Packrafting Strength: 5 Moves for Better Adventures
Get Packrafting-Ready with These Functional Moves for a Strong Summer
Are you ready for an exciting season of packrafting? Whether you’re just getting into the sport or a seasoned veteran, building strength before your first trip is a great way to make the most of packrafting season. Practicing functional movements at home can build muscle memory in the pre-season, jump-starting your packrafting season for strong technique all summer long.
I’ve been packrafting Alaska rivers for years, and I’m also a fitness trainer. I’m excited to share these exercises that I know from personal experience will help you when you’re out on the water this summer.
Strength-Building Moves for Packrafting
First, a story: in the summer of 2018, my husband Luc & I were in the habit of doing a set of pushups every day. Then we left for a 10-day packrafting trip that started with 60 miles (97km) on the Yukon River. We knew that the Yukon moves at about six miles per hour...
Packrafter's Warmup + Shoulder Mobility Sequence
We wouldn't do a workout without a warmup first, right? We know that's a recipe for injury and is easily preventable by spending a few minutes building up heat in the body and increasing blood flow to the joints & muscles.
I wonder, why is it so acceptable to jump right into our outdoor recreation without a warmup?
In the end, this one is a rhetorical question. The real answer here is that we'd all be better served if we DID warm up our bodies before starting our outdoor recreation ventures.
This is particularly important for packrafters & other whitewater paddlers since so often a whitewater run begins with the most technical part. We need our bodies to be ready for whatever comes our way, which could necessitate a snappy paddle stroke, a strong brace with the core, or a quick recovery from a line that didn't go as planned.
Even if you're just paddling flat water, or maybe you're not a paddler at all, this is relevant --...