Author(s): JOCHER, K., JACOB, I., BREEN, S., SQUIBB, M., BLACKBURN, H., ODDY, C., FRANCIS, P., Institution: SOUTH EAST TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, Country: IRELAND, Abstract-ID: 1424

INTRODUCTION:
Hiking is a form of physical activity (PA) (Caspersen et al., 1985) that typically takes place in natural environments e.g. mountains/countryside/forests. The habitual performance of this type of PA is reported to have many health benefits (Manferdelli et al., 2019). Other than this, little is known of what defines a hiker, their injuries and behaviours. The aim of this study was to determine seasonal hiking participation, injuries sustained and footwear choices among hikers.
METHODS:
A cross-sectional questionnaire design was used to determine seasonal hiking participation, injuries sustained and footwear choices among hikers. Participants were recruited from Ireland (n = 62), United Kingdom (n = 37), United States of America (n = 18) and New Zealand (n = 6) through hiking/hillwalking organisations/groups on social media, emails and word of mouth. Two-hundred-and-eight individuals responded, of which eighty-five individuals were excluded (78x drop-out/incomplete, 7x Chronic Illness/Advised not to participate in PA by medical professional), One hundred and twenty-three were included in the analysis (Biological Sex: n= 58 male, n = 63 female, n= 2 prefer not say, age = 45 ±14.6). The survey was designed using Qualtrics TM software (version 2023) and statistical analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS statistical software package version 28.1.0.
RESULTS:
69% (95% CI: 0.59, 0.79) of hikers participated in hiking during all 4 seasons. Spring, Summer and Autumn demonstrated the highest participation rates (93 – 98% of participants) and winter had the lowest participation rates (72%, 95% CI: 0.65, 0.79).
Injury incidence among hikers is 37% (95% CI: 0.28, 0.46) in the previous 12-months. The foot (30%, 95% CI: 0.16, 0.44), knee (26%, 95% CI: 0.13, 0.39) and ankle (23%, 95% CI: 0.10, 0.36) were the most injured anatomical sites in injured hikers. Traditional style shoes were most prevalent among hikers (81%, 95% CI: 0.74, 0.88), followed by minimalist shoes (11%, 95% CI: 0.05 – 0.17) and barefoot hikers (2%, 95% CI: 0.0, 0.06), 3% (95% CI: 0.0, 0.05) of hikers used a combination of traditional and minimalist shoes.
CONCLUSION:
This study is the first to report data on seasonal hiking participations, injuries sustained and footwear choices from a sample of hikers located in Ireland, the United Kingdom, United States of America and New Zealand. This data may act as a positive first step in profiling hikers for future research in the areas of injury prevention and footwear choices.

References:
CASPERSEN, C. J., POWELL, K. E. & CHRISTENSEN, G. M. 1985. Physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness: definitions and distinctions for health-related research. Public Health Reports, 100, 126 - 127.
MANFERDELLI, G., LA TORRE, A. & CODELLA, R. 2019. Outdoor Physical Activity Bears Multiple Benefits to health and society. The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 59, 868 - 879.