Second Chances Have you ever had an event in your life that changed your trajectory and gave you a second chance? If you have a few minutes, I’ll share with you my second chance event story about a farm accident I was in. Strange, I know but stick with me here and it’ll come full circle with why I love giving back and working with hikers. I haven’t shared this story much in the past because I was embarrassed and ashamed that it even happened at all. As I’ve gotten older, I see the lesson and the lasting imprint of this event and I’ve let go of that embarrassment and shame. And with that s ..read more

Camp Self Care Routine For Hikers In this camp self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to find relief after a long day on the trail. The best part is, you’ll be using items that you have handy to massage, stretch, and rejuvenate your body. Self care is critical to manage aches and pains as well as keep you happy and healthy. This camp self care routine for hikers is from my more comprehensive self care program. Start with the feet I like to start with the feet. The first thing I do is the toe animator. Simply weave your fingers in-between your toes (yes, they fit!) and feel ..read more

Rest Stop Self Care Routine For Hikers In this rest stop self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to find relief for your body. Using items that you have handy, you can massage, stretch, and quickly rejuvenate while hiking. Self care for your body is critical! This self care routine for hikers comes from my more comprehensive self care program. Simple and effective Using your shoe, you can easily massage the bottom of your foot. This massage sounds a little strange, but it works! Flipping your shoe on edge, you can use the sole of the shoe to target the sides ..read more

Shoulder & Neck Self Care Routine For Hikers In this shoulder and neck self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to find relief from headaches and shoulder pain. Using items that you have handy, you can massage, stretch, and improve your comfort while hiking. Self care for your shoulder and neck is critical! This mini shoulder and neck self care routine for hikers is from my more comprehensive self care program. Know yourself! When you are hiking, it’s often helpful to have a map, so you know where to go. The map can also outline the features and give you a good picture o ..read more

Quad Self Care Routine For Hikers In this quad self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to find relief for aching knees by targeting the quad muscles. Using items that you have handy, you can massage, stretch, and improve your comfort on the trail. Self care for your hard-working quads is critical! This mini quad self care routine for hikers is from my more comprehensive self care program.   Know your quad muscles When you are hiking it’s often helpful to have a map, so you know where to go. The map can also outline the features and give you a good picture of the landsc ..read more

Lower Leg Self Care Routine For Hikers In this lower self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to find relief for your lower leg muscles. I have separated out the lower leg muscles from the calf for ease. You can learn about the calf self care routine here. Using items that you have handy, you can massage, stretch, and rejuvenate your lower leg muscles while hiking. Self care for your lower is critical! This mini lower leg self care routine for hikers is from my more comprehensive self-care program. Know your lower leg When you are hiking it’s often helpful to have a map, so ..read more

Calf Self Care Routine For Hikers In this calf self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to ease those tight calf muscles. Using items that you have handy, you can massage, stretch, and care for your calf muscles. Self care for the calf muscles is very important! This mini calf self care routine for hikers is from my more comprehensive self care program. Know your calf muscle When you are hiking, it’s often helpful to have a map, so you know where to go. The map can also outline the features and give you a good picture of the landscape. For this calf routine, I give you the s ..read more

Self Care For Hikers With injuries continuing to be the #1 reason hikers report abandoning their long distance hikes yearly, there’s room for improving self care. But self care is a pretty wide ranging term. So what exactly do I mean when I say self care for hikers? Just using simple but effective strategies that ANY hiker of any age can do to improve their health while on the trail. That’s it! Let’s go into a little more detail below and I’ll fill you in on my new Self Care Program For Hikers along the way. Simple strategies using what’s handy Like you, I try to make smart choices with my gea ..read more

Foot Self Care Routine For Hikers In this foot self care routine for hikers, I’ll give you some quick ways to find relief for sore and tired feet. Using items that you have handy, you can massage, stretch, and rejuvenate your feet while hiking. Self care for your feet is critical! This mini foot self care routine for hikers is from my more comprehensive self care program. Know your foot When you are hiking, it’s often helpful to have a map, so you know where to go. The map can also outline the features and give you a good picture of the landscape looks like. For this foot self care routin ..read more

Plantar Fasciitis & Hiking Plantar fasciitis and hiking don’t go well together. Plantar fasciitis shouldn’t stop you from hiking, though! This post will highlight some of the most common causes of plantar fasciitis, where you might feel the pain and some ideas on how to address it. There are a LOT of possibilities and variables that can come into play here. You should always seek a medical professional to determine what is causing the issue and how best to manage it. Plantar Fasciitis Plantar fasciitis is tendinopathy that many hikers and non-hikers manage. It is also more common as we age ..read more