EISPIRATEN

Question(s): How do y'all deal with hiker-related injuries, such as sore knees and the like? For that matter, what are the most common injuries (aside from blisters and the occasional shark bite) encountered by hikers, and how would one avoid them?

I ask because I was hiking a month or so ago down Upper Winter Creek at a very fast pace. I might've been stomping too hard on the ground or something because for the next week my left knee was sore; right knee was fine.

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks!

"Hey doc! It hurts when I do this..."

"Doc...Don't do that..That will be $250"

Mental illness is common, especially on this forum.

Cure...hike more.

That'll be 5 cents.

Trekking poles help a lot with knee strain. Slowing down going downhill and leaning on your knees with the palm of your hands also helps in a pinch.

Preventive measures? 20-30 minutes of StairMaster -- everyday

injuries likely on the downhill. go slower, take smaller steps. step "softer".

do a variety of other sorts of exercise helps too

STRETCH!!!!!

If you haven't done a lot of high-impact stuff like running or hiking downhill until now, your tendons and bones aren't ready for it. If you jump right into strenuous hikes, you will get injured, especially if you do less than one strenuous hike per week. Ease into it slowly; I know it's annoying when it seems like the rest of your body is capable of pushing harder, but the fact is that your orthopedic parts need time to adjust. To make this recommendation a little more concrete, I recommend ramping up the number of hours per hike by only 10% per week and laying off the hiking completely if you develop pain. For example, if you like to go on one 6 hr hike per week now and this gives you knee pain, back off, stick with 4 hrs, and if that doesn't give you pain, ramp up according to the 10% rule (go with ~4 hrs 30 min the next week, then ~5 hr the week after, and so on).

Another tip: take small steps when descending. It eases impact forces on the whole leg considerably.

Oh yeah, and don't climb anything I climb. 8)

Thanks, I appreciate the info!