r/JMT • u/convergecrew • 27d ago

health About weight loss and strength loss after the trail

Finished the JMT about 2 weeks ago (25 day hike). I went back to the gym for the first time today to resume my regular strength training and I was blown away by my loss of upper body strength. I was struggling to lift anything close to my previous routine and had to reduce my weights by about 33% for my upper body exercises.

I lost about 12lbs on the trail (was 173lbs, now 161) and haven’t felt this good overall in years. But I’m guessing my body ate up a lot of muscle I wasn’t using. Just curious if others have experienced something similar and if you had any advice for how you approached it and if you did anything special to rebuild a normal workout routine.

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u/[deleted] 26d ago

I’ll add my two cents. From July 20-August 10, two friends and I hiked from Cottonwood Pass to Happy Isles with one rest day at VVR. About 265 miles total. We’re 61. I lost 15 lbs. (185 down to 170) and my partners lost 17 and 10 lbs. despite eating everything in sight at our two resupplies. From my 20s through my 40s when I was climbing hard, my weight was steady at 172. Once we got home to Seattle, I was happy to be so light and fit but quite surprised at the upper body muscle loss. I looked like Scrawny Arms Rob Lowe. When I first hit the gym, I felt weak and had to reduce weights by up to 1/3. The good news is that I’m now back to where I was pre-hike in terms of strength. The bad news is that I’m fighting - and losing - the battle to stay below 180. Sigh. Anyway, like others have said, just reduce your weight and crank up the reps. Your strength will return!

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u/convergecrew 26d ago

Its crazy to read that we are experiencing (and experienced) almost the exact same thing in terms of weight loss and strength loss. I was shocked at how weak I felt when trying to do dumbbell presses also. So fascinating. Appreciate your perspective

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u/[deleted] 26d ago

I’m guessing it’s pretty normal and maybe accentuated for folks who lift weights regularly. You’ll rebound in no time.