ArticlePhysiological reports2021
Case studies in physiology: Impact of a long-distance hike on the Pacific Crest Trail on arterial function and body composition in a highly fit young male.
Article in Physiological reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Case study: Body composition and bone changes following a thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail by a young female adult.Physiological reports · 2026Article
- Lipid profiles and nutritional dynamics of long-distance hiking: A longitudinal study on the Colorado Trail.Experimental physiology · 2026Article
- The impact of high altitude (hypobaric hypoxia) on insulin resistance in humans.Journal of physiology and biochemistry · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is a 4265-km hiking trail that extends from the US-Mexican border to the US-Canadian border through the mountain ranges of western North America. Individuals who hike the entire length of the trail in one season (4-6 months) perform long daily exercise durations while exposed to extreme environmental temperatures, high altitudes, intense solar radiation, and the consumption of calorie-rich, nutrient-poor diets. This case study reports changes in arterial function and body composition in a subject before and after a 112-day long-distance hike of the PCT. Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation, a measure of vascular endothelial function, decreased from: 6.97% to 5.00%. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity, a measure of aortic stiffness, increased from 5.39 to 5.76 m/s. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans detected no major changes in total-body bone mineral density, fat mass, or lean mass, although there were minor, unfavorable changes in some subregions of the body. It is important for individuals completing a long-distance hike to be aware of the potential deleterious changes associated with large volumes of exercise and consuming a high-calorie, low-quality diet.
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Registered trials
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