Backpack Weight Impacts

University of California San Francisco (UCSF)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Exertion; Excess

Treatments: Behavioral: The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04249986

2019126

Details and patient eligibility

About

Backpacking is an increasingly popular outdoor recreational activity. The base pack weight (BPW) includes gear that is not consumed or worn on the body: shelter, sleep system, weather-proofing layers and personal gear to ensure a degree of comfort and safety. As such, reducing BPW is one of the most important tasks a backpacker manages when preparing for a trip. Available recommendations for ideal BPW are currently inconsistent, lack clear parameters, and rely on anecdotal evidence. The study aims to collect field data on perceived exertion and heart rate (HR) in relation to BPW during a day-long interval of hiking. Such findings can have implications on the cost and safety profiles extending from recreational backpacking to military and wilderness rescue operations.

Enrollment: 20 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 65 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Only adult (age 18-65)
• Have gone on at least two overnight backpacking trips in the past 5 years
• Have hiked at least 8 miles in a day on one of those trips

Exclusion criteria

• Lower extremity injuries or surgeries in the past 6-months
• Daily Smokers
• Chronic medical problems:
• Hypertension
• High cholesterol
• Diabetes
• Heart attack
• Heart surgery, cardiac catheterization, or coronary angioplasty
• Pacemaker/implantable cardiac defibrillator/rhythm disturbance
• Heart valve disease
• Heart failure
• Heart transplantation
• Congenital heart disease
• Kidney disease
• Back pain

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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20 participants in 2 patient groups

The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion between 17 and 19 lb BPW

Active Comparator group

Description:

Participants will be randomized to both 17 and 19 pounds for the first hike and the alternate condition for the second hike. A random number generator will create 1 block that includes 10 participants in each block to ensure comparable numbers to subjects starting at different base backpack weight. Participants assignments will then be included in a sealed manila envelopes.

Treatment:

Behavioral: The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion

The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion between 19 and 17 lb BPW

Active Comparator group

Description:

Participants will be randomized to both 19 or 17 pounds for the first hike and the alternate condition for the second hike. A random number generator will create 1 block that includes 10 participants in each block to ensure comparable numbers to subjects starting at different base backpack weight. Participants assignments will then be included in a sealed manila envelopes.

Treatment:

Behavioral: The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion