When you are thinking about getting into exploring outdoors and backpacking you might ask yourself, do backpackers need to be fit? The answer is no they don’t but that might make it more difficult to do the backpacking. You will find many backpackers today who are very fit and this is because they spend so much time outdoors, walking and hiking. It is rather difficult not to be fit when you are engaged in that lifestyle.
If you are not fit and you start out backpacking then you might find that it is very difficult to carry those belongings with you or to be on the road so often traveling.
Getting fit is easier for backpackers than others who might be at home all the time because of how active they are. By nature backpacking is going to place more pressure on the body in that it requires you to be engaged with walking more and being outdoors more for that physical activity. Backpackers are often going to carry a lot of belongings in their bag and this can make it very heavy for the journey.
If you have never carried that many items on you before and walked for a long distance then you might be surprised at how difficult it is going to be because of what you are carrying. Over time though you should get stronger and adapt, building that tolerance in being able to do the backpacking.
Not every backpacker is perfectly fit, neither are they fit when they start out on the journey. But backpacking has certainly helped many people to become more fit along the way. This is because of the pressure and demand that is required for those who want to engage in going on long journeys while carrying a lot of items in a backpack. They might even be carrying musical instruments and other items, these can easily start to get very heavily quickly.
Carrying multiple pairs of shoes? Or food? It does not take much to be heavy and require some effort.
Backpacking can help to build that strength and backpackers are often going to be those with strong legs because of all of the walking and hiking that they must do along the way on their journey. You do not need to be fit in order to be a backpacker, but it is going to be easier for those who are fit to start backpacking. The activity of backpacking is going to be easier for someone who is fit and able to handle that pressure of carrying the load however far they plan on traveling. For some people who are out of shape this is going to be more difficult than others.
The being in shape standard isn’t required for backpacking because anyone can go backpacking either for an hour, a day, or longer. The demand that is needed then is not always the same so no, you do not need to be a professional or in perfect shape to start backpacking and exploring the outdoors in this way. Getting into backpacking is easier than you might think.
Those who do backpacking for longer are going to build up a skill for it and that might mean they can carry more or go for longer without getting tired. This activity of walking and hiking while carrying that backpack is going to boost physical activity for the wearer and contribute to increasing fitness in multiple ways.
For those who start doing backpacking it might not be long before they start to notice a difference and begin to see those benefits from doing the work while out on the trails.