the_rowan•1mo agoOG Member

Tried walking backwards uphill to 'hack' my metabolism and nearly fell into a creek

Last Saturday I decided to test this wild theory I read online that walking backwards on an incline burns way more calories than normal walking. So I went to this steep trail near my house in Portland and started walking backwards up it. I made it about 30 feet before my foot caught a root and I stumbled sideways into a muddy patch right next to a little creek. My jeans were soaked up to the knee and some guy walking his dog just stopped and stared at me like I was crazy. I did learn that your hamstrings really do work harder going backwards, but the real lesson was that I need to pick safer spots for experiments. My legs were sore for three days after that, so maybe there was something to it. Has anyone else tried this or a similar weird exercise theory and lived to tell the tale?

3 comments

3 Comments

logan5611mo ago

Dude that creek part had me dying lmao. I tried that backwards walking thing once but I did it in my driveway on flat ground cause I'm not tryna die. Made it like 10 minutes until my neighbor's dog ran up to me and I spun around to pet it and rolled my ankle on a crack in the concrete. Limped inside and told my girlfriend I was "experimenting with biomechanics" and she just handed me an ice pack and laughed. The hamstring burn was real though no lie. Maybe we should start a support group for people who nearly injured themselves trying to hack their metabolism.

emmam891mo ago

Oh man, the "some guy just stared at me like I was crazy" part got me. That's basically my life motto. I actually tried something similar a few years back - walking backwards on a treadmill at the gym. Not the incline, just flat. Figured I'd look like a fool but who cares. I made it a whole five minutes before I stumbled and hit the emergency stop button with my butt. The whole gym went quiet. But honestly, my hamstrings and calves were toast the next day, so I think you're onto something with the muscle activation. Maybe next time try it on flat ground with a buddy to spot you, or at least somewhere without a creek nearby.

charles_young921mo ago

Piggybacking off what emmam89 said about the gym thing, I bet if someone actually set up a backwards walking class at a fitness place it'd be a hit. People pay good money for weird stuff like goat yoga or axe throwing, so why not backwards hiking? Could call it "Reverse Trekking" or something dumb like that and watch everyone sign up. But knowing my luck, the first session would end with someone falling into a row of treadmills and we'd all get banned from the gym...