you’ll benifit from immediately.

Losing weight while hiking is easier than you would think. Just like running or walking where you let the body do the work while your mind enjoys other, more pleasurable thoughts, hiking is an exercise where you can can get out and take a break from the incessant ups and downs of daily living.

Burn Those Calories Here are some tips to increase your calorie burn and hiking enjoyment:

1. Invest in good gear.

   Ensure that you have firm and stable hiking boots, and that the rubber soles give you good grip. There are some sneakers that will give you fairly solid support when you attempt basic hikes, but longer and steeper hikes will require much more investment in the proper shoe.

2. For starters, ensure that the slope is fairly gentle,

   almost like the incline level of a bunny slope in a ski resort. You’ll want to ensure that your limbs and muscles are completely accustomed to that level of incline (if you’ve been used to walking or jogging on a treadmill, then consider increasing the elevation of the machine to practice for your first hike; that way, your muscles will gradually get accustomed to the idea of walking on an incline).

3. Once you have explored a few gentle trails, then consider looking at the map for a steeper, deeper trail… one that has more hills and gullys. You could look for different terrain as well: sand, rock and dirt, to increase your agility and calorie burn.

4. Wear a backpack,

   ideally with some delicious and useful items in it to add to the weight and contribute to your calorie burn (ideally you’ll want to take lots of water, a flashlight, some eats like trailmix, etc.).

5. Actively seek to hike up hills and come down steeper inclines, to the best of your ability.

   When you climb up hills, you exercise your gluteal muscles and quadriceps, and over time you’ll develop the agility to navigate steeper and steeper inclines. Now, we’re not telling you to emulate the move of The Man Who Went Up a Hill and Came Down a Mountain, but there’s a distinct correlation between elevation and calorie burn.

6. Remember to cross train.

   A good hike is best paired with other activities during the week, including running or swimming. We’ll be addressing how you can burn calories when you bike, as well, so read below for more details on that subject.

   
   
   

   How many calories can you expect to burn hiking? The number of calories burned depends on your weight, but The Mayo Clinic estimates you will shed around 438 calories per hour if you weigh around 160 pounds, and 654 calories if you weigh around 240 pounds. That’s a decent number of calories to shed (remember it takes 3,500 calories to burn 1 pound of fat).

   
   

Next Article: The Elusive Six-Pack: How to get the Abdominals You Want