Try the Trail-building Workout
October 09, 2014
New York-New Jersey Trail Conference
Title
Try the Trail-building Workout
![The Megalithic Trail Crew working on the Appalachian Trail at Bear Mountain. Photo by Caitlyn Ball. The Megalithic Trail Crew working on the Appalachian Trail at Bear Mountain. Photo by Caitlyn Ball.](http://nynjtc.net/sites/default/files/styles/news_center__single_page_style/public/P6010051_0.jpg?itok=r7Un-NWU)
Body
The New York-New Jersey Trail Conference is proud to present its very own GREEN GYM–the trail-building workout.
Tired of smelly, expensive indoor venues and boring workouts? Visit our spacious outdoor woodland facilities, which offer cardio warm-ups with unparalleled views and a wide range of trail-building workouts to tone all of your muscle groups.
Activities begin with a scenic hike into trail work sites to get the blood pumping. All muscle groups will then be thoroughly tested using the following tools:
Upper Body
- Arms: clippers and hand saws; carrying tools to work site, working the winch
- Biceps and triceps: small sledge hammers, stone shaping hammers, drill
- Shoulders, core, and overall balance: carrying buckets of crush
- Core, back, and shoulders: rogue hoe, pick-mattock, rake; upgrade to 10 lb. sledge hammers for a real challenge and stress-release workout
Lower Body
- Legs: Squats when picking up medium rocks and crush buckets
- Quads and back: rogue hoe, pick-mattock; dead lifting and carrying small to medium rocks
Full Body
- Side-hilling with a rogue hoe or pick-mattock (voted the best overall conditioning calorie-burn)
- Exercise your spatial intelligence by visualizing how to orient irregularly shaped rocks around obstacles and set them in the most stable positions.
Bonus effects of trail building workouts include camaraderie, a sense of accomplishment, and improved hiking paths for everyone to enjoy.
Best of all: It’s free!
To get your workout on, find a trail crew near you.