It’s a beautiful day outside and you can’t help but wonder, hm, why not go hiking today?
Hiking itself is defined as taking a long and vigorous walk on a trail, typically done in the countryside or anywhere with a beautiful view.
There’s really no limit on which trail can be defined as a hiking trail or not. As long as you walk from point A to point B in nature and get your heart rate up, then it’s already considered hiking.
For people who live in a busy city, hiking isn’t merely seen as a form of exercise, but also a great way to escape from the daily hustle and bustle.
Through hiking, you’ll get to enjoy the fresh air and warm sunlight, and even bask in the beautiful green scenery.
So, benefits of hiking is not only good for the body, but it’s also great for the mind. Find out the complete health benefits of hiking down below!
8 Benefits of Hiking for Health and Well-Being
1. Maintaining Body Weight
Photo: Jake Melara via Unsplash
If you’re looking to lose or maintain body weight, hiking is one of the greatest ways to do it. Not only is it refreshing to be surrounded by nature, but it is also as rigorous as the usual workout.
Hiking is a form of cardio exercise, after all. It involves rhythmic activity that pumps your heart to a specific rate that can help your body burn fat.
What’s more, since hiking is considered less intense—unlike other cardio exercises—you can do it for a longer period and easily adjust it to your own pace. Also, hiking is good choice for a cardio excersie!
Read Also: How to Cure Burnout and Start Enjoying Your Life Again
2. Hiking Is a Great Way to Forming Stronger Body Muscles
Another benefit of hiking is good for help you to form stronger body muscles in pretty much every major muscle group in the body.
As you walk, you’ll get to keep your muscles active and engaged. This includes the muscles around your legs, core, arms, and back area.
When you walk uphill, it helps strengthen your glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves. Then when you walk downhill, you will keep your ankles, hips, and core engaged.
This way, your muscles will get used to being active and will get stronger as long as you do it regularly.
3. Improving Balance
The stronger your muscle is, the better your balance will be. As you walk along the trail, your leg and core muscles are constantly working to provide stability and balance on the uneven terrain.
Over time, after your muscles are getting used to your activity, your balance will eventually improve.
Other than that, hiking can also help increase proprioception, which is good for your mind, because you involves the mind’s awareness of your body’s position and movement in relation to its surroundings.
Your brain will be able to process any obstacles at a much faster rate, so you can move around them quickly.
4. Increasing Bone Density
Photo: Juliane Liebermann via Unsplash
Hiking is a weight-bearing activity that leaves an impact on your bones with every step you take, especially if you’re taking a steep trail.
It helps strengthen the bone tissue and, in turn, increases your bone density. Improved bone density can reduce the risk of broken bones and osteoporosis.
5. Lowering Blood Pressure & Risks of Heart Diseases
When you start hiking regularly, your heart will become stronger as time goes by. This way, your heart can pump more blood effectively with little effort.
It will then help the blood pressure significantly decrease and the blood will be able to distribute oxygen at a much faster rate.
Reduced blood pressure also means reduced heart disease risk. Your body can also increase high-density lipoproteins and reduce triglyceride levels. With this readjustment, there will be less chance for you to develop heart diseases such as stroke.
6. Combating Diabetes
Any physical activity, including hiking, can help control your blood sugar levels and increase your body’s sensitivity to insulin. If you want to control diabetes, though, you’ll also have to balance it with the proper diet.
7. Reducing Anxiety and Depression
Hiking is an activity that helps your body release endorphins and serotonin, the types of hormones associated with pleasure and can ease feelings of depression.
Other than that, the activity also takes you to nature, where you’ll get sight of the clear blue sky, animals in their natural habitat, and other stunning greenery around you.
Escaping from the boring concrete jungle of the city for a while can instantly refresh you and uplift your mood.
On top of that, hiking exposes you to more vitamin D which will help you sleep better for a longer period of time.
It can also leave you feeling tired and less stressed, increasing the chance of falling asleep faster and improving your overall sleep quality.
8. Hiking is Great to Reduce Insomnia
Another health benefits of hiking, studies have indicated that consistent physical activity can alleviate insomnia and enhance sleep quality. Although researchers do not have a precise understanding of the mechanisms behind this phenomenon, it might be related to exercise’s capacity to regulate mood and relieve mental stress, ultimately promoting relaxation of both the body and mind.
Read Also: Untangling the Complex Relationship Between Food and Well-Being
9. Improves Respiratory Ability
Climbing in different natural environments, especially at high altitudes, forces your body to adapt to lower oxygen.
This can increase your lung capacity and respiratory efficiency. Breathing fresh mountain air also provides additional benefits for the respiratory system and helps clear your airways.
10. Overcoming Boredom
When hiking, a climber will focus on crossing relatively uneven climbing terrain. When focused, climbers will forget the boredom they feel.
Not only that, the stress and worry they usually experience will also be reduced.
11. Building Social Activities
Mountain climbing activities are usually carried out in groups or teams.
Therefore, climbing mountains can help build cooperation, dependency and team support in facing various challenges together.
When you are in the mountains, you will spend time with friends or family.
This will strengthen your social ties with friends and family.
Rest Well after Your Hike at Bobocabin!
Hiking has never been more convenient. Start your hike right from your doorstep at Bobocabin, located at various iconic scenic landscape spots.
After a refreshing hike, you can give yourself some privacy with our smart window, adjust the lighting to enhance your comfort, and put on some music for a great ambience—all within your fingertips.
Feeling like grilling? Go make some BBQ with your loved ones for some quality time. To close the night off, enjoy the warmth of your very own campfire under the stars.
Download the Bobobox app on Play Store or App Store for booking and more information.
Header image by: Micah Hallahan via Unsplash
