Elk Workouts

[Wrench]

One of the most overlooked aspects is balance and involuntary muscles. Being strong with dedicated form is great....but spend a week walking on blowdowns with a pack and bow or rifle in hand....and you will find muscles you didn't know you had.

Mix in some balance workouts too.

 

[Hootsma]

One of the most overlooked aspects is balance and involuntary muscles. Being strong with dedicated form is great....but spend a week walking on blowdowns with a pack and bow or rifle in hand....and you will find muscles you didn't know you had.

Mix in some balance workouts too.

I feel like I have horrible balance. Whenever I do yoga with my wife, I’m all over the place in the one legged poses and it’s my feet that fatigue first from my stabilizer muscles firing a 100 times a second trying to keep me upright. With that said, balance isn’t an issue for me in the backcountry because I use hiking poles. It completely neutralizes my horrible balance issues. They have become an essential part of my backpacking gear and I never go in the backcountry without them.

 

[Wrench]

Calling for my pard last week brought a bull in from an unexpected direction. My pard had to hang up in a awkward position for about 6-7 minutes till he had cover to move.....he was smoked from the exertion to balance awkwardly. I was averaging an easy 4-500 yards a day walking on blowdowns as my sidewalk because it was quiet compared to the corn flakes on the ground. Poles dont help when the ground is 6 feet below.

 

[mtwarden]

I've found out that playing in the mountains year round (day hiking/backpacking/snowshoeing/backcountry skiing/scouting/etc) has the best overall results. Strength train a couple of days a week in addition and done.

 

[Poser]

I've found out that playing in the mountains year round (day hiking/backpacking/snowshoeing/backcountry skiing/scouting/etc) has the best overall results. Strength train a couple of days a week in addition and done.

This is basically me as well. I bag peaks, scout 30+ days over the summer, backcountry ski, Mtn bike and strength train in the gym. Even then, the mountains are still hard.

 

[Poser]

One of the most overlooked aspects is balance and involuntary muscles. Being strong with dedicated form is great....but spend a week walking on blowdowns with a pack and bow or rifle in hand....and you will find muscles you didn't know you had.

Mix in some balance workouts too.

These “stabilizer” muscles that you speak of are nothing more than isometric use of the abdominals to protect the spine, the same way they protect the spine when deadlifting or overhead pressing. If you can deadlift a couple of hundred pounds with a straight back, they are sufficiently strong enough to support your body + a 50 lbs pack in various positions. It’s really not very complicated, don’t over think it -the body never moves in isolation. Anything that involves bending etc will also be employing at least half the muscles in your body with the spinal erectors, hips and posterior chain, the largest muscles in the body, doing the majority of the work as they evolved to function and as Anatomy demands. You’re never relying on “stabilizer” muscles to work in isolation or in independence, therefore they never have to be trained in isolation in order to be effective. Athletic movement is always compound.

 

[Hootsma]

Calling for my pard last week brought a bull in from an unexpected direction. My pard had to hang up in a awkward position for about 6-7 minutes till he had cover to move.....he was smoked from the exertion to balance awkwardly. I was averaging an easy 4-500 yards a day walking on blowdowns as my sidewalk because it was quiet compared to the corn flakes on the ground. Poles dont help when the ground is 6 feet below.

Hiking poles help me the most on blow downs and log choked creeks and scree fields. Especially when under a pack load.

 

[BDRam16]

StrongLifts 5x5. Do that mixed in with whatever cardio you want and you’ll make huge improvements. Lots of functional strength gains very quickly.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

Any workout with thrusters bar or DB..good for legs, arms and shoulders plus it gets your HR up..Fran and Jackie Wods are 2 of my favorite benchmark workouts with thrusters.

 

[JCohHTX]

I second MTNTOUGH if you want a progressive workout already planned out. They mix it up so it stays interesting.

 

[fatlander]

Rucking up, down and across steep hills with your pack on and the boots you’re hunting in. HIIT style workouts (MTNTOUGH). Long sustained cardio like riding a bike. And eating tag soup a few times.


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[Gerbdog]

Rucking up, down and across steep hills with your pack on and the boots you’re hunting in. HIIT style workouts (MTNTOUGH). Long sustained cardio like riding a bike. And eating tag soup a few times.


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Tag soup and humble pie for dessert are motivating dishes for year long workouts for sure.

 

[oake]

Tons of great advise. But if I can add anything, make sure you're stretching and keeping potential injury to a minimum.

Something that's been difficult to remember as I age is that I need to remember to stretch.

 

[IDspud]

I have the opposite question. How do you guys continue to do normal gym stuff during elk season? I don’t want to do back, arms, or legs when that could mess up my hunt after I’ve invested so much time and energy in finding an elk. I’ve just been doing cardio chest and core for the last 3 weeks.

 

[Gerbdog]

I have the opposite question. How do you guys continue to do normal gym stuff during elk season? I don’t want to do back, arms, or legs when that could mess up my hunt after I’ve invested so much time and energy in finding an elk. I’ve just been doing cardio chest and core for the last 3 weeks.

Yea during elk season the hiking with pack and bow is enough workout to keep me fit. If im home (which i am sadly) for work and work travel ill just do basic cardio (jog) and stay away from things that risk injury. I'll stop heavy lifts and heavy packs a couple weeks before season to avoid risking injury. Just the actual hunting during elk season is a heck of a workout, im in no better shape throughout the year as i am during September. Keep those calories coming in.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

I have the opposite question. How do you guys continue to do normal gym stuff during elk season? I don’t want to do back, arms, or legs when that could mess up my hunt after I’ve invested so much time and energy in finding an elk. I’ve just been doing cardio chest and core for the last 3 weeks.

Easy just put your ego down bro...I stay away from 1RM progressions during hunting season...more reps less weight.

 

[Poser]

I have the opposite question. How do you guys continue to do normal gym stuff during elk season? I don’t want to do back, arms, or legs when that could mess up my hunt after I’ve invested so much time and energy in finding an elk. I’ve just been doing cardio chest and core for the last 3 weeks.

In season, drop volume and hypertrophy, since both have a costly recovery cycle. I read a study the Marine Corps did and they found they could maintain their solders strength levels for several weeks at a time with them just lifting once a week on deployment. The key though is heavy sets: heavy triples etc. For example, a “heavy” set of 3x3 backsquats, 3x5 bench press a 1x3 deadlift will allow for a sufficient dose of stress with minimal recovery impact.

If you’re feeling especially beat up, just doing Deload sets of 3x5 at 50% will buy some time in maintenance mode. When I’m snowboarding quite a bit, I’ll often do one “heavy” workout as described above and one Deload workout a week. I can usually maintain strength levels pretty well for about 3 weeks then catch a week where I get into the gym 3x and give things a boost to maintain eye another 3 weeks with minimal volume.

 

[IDspud]

Easy just put your ego down bro...I stay away from 1RM progressions during hunting season...more reps less weight.

Even sticking to 70% 1rm leaves me shakey on shots If I don’t have at least 2 full days of recovery.

Interesting about the heavy load/low volume approach. I have noticed less fatigue doing that over more reps, to the point of wondering if it’s even doing anything for me. I guess one month of slacking won’t kill me.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

Even sticking to 70% 1rm leaves me shakey on shots If I don’t have at least 2 full days of recovery.

Interesting about the heavy load/low volume approach. I have noticed less fatigue doing that over more reps, to the point of wondering if it’s even doing anything for me. I guess one month of slacking won’t kill me.

I just try to stay moving so I don't get injured in the field doing something I probably shouldn't be doing..I do about 60% of my 1RM during season..I would also check your diet..more protein, more water, and more sleep always help with my recovery.
One ounce of water and gram of protein per lb of body weight per day and at least 8hrs of sleep with no alcohol works best for me. 1 beer with dinner will kick my HR up 10 BPM when I sleep, and will make huge difference in my recovery the next day. YMMV.

 

[BDRam16]

Even sticking to 70% 1rm leaves me shakey on shots If I don’t have at least 2 full days of recovery.

Interesting about the heavy load/low volume approach. I have noticed less fatigue doing that over more reps, to the point of wondering if it’s even doing anything for me. I guess one month of slacking won’t kill me.

That’s why I only like doing “big” lifts. Compound muscle group lifts like deadlifts, squats, rows, bench,etc....maybe a push/pull day or whatever full body workout day you like. No arm day/chest day/back day/leg day. Do an A/B workout every three days so you always have a full two days rest and 6 days before hitting the same workout again.