Hiking and Trekking, both are healthy activities for any tourist, traveler, or nature explorer. Most people don’t know that there is a difference between both activities. They usually consider both as the same thing in terms of hiking. As a traveler, it is important for you to know the difference between Hiking and Trekking. You might be going for trekking but you are prepared according to hiking requirements. So, getting familiar with the difference between both activities is very important for almost all of us. What are we waiting for? Let’s go down and have a look at what are the major differences between Hiking and Trekking.
Hiking vs. Trekking
Hiking can be considered as the long walk on hiking trails for one day or overnight. People usually go on hiking to explore nature and to relax their mind. For hiking, there are proper hiking trails and footpaths for every person who is going on hiking. The usual distance for hiking is around about from 4 Km to 50 Km.
Let’s talk about Trekking, there is fun, pleasure, exploring nature, and many other things in Trekking. Unlike Hiking, there is a specific destination when it comes to Trekking usually any spiritual or any historic places. Also, the major thing that differentiates Hiking and Trekking is that Trekking is supposed to last longer for more than 2 days. In simple words, Trekking is a long journey with tough road conditions, unlike Hiking.
If we talk about the distance, you may cover from 50 Km to over 24,000 Km when Trekking. Also, you should be prepared well enough more than Hiking when going on Trekking because you may face tough conditions during this long journey. It is recommended to fully kit yourself with all necessary items before going on a Hiking or especially Trekking.
Advantages of Hiking and Trekking
Every physical activity has benefits in terms of boosting energy and keeping one fit. Talking about Hiking and Trekking, there are many advantages to going on Hiking and Trekking. Let’s find out why Hiking and Trekking are important for our health and what are the pros of doing such activities.
1- Increases Strength
No doubt, trekking, and hiking helps in boosting your stamina and strength. These outdoor activities bring energy and good things to your muscles either leg muscles, arms, or thighs. These activities are weight-bearing outdoor exercises that help in building your bone and muscle strength. The more you perform such activities, the more you’ll get fit and smart.
2- Lowers the Risk of Heart Attack
According to one study, walking an hour a day for 5 days a week helps in reducing the risk of having a heart attack and other diseases. Not only that but activities like Trekking and Hiking also help in improving your blood pressure. These exercises keep your blood pumping which is better for your health and heart.
3- Burn Calories
Obviously, everyone would want to burn calories to stay fit and smart. If looking for burning your calories and losing weight, there is nothing better than going on a Hiking or Trekking. According to research, hiking for an hour burns almost 400 to 500 calories per hour. Following this research, we are now familiar with how much trekking and hiking helps in burning calories and losing fat.
Have a look at the Reasons Why You Should Excercise in the Morning
4- Improves Mental Health
Your mental health is as important as your physical health. Perfect physical health doesn’t guarantee perfect mental health. Nowadays, most of the people are facing anxiety, stress, and other mental health issues. Going on a hiking or trekking helps you in relaxing your mind by relieving all of your tensions and problems. The fresh air and beautiful nature scenes affect positively your thoughts and mind which helps in giving your mind a required rest and relaxation.
5- Boost Your Creativity
Some of you would be questioning yourself how does hiking or trekking help in making one more creative? Besides improving mental and physical health, these outdoor activities bring you creativity and help in increasing your cardiovascular health through Vitamin D. All of us know that Sunlight is the direct source of providing Vitamin D. Vitamin D is good for your bones, body, immune system, and for your mind cells as well. The impact of Vitamin D on your mental health is what increases your mental focus and thinking.
Besides these 5, there are many other advantages you can have by going on a Hiking or Trekking. If going on a hiking or trekking, you must have all the accessories like bag, boots, food items, first aid kit, bowie knife, fire starter, and many others one may need on the trip.
Final Thoughts
As an overall summary, we can say that hiking and trekking are slightly different from each other. You can spend a day or overnight on hiking but trekking takes multiple days to reach any specific destination. We came to know that trekking is tougher as compared to hiking in terms of tracks and cover distance. Also, we’ve realized how much these two outdoor activities are helpful for improving our physical and mental health. We got to know that Vitamin D through sunlight impacts positively on our mental approach and skills in terms of boosting our creativity. In the end, if someone is looking for overall health and a strong immune system then start going on Hiking or Trekking as per your preferences.
