Gesundheitspfad Wanderherz

Five selected circular hiking trails, a long-distance hiking trail and a health trail form a network of routes in the Kleiner Berg and Wellengarten forest area. The mixed forest is a relaxing refuge for sporty hiking tours, easy strolls or health walks in all seasons. For hikers and walkers, it is certainly exciting to measure their own performance. For those taking a cure, it is part of prevention or can be used to  restore fitness.

However, the following applies to everyone:
- Listen to your body and avoid overloading it.
- Start with a warm-up phase.
- Finish with light stretching exercises.

Choose your own and individual training intensity. This will optimally stimulate your metabolism and circulation and keep your heart pumping. A good rule of thumb is your personal maximum heart rate - MHF for short. Just two to three hikes of 30 - 60 minutes per week and an increase in pulse rate from 50 to 70% of your MHR will steadily improve your fitness.
An additional side effect is the healthy calorie consumption. After just one hour of walking, the body burns between 280 and 400 kcal.

The Wanderherz health trail is particularly suitable for light cardiovascular training to improve your fitness. Check your performance from time to time using the MHF by measuring your pulse manually or precisely with an electronic measuring device. If you are already in the secondary or tertiary phase of prevention, we strongly recommend that you consult your doctor or cardiologist beforehand to ensure the correct dosage of your training sessions. Of course, this also applies in case of doubt if you have other health restrictions (shortness of breath, obesity, diabetes).

MET factor: 4-5

Calorie expenditure is measured in MET. There are two definitions for MET = metabolic equivalent. We choose the simpler one:
1 MET corresponds to a calorie consumption of 1 kcal per kilogram of body weight per hour at rest. An example person with a body weight of 80 kg has a resting metabolic rate of approx. 80 kcal per hour.
10 METs therefore mean a calorie consumption of 800 kcal per hour through sport, for example. A leisurely walk is rated with a factor of 3 and a brisk hike with a factor of 4.5. Accordingly, our example person would have consumed 240 kcal after one hour of walking and 360 kcal after one hour of hiking.