The Utility of Hiking as a Nontraditional Sport in Modern Society

This essay examines hiking as a nontraditional sport, focusing on its increasing popularity, particularly in countries like the United States and Canada. The author discusses hiking's benefits, including physical and psychological advantages, such as reducing the risk of heart disease, improving balance, and alleviating stress. The essay highlights the motivations for participating in hiking, emphasizing its role in promoting physical and mental well-being, especially in the context of urbanization and busy lifestyles. The author also touches upon the role of hiking in society, the lack of traditional sports issues like gender inequality, and the need to promote hiking as a recreational activity. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics is used to illustrate hiking's popularity. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of spreading awareness about the benefits of hiking to encourage wider participation and promote a healthier lifestyle, especially in an urbanized world, and notes that it is a sport that can be enjoyed by all ages, although mountain climbing may be challenging for some.

Running head: SPORTS AND SOCIETY
Sports and Society
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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The overall aim of this essay is to discuss the utility of hiking as a nontraditional sports
activity. This is a new kind of sports activity that was not that much prominent in previous years.
Hiking is a sport, i.e., trendy in countries like the United States and Canada nowadays. Many
issues regarding sports activities are very much associated with this sport. Some problems that
are mainly concerned with sports activities are gender inequality, racial issues, rights for the
disabled persons, use of technology in games, youth sports, motivation for familiar people
through participating in sports and many other items (Ryan, 2016).
Thus it can be said that hiking has grown as one of the most popular sports activities.
Therefore, these issues are also there within the confinements of this sport. Indeed, all these
issues will have to be discussed in this essay. The ways on how this sport can motivate the
participation within human beings would be discussed in this paper. It is of utmost importance to
address these issues adequately because the involvement of more people in this sports activity
will bring it within the bigger picture of society. Therefore, the role of participators in this sport
and their contributions to motivation will be discussed here.
In this context, a brief introduction to this sports activity should be given. Hiking has
become very popular in the USA and Canada of late. This sport is a kind of long walk mainly on
long stretched footpaths. This term ‘hiking’ is used when the participator walks through the
regions of the countryside (Ryan, 2016). On the other hand, this is called ‘walking’ when it is
done through the urban regions. This term is also used in the United Kingdom because many
people go for backpacking in the Alps Mountains. This is a kind of passion for them to go for
hiking as they say. This is also becoming one of the most favorite sports for Australians.
Therefore, it will be of great importance for the Government to consider it as a source for
physical recreation of ordinary people. People go on for long walks, and they enjoy these long

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walks for their physical enjoyment. As per the records of the Australian Bureau of Statistics, it
can be said that around 64% of the people in Australia would love to go hiking. It has also been
measured that people Australian Capital Territory have participated in this recreational sports
activity amounting to 77% of them (Abs.gov.au, 2019). Apart from that, around 72% of people
of the Northern Territory have participated in this sport as well. Both men and women have
taken part in this sports activity in an almost similar manner.
Therefore, it is quite clear that people have been mainly inspired to take part in this
program and share their thoughts on this. Numerous people took part in this program, and around
58% of the people took part in long hiking walks through parks, long hiking trails and beaches.
They have seen this as a recreational activity for both bodies and participated very often (Ryan
2016). These things provide mental and physical benefits to the hikers. This is relatively
important for both professional hikers and tourists. There are some benefits to this sports activity
and valid reasons as to why people should participate in this sports activity. Some of these sound
effects should be described in this section so readers can identify the potential benefits of this
activity (Lee, Manthiou & Chiang, 2018). Hiking plays a big part in lowering the risks of heart
disease among human beings. Apart from that, hiking also shapes and improves the balance of
human beings (Wolf & Wohlfart, 2014). The blood pressure and blood sugar levels of
participators also get better by the effect of this sports activity. Walking is mainly a weight-
bearing exercise. Therefore, it helps human beings to boost up the density of their bones. So,
their body is more strengthened through this habit. Also, people would be benefitted as they will
be able to control their weights (Singh, 2015).
Nowadays, stress is a massive problem for all human beings. This practice of hiking will surely
get rid of stress and anxiety among human beings (Lee, Manthiou & Chiang, 2018). Several

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muscles like quadriceps, hamstrings, lower legs and hips would be made stronger because of
this. Therefore, it would be of much importance to take benefits from this practice.
Consequently, it is notable that hiking is not only a leisure time fascination nowadays. It has
become quite popular in Australia as it calms down the minds of people (Collins-Kreiner &
Kliot, 2017). Hiking and trekking have become one of the significant trends in the vacation list
for tourists nowadays. The participation motivation in this nontraditional sport will have to
increase highly because of the tight schedule of people in the current times. People will have to
make the maximum utilization of this by practicing hiking (Wolf & Wohlfart, 2014). As the
urbanization is on the rise, people will like to make the best of the free areas they get. The
working schedules of people are getting tighter and busier day by day. There they will have to
make the most of the leisure time they arrive (Mulyk & Grynova, 2015).
As this is not traditional sports and no specific sports organizations operate in this sport through
group presentation, issues like gender inequality, racism, and cultural diversity are not that much
associated with it. Therefore, it is quite clear that people are becoming familiar with this activity
(Thorpe, 2016). The primary motivation for participating in this activity is to gain better
physiological and psychological momentum for the future. If they get better physical comfort,
people will learn to work more diligently and focus on their work with better motivation. Hiking
is like walking through nature, and people desire to get a glimpse of life in this jungle of concrete
because of urbanization (Collins-Kreiner & Kliot, 2017).
On the other hand, it can be said that hiking is a sport with a very minimum economic burden on
the participators. The participators will feel no physical strain, and they can choose to make their
speed faster. It is convenient in many ways as well. Therefore, it will be highly crucial for them
to get the maximum benefits from this practice (Heid, 2017).

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Hiking does not even need any equipment for trekking. Therefore, it will be necessary for
all tourists to engage and participate in this practice (Kim et al., 2015). Some significant trends
can be involved in this scenario. The tourists who engage in hiking and training generally go for
it on holidays and weekends with their friends and family members. They can go for it alone as
well (Nordbø & Prebensen, 2015). The fact of motivation comes into the bigger picture when the
hikers will be able to engage their families and friends into this matter. The hikers generally hike
a distance of about 7 to 12 miles or 11 to 19 km if they go for a half day. Otherwise, the length
will be about 12 to 20 miles or 19 to 32 km to be precise. Therefore, it will be a matter of high
physical activity if they engage in this. It will be beneficial for them, and they will feel much
better and healthier indeed (Kim et al., 2015). As a nontraditional sport, the participators will not
need any field for this sport. Therefore, they can go to the countryside and enjoy their time
through exercise and enjoyment at the same time. They must follow a route in a planned way and
reach to their destinations through walking miles after miles. They can get rid of their pressures
on their minds and feel better (Siedentop, Hastie & Van der Mars, 2019).
The densely populated cities and towns of big countries like France, Australia, United Kingdom,
Germany, and other countries have areas outside their township where people can go and enjoy
their time by hiking, taking rest in the farmhouses on the weekends and get a fresh start at the
beginning of the weak. All the benefits of hiking should be made known to these people. So,
people would be able to know how they can succeed in their quest to breather some fresh air in
this era of urbanization (Waldstein et al., 2017). Doctors or physical trainers have often
prescribed this practice to busy people in their tight schedule to practice in their free times.
However, a backdrop of this issue is the fact old aged people will not be able to do this because a
significant portion of hiking and trekking involves mountain climbing (Nordbø & Prebensen,

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2015). Therefore, it will be very problematic for those people to climb the high arduous
mountains. The professional mountaineers can do this very quickly and regularly. They can live
with a small amount of oxygen in upper regions. Therefore, it becomes quite easy for them to go
for this training and keep themselves fit all the time (Waldstein et al., 2017).
The fellow people of these hikers can become interested when they get to see that some
people are regularly going for hiking and they have a very well built (Laws 2015). Some of the
other ways of hiking are backpack climbing, cross-country skiing, and hunting. The hikers can
also opt to make some arduous adventures through glaciers and snowfields. It will refresh their
minds, and they will feel relaxed from their monotonous lives (Mitten et al., 2018). The fellow
people of these hikers will be astonished to see that they can also stay fit and do not get overtired
after walking such an extended range of area. This can only be achieved after a thorough
practice. Once when it is achieved, they will be able to live longer as the physical trainers reveal.
The average age of people will get to increase through the practice of hiking. Another motivation
for taking part in hiking is the fact that hikers will be introduced to nature amidst numerous
professional complications in their lives (Gatterer et al., 2015). Therefore, this refreshment will
provide a positive impact on the contemporary workforce as well.
Hiking is also used as an experiment for fitness among people just like other sports. In
sports, athletes have to be fit, and this is the same for hiking as well. Different countries and their
governments should put particular focus on their citizens to stay healthy all the time in this time
of pollution and urbanization (Gatterer et al., 2015). So, it will be of high importance that people
should not indulge in sitting idle at their bedrooms and spend their vacations and holidays like
that only. It is the responsibility of their organizations to convince them that they should go for
hiking as it makes the minds of those people fresh. They can get acquainted with nature as well

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through these ventures (Heid, 2017). So, hiking will make them completely new persons while
they will explore the environment in a new manner altogether.
On a concluding note, it can be said that hiking as a nontraditional sport has acquired the
attraction of several people in the world. It has become quite useful indeed. So, all the positive
things related to hiking have been discussed in this essay. It is quite fascinating that hiking has
gained a new exposure in recent times that has catered to the betterment of physical fitness of
participators. However, many people are not aware of hiking and its importance as a sports
activity. The regular practitioners will have to play the responsibility of spreading this thing all
over the world. They should make ordinary people understand that hiking has several benefits
and this will cater to the physical wellness of people. Therefore, people should also take part in
this activity by being much inspired. Some mountaineering agencies should also play a crucial
role in making the world understand its importance.

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