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Fitness for Hunting: Why It Matters

  • Writer: Dave Hansen
    Dave Hansen
  • May 9
  • 3 min read

By Dave Hansen



It’s Not Optional

You can’t buy fitness. You can’t borrow it. And once the hunt starts, it’s too late to wish you had it.


Western hunting punishes the unprepared. Long miles. Heavy packs. Thin air. If you’re not training for it, you’re just hoping you get lucky. And luck runs out fast when you're three miles deep with 80 pounds of elk meat on your back.


What the Mountains Demand

Hunting shape isn’t gym shape.

You need legs that can climb, lungs that won’t quit, and a back that doesn’t fold under load. It’s not about how much you bench. It’s about whether you can hike for six days, on minimal sleep, and still have the juice to pack out a bull when the shot finally happens.


This is what hunting usually requires:


  • Steep, uneven terrain

  • 30–80 lb packs, sometimes for hours

  • Fast decision-making while out of breath

  • Cold mornings, hot afternoons, big elevation

  • Mental toughness when your body’s ready to quit



Strength Matters, But Only the Right Kind

You don’t need bodybuilder arms. You need a spine that can handle 100 pounds. You need knees that don’t buckle on the descent. And you need a mindset that doesn’t tap out when the trail gets ugly.


Here’s what real hunting fitness looks like:

  • Rucking: Heavy pack hiking on dirt, rocks, and hills

  • Step-ups & lunges: Because every climb is one leg at a time

  • Deadlifts: Build the hinge strength to lift a quartered elk

  • Sled pushes/pulls: Train power and grit

  • Cardio with purpose: Stairs, hill sprints, ruck runs

  • Core work: Stability is strength in the mountains


Forget curls. Forget cable machines. Do what gets you ready for a pack out.






Set Some Standards

Don’t just “work out.” Train with a goal. Hit numbers that matter in the field.


Before your hunt, aim to:

  • Ruck 3 miles with 50 lbs in under 50 minutes

  • Deadlift your bodyweight for at least 8 reps

  • Step up onto a 20" box 50 times without breaking

  • Handle a 3-hour hike without bonking

  • Recover your breath in 90 seconds or less after a climb

You don’t need to be elite. You need to be capable—and consistent.


My Program: How I Train for my Elk Hunts

I’m not guessing. I’m doing the work now.


Here’s my foundation:

  • Heavy Weight Training: Squats, deadlifts, sled pushes and pulls

  • Rucking: With 40–70 lb packs or Weighted Vest

  • Stairs & Hills: For leg burn and breath control

  • General Cardio: Ruck runs, long incline walks, intervals

  • Core: Heavy carries, planks, anti-rotation work


My goal: Be the guy who doesn’t stop when it’s hard. Be the guy you want on the mountain with you when the pack out starts. There will always be places you dont want to go, but I'll be ready to go because I put in the effort now!


Real Resources Worth Your Time

Want structure? Want to follow a real plan made for hunters?


These are two places I trust for great fitness content to help you get and stay fit:


  • No-nonsense, mountain-tested programs

  • Physical + mental toughness

  • Mobile app training designed for backcountry fitness


  • Elk Hunting-specific strength & conditioning

    • But it'll help you get in shape, no matter the animal you are hunting for

  • High-level content on gear, shooting, and mindset

  • Programs built by real hunters, for real conditions


Either one will make you stronger—and better prepared for the hunt.



Don’t Forget the Fuel and Recovery

Fitness dies fast without food, hydration, and sleep.


What I try to prioritize:



  • Eating clean carbs, protein, and fats—especially post-training

  • Hydrating before you think you need it

  • Sleep like it matters (because it does)

  • Stretch, move, and walk the day after big sessions


And in the field, I only carry food I know I like, but also know its healthy. If it wrecks your gut at home, it’ll ruin your hunt even faster.



Final Thoughts


You don’t have to be jacked. You don’t need a perfect body.

But if you want to succeed in the backcountry, you do have to earn it.

Fitness won’t guarantee you punch your tag.But lack of fitness guarantees you’ll quit earlier, move slower, recover worse, and hunt weaker. You have less than 4 months until September, even if you're not exercising today, you have plenty of time to be prepared if you start now!


So ask yourself this: If the bull screams from the next basin over, are you going?

Train for that answer now.


 
 
 

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