Skip to main content

How to Avoid Muscle Cramps While Hiking in Cold Weather

man backcountry skiing on a mountainside.
Pixabay

As we move into fall and winter and the weather continues to turn cold, chances are some people simply move their fitness routines indoors and discontinue a lot of outdoor activities. If you enjoy cold weather camping or cold weather outdoor activities in general then there are some additional basic tips you can use to keep enjoying being outdoors even in the coldest conditions. Though cold conditions can lead to muscle cramps and sore, overworked muscles, you can take a few precautions to ensure your body is prepared to handle freezing temperatures.

Why Cold Weather Causes Cramps

Unhappy man with injured painful leg sitting on snowy road.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you have experienced muscle cramps more frequently while working, spending time outside, or running in cold conditions, you know the toll winter weather can take on your body. However, you might not know why. As temperatures drop, muscles lose the heat they produce more quickly. As the muscles lose their heat, they tend to tighten up and contract, which also causes joints to become tighter.

Recommended Videos

Such an impact on the muscles can cause them to be sore for a longer period of time. It’s also worth noting that muscles have to work harder under cold conditions to do the same amount of work as they would in warmer weather. While you can’t change the weather, there are, fortunately, several practices you can adopt to ensure your body is protected and ready to perform all winter long.

Warm Up Thoroughly

man is stretching before outdoors training.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

One of the top tips for preventing muscle cramps and soreness during the winter months is properly warming up. During warm or even hot months when muscles are already more limber, it can be tempting or even regular practice for some people to skip their warm-up. However, during cold weather, there is a much greater need to give your body the time it needs to get warm before demanding high-performance tasks or movements from it.

To warm up the muscles and get the blood pumping, there are a number of exercises you can do. Walking at a brisk pace is a good option as is slow, careful jogging. Stretching and aerobic movements such as easy punching or kicks are also good options.

Finally, make sure you spend enough time on your warm-up. Temperatures between 35 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit require at least a 10-minute warm-up. For temperatures below 35 degrees, plan on adding an additional five minutes to your warm-up for every 10-degree decrease in temperature. That means a 15-minute warm-up is required for 25-degree conditions.

Hydrate Appropriately

runner stops for a drink of water from his travel bottle.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Staying hydrated during physical activity is always important. But staying hydrated during cold-weather exercise and activity is even more important — especially for preventing muscle cramps and pains. Dehydration is a major cause of muscle cramps, so even if it is cold, you do need to make sure you get plenty of water to drink before, during, and after outdoor winter exercise.

Avoid relying on diuretics such as coffee and hot tea that actively dehydrate, and stick with regular water. If you really despise drinking cold or room-temperature water during winter, you can always heat up your water. It’s a simple way to make staying hydrated easy.

Consider Adding Heat

person walking with ski poles on the ridge of a snowy mountain.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Finally, adding heat packs or hand warmers to your layers before heading out is another great way to keep your muscles warm. However, this isn’t a means for skipping or avoiding a warm-up. When applied to your body, heat helps boost blood flow and ease the tension of sore or tight muscles. That will not only help existing tendencies for muscle cramps but will also help prevent more from occurring.

If wearing a thermal pad isn’t an option, then consider adding a hot soak with Epsom salts to your evening routine. The salts and hot water will help alleviate any pains or stiffness you might have from working or exercising in the cold.

Molly Harris
Molly Harris is a freelance journalist, cyclist and outdoor enthusiast. Her work has appeared in Travel + Leisure, Lonely…
Tick safety 101: How to safely remove ticks (and avoid them in the first place)
Tick season is here, so here's how to stay safe on the trail and remove any clingers on
Tick on human finger

Of all the various animals living on the trail, one of the most potentially harmful can be barely bigger than a pinhead. Knowing how to avoid ticks while hiking should be part of any hiker and camper's skillset. That's because ticks — most commonly the deer tick and larger dog tick — carry the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which causes Lyme disease. You can also catch other tick-borne illnesses from a tick bite – Elrichosis and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, among others.

It's an unfortunate truth that no matter how hard you try, these tiny insects may still find their way to your skin and latch onto you. You often won't notice until you're home and off the trail, so you should perform regular tick checks on yourself and others, removing as many ticks as you find. Most ticks are perfectly safe and can be removed and disposed of. But it's better to play it safe on the trail, so here's our guide for avoiding ticks, as well as how to remove ticks if you do get bitten.

Read more
Upgrade to the best warm-weather hiking gear of 2023
Right now is the perfect time to clean out your outdoor gear closet — out with the old and in with the new
Two people hiking the W Trek in Chile, mountains in the background.

We’re well into spring, and that means the second-best hiking season (after fall, of course) is underway. It also means summer is just around the corner. So, it’s the perfect time to clean out your gear closet and take stock of your favorite outdoor equipment. Keep what works, donate the rest, and consider upgrading your hiking gear that just isn’t working for you anymore. With that in mind, we’ve rounded up the best new gear for warm-weather hiking (and camping and kayaking and whatever else you’re getting into) this year.

Read more
Vans hiking boots: Introducing a warm-weather addition to the MTE collection
Check out these new hiking boots from Vans
Vans MTE warm weather hiking boots

Hey there adventure seekers, have you heard the news? Vans has just launched the UltraRange EXO Hi Gore-Tex Warm Weather MTE-2, the latest addition to its Made for the Elements (MTE) collection! The excitement surrounding this release is off the charts, and here’s why: This hiking boot is designed specifically for warm-weather adventures. How cool is that!

The Vans hiking shoes can stand up to the heat
With features like thermoregulation, moisture management, and traction, these new Vans hiking boots are a game changer.

Read more