Hike at a safe pace – especially uphill – where you’re not pushing your heart or respiratory rates into the red zone, and take frequent, short breaks. Hiking is an endurance sport, not a sprint: Dial in a pace that you can maintain for hours rather than a pace at your upper limits, which will fatigue you much faster. On hard ascents, stop for a 30-second breather when you need to; even brief rests can provide a surprising degree of physical recovery. Similarly, keep most of your longer breaks to sit for eating/treating water/bathroom/cooling feet to 15 to 20 minutes or less. That allows plenty of rest time without letting your muscles cool down completely, so you’re still ready to hit the trail at a strong pace.
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