Calorie Burn
- Activity is essential to weight loss because it helps you burn calories. When you burn more calories than you consume, you lose weight. A 3,500-calorie deficit can help you lose a pound. The number of calories you burn during an activity depends on your height and weight, your intensity level and your gender. For example, a 200-pound man who stands 5 feet, 11 inches tall burns about 540 calories per hour during a hike; a 150-pound, 5-foot, 5-inch woman burns about 405 calories per hour hiking. Doing three or four hour-long hikes each week can help most people drop approximately half a pound per week, provided they don't eat more as a result of the increased activity.
Upping the Burn
- If you want to burn more calories during a hike, choose hilly trails and go at a pace that makes you feel slightly breathy, but still able to carry on a conversation. This indicates your heart rate is elevated slightly -- helping you burn a maximum number of fat calories. Hikes lasting longer than an hour also burn more calories. Week-long, or longer, hiking adventures in which you hike, carry your gear, pack and prepare your own food and camp out during the nights can result in significant weight loss, especially if you're used to a sedentary lifestyle and maintain a normal diet as you hike.
Fueling the Hike
- Many traditional hiking foods, such as trail mix and energy bars, are calorie dense and could undo your weight-loss efforts. These foods are designed for people who spend several hours out on the trail and need a lot of calories in a small package that's easy to carry. If you're hiking to help you lose weight, you do need some calories for energy, but only if you're going for several hours. Don't reward an hour-long hike with an extra snack; eat moderate portions of whole, unprocessed foods at your regular mealtimes. If you'll be heading out for a long trudge of two hours or longer, measure out just one to two 1-ounce portions of energy dense foods such as nuts, dried fruit or trail mix to fuel you during the trek. Unless it's extremely hot and you're working up a serious sweat, you can do without a calorie-laden sports drink. Water or calorie-free electrolyte drinks provide adequate hydration.
Use the Environment
- By limiting the foods you bring with you on a hike, and eliminating tantalizing items from your pantry at home, you'll increase the likelihood of losing weight. Hiking can help you overcome hedonic hunger, which is hunger triggered because food is present. If you see or smell something tempting, you're more likely to eat it. When you hike and carry only what you need, that temptation is removed. Load your home pantry and fridge with foods such as whole grains, lean proteins, fresh vegetables and fruits so you aren't inspired to overeat unhealthy, high-calorie foods after your hike either. Limit your intake of alcohol and refined sweets, which only pad your diet with extra calories that prevent weight loss.
