The Hiking Engine: A Hiker's Guide to the Care and Maintenance of Feet and Legs [Paperback]

Stuart Plotkin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2001

Until a hiker injures a foot or leg--a blister on the foot, a sprained ankle, an unattended scratch that gets infected--he or she might not pay a lot of attention to the care of legs and feet. The Hiking Engine increases awareness of all that can potentially go wrong on any kind of hike, so you can avoid the worst and enjoy the best.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...invaluable. Even experienced hikers, especially those with chronic knee pain, will benefit from the suggested strengthening exercises. -- Physicians' Travel & Meeting Guide, March 2002

From the Back Cover

Whether on a day-hike jaunt or a three-month trek, many people take their feet and legs for granted - until they start to break down. Like any good mechanic will tell you, most problems result not from accidents, but rather from ignorance or lack of prevention. The proper care and feeding of your lower limbs can help avoid injury, increase stamina, and generally make hiking a lot more fun.In The Hiking Engine, you'll find invaluable guidance on picking out socks and shoes, performing pre-hike stretches, and learning how your personal biomechanics really work. Extensive first aid advice covers everything from blisters to bunions, tendonitis to ingrown toenails, sprains to heel spurs, and the kinds of injuries that can befall even the best-prepared trail tromper. The most in-depth book ever on the hiker's feet and legs, The Hiking Engine will keep you on your feet and on your way. (6 x 9, 192 pages, b&w photos, diagrams)

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Menasha Ridge Press; 1st edition (October 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0897324056
• ISBN-13: 978-0897324052
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #761,551 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for beginners, April 10, 2004

By 

Candace Scott (Lake Arrowhead, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Hiking Engine: A Hiker's Guide to the Care and Maintenance of Feet and Legs (Paperback)

I'm an experienced hiker and still found the book useful and entertaining. I didn't learn anything new, but I will guarantee you that novice hikers would benefit immensely from this. What is basic common sense to seasoned hikers may not come naturally to those just lacing up their boots for the first time. The book focuses primarily on how to keep your feet in shape during long treks and addresses such things as proper socks, shoes and lcimbing techniques. I wish the author would have addressed cardiovascular fitness more; he does mention the extreme importance of aerobic exercise as preparation, but doesn't stress that facet enough. Anyone who hikes long miles needs to be mentally and physically fit before attempting the undertaking, Plotkin tends to gloss over this and move on to other things.

Essentially the book will have limited appeal to those who hike consistently throughout the year. But if you merely dabble in the sport, or have never hiked in your life, I would heartily recommend this book. It's well organzied, well written and will hold your interest.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Dated and Weak Advice, April 11, 2011

By 

Eric Kassan (Las Vegas, NV USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Hiking Engine: A Hiker's Guide to the Care and Maintenance of Feet and Legs (Paperback)

I really admired the idea for this book, but unfortunately it looks outdated, even for the 2001 publication date. Two examples stand out. The first is the idea that the more support and rigidity a boot has, the better. Recent thought is that there is a trade-off and the increased support actually weakens key muscles and prevents the foot from working the way it should naturally work. The second example concerns stretching. The book advocates static stretching but recent studies indicate dynamic stretching is more effective and in fact safer. I don't mind the different opinion, so long as its backed with a discussion over why what the author chooses is superior, but this book doesn't offer that. Also, the book is inconsistent in level of detail - for example mentioning gaiters but not snowshoes or crampons (both of which have obvious foot implications). The book limits itself to on-trail hiking, even admonishing readers not to go off trail.

In short, this book fails to deliver enough content either in depth or breadth.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars trailman, January 22, 2004

By 

Jeff Cann (Long Island, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Hiking Engine: A Hiker's Guide to the Care and Maintenance of Feet and Legs (Paperback)

I just finished reading this book and found it to be a valuable resource for my family and the boy scout troop I belong to. The
information on hiking shoes and foot care while hiking was very appropriate to a seasonal hiker like myself. As an adult leader in a boy scout troop, I decided to maintain a copy of the book in the troop library for scouts to refer to prior to camping trips. Thanks for this well written guide.