HikeArizona.COM

A total newb to backpacking. Old. Hoping to do a few Section hikes before I can't.

Although I've been hiking for a few years now at a local preserve just to stay active, I've become serious about training this year, now hiking with my backpack with increasing loads. (And doing more resistance training on a Total-Gym clone.)

I'm already skinny, so I didn't think that I had much fat to lose. Nevertheless, I had a bit of fat around my waist, which I am happy to report has shrunk considerably.

I've lost 5 pounds (which makes my pack seem not as heavy) and, as a bonus, my hip belt doesn't constrict me like it used to.

So, I know it's crazy that we purposely leave our nice, comfortable, environmentally-controlled homes to eat & sleep in not as nice, not as comfortable, freezing cold (or, as I might soon experience, uncomfortably hot) environments. (Not to mention that the food isn't as good as home cooking.)

But, hey, it's good exercise!

For me it's gone the other way, though mostly due to an exchange of fat —> muscle. I work full time on a field crew (mostly trailwork, but other conservation projects as well) and while for me hiking and backpacking didn't make as much long-term difference on my weight, I went from a baseline of 145 lbs when I started volunteering on trails a decade ago to around 170 lbs now.

But no matter what I do, I can't seem to lose the bit of belly fat I've always had since I was a kid!

I lost another 3 lbs. One the one hand, that's now a total of 8 lbs that my feet (and especially knees) don't have to carry. Good. OTOH, it means that my max pack weight of 20% of body weight limit is lower.

(Although I found a study showing that the 20% rule is not so straight-forward. A researcher found that shorter ppl can carry more than 20%. At my height, I'm at 25% or so.)

I don't put much stock in the 20% rule. I try to stay under 30%, but I've done up to 50% with no ill effects.

@big_load
I don't believe that I could handle 80 lbs. (Even if my pack could.)

But it's good to know that the 20% Rule isn't absolute. (Not that I'm trying to increase my load. A project for this Saturday is to make a light wind shield for my Sterno so that I don't have to carry a 1 lb folding stove.)

Part of the "load" limitation is not only the structural capabilities of one's knees and feet, but also balance. The study that I mentioned earlier found that short people could carry more weight than tall people.

Makes sense. Aside from the scaling effect (that body density increases by the third power), if one were 7 feet tall, there's also a lever/pendulum effect of having a pack that high up one's body. I would lose my balance with too much weight on my back.

TooOld2HikeQ wrote:short people could carry more weight than tall people.

Balance and stability may depend on where you choose to carry the weight.

@chumley
Those would be good for smuggling beers into theaters.

@rcorfman while that may save you a few cents, they actually sell beer at theaters now. It's 2023!!!