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We have had many dogs in our day, and we’ve always been advocated of bringing them outdoors so they can experience as many of the adventures that we do. Whether it’s running, hiking, biking, SUPing, or even just some relaxing camping, it makes it just that much better with your adventure dog by your side. These are some of the tips we’ve learned from experience can keep your adventure pup as happy and healthy as possible!

1. Don’t Cheap Out on Dog Food

It falls within the theory that we say with our own bodies, that the quality of nutrition you put in will be correlated to the quality of output the body can generate. There are lots of great dog foods available out there, but there are also LOTS of low quality ones. If you’re looking for the best fuel for your adventure dog and you’re know sure which ones are good, we’d recommend finding a local pet store that seems to really know their stuff (avoid the big box places like Petsmart) and ask them for some guidance. We’ve had great success with some of our dogs feeding them Orijen and Acana (sister companies I believe), and recently we’ve switched Ndeze over to a newer company called GO, who make food specifically for highly active dogs!

We also supplement Ndeze’s regular food on days of higher levels of activity by either adding some fish oils on top of her kibbles, mixing in some wet dog food that’s a bit higher in cals, or simply giving her a peanut butter filled Kong to snack on.

 

2. Invest in quality gear for them

They’re trying to keep up to the high performance training you might be doing (or any training really) so we always recommend to get the best quality gear for your adventure pup, so they stay healthy and happy. A couple that would be good things to consider would be;

1) A good harness for them, no matter of their size – reason for this is even if they have a thicker neck, by the time the speeds increase to running speed, a jolt on the leash can really start to cause harm to their neck. Hands down the best harness’ we’ve ever used are made by a Finnish company called Hurrta (the simple one we use and love with Ndeze is their padded harness, though we’re interested to try their new active harness!)

2) Running leash – for similar reasons to protect them for higher speed jolts on the leash, running leashes simply have an elastic component to them that allow them to stretch. We use one from Ruffwear and it works great.

3) Winter coat – find a good quality one that won’t chafe as your dog starts to increase their mileage.

Lots of other items to consider depending on your activity of choice; maybe a flashing light for them to wear at night, a reflective vest for night time runs/walks, an orange vest for out in the forest, lifejacket, and the list goes on.

 

3. Understand the Differences in Physiology

Dogs are very different from humans anatomically, so you should be aware of some of these differences as you start to push your dogs physical limits. Dogs run more in spurts with rests here and there rather than a steady pace. So if you leash up your running dog and head out the door for a steady 10k run, that might push them for too long that they can’t keep up or catch their breathe, and even make them start to fear or not enjoy running. We aim to keep our on-leash runs a bit milder and shorter (1ok max and no more than 80%), then scale up a bit whenever we go run trails in the forest somewhere that she can be off leash (Ndeze can handle a good 15ish km run when she’s free to run however she wants. That’s a big difference!).

 

4. They Don’t always understand “It’s only one more mile”

Towards the end of a workout (run, bike, hike, etc) you might feel the urge to hold your pace or even step it up a bit. That’s a very human trait that has been programmed into our heads. Try not to let that forget about your dog who’s along for the ride and might be feeling tired. They don’t understand that they’re almost done, so just hang in there. If your adventure dog is looking tuckered out, you might have to check your own agenda and take it easy until the finish line. Best to keep your dog healthy and happy for all the workouts coming in the future.

 

 

5. Flea and tick meds are a Must

An active adventure dog will likely not only be coming out on the trails with you, but will probably venture off the beaten path more than we ever could imagine. As they push through all that thick brush, the chances for picking up flea’s and ticks are super high. So if you live in areas where these are present, do your dog a favour and get them some meds to help fight these off. And even if you’ve used these preventative measures, we still highly recommend that when you get home you check for ticks and other bugs, as well as any scraps or bumps they may have acquired on your adventures.

 

6. Wildlife

This is a tough one, because there is no easy way to train your dogs behaviour around a bear or snake. It’s something you just have to be aware of in your adventure locations. Know what wildlife you may come in contact with, and do some research for how to react if you run into one on the trail, or care for your dog if they have a confrontation.

Real Life Example: While hiking one afternoon, we came across the biggest pissed off rattlesnake either of us had ever seen. Somehow Ndeze snuck by it and was now on the other side of it from us. The “Oh sh*t” moment was that we never trained her to “stay over there away from us..??..??” so her reaction to us yelling at her to stay there, or pointing to go to the side, was to walk up and sniffed the rattlesnake. She was definitely within easy striking range, but I think the snake was focused on the two yelling humans, that Ndeze managed to sneak by unharmed. On our walk home, we realized we didn’t have any clue what we would do if Ndeze was bit by a snake.

–> Learn from our mistakes, do your research and prepare as much as you can before you hit a situation like this.

 

7. You’re dog won’t know when to carb load or rest up for that long Saturday run

As smart as they are, domesticated dogs can’t exactly make the schedule, you do. So if you’re planning for a big adventure the next day or that afternoon, think about your dog the same way you would think about getting yourself prepared. Feed them a bit extra that morning, make sure they have lots of water available to keep hydrated, keep the prior days exercise pretty light for them. It’s funny to think about but put yourself in their shoes (figuratively) for one second, every time you put them in the car, they have almost NO CLUE where they’re going. We’re so fortunate that just go with the flow with a smile on their face, but do what you can to help make sure they’re as prepped as you are for the adventure ahead.

8. They might need a rest day when you don’t

This one is pretty obvious, but always respect that your dog might need to take a day to rest, even when you were planning a workout. They are obviously loyal animals that will probably suit up and push through the pain if you bring them, but if you notice a low energy or an unmotivated dog one day, they might just need a bit of rest.

 

9. Plan in some Dog Fun

Sure the outdoors is a haven for dogs as much as humans, but plan out some fun times for them along the way; bring a toy, stop in the dog park, let them jump in the water. It’s amazing how much of an energy boost they can get from a bit of fun!

If anyone has any tips they want to share on how you keep your adventure dog running at max capacity, we’d love to hear them!:)

Ultra Mel & Jon

We’ve been using the Monkii Bars ultra-portable bodyweight training device for a few months now and have really found, among all their benefits and features, their versatility to be what serves us the most.  Always wanting to find new gyms out in nature and frequently wanting to workout while travelling, have made the Monkii Bars incredibly useful for us.  Now we could go on all day about every detail in a super nit-picky review, but we just want to touch on the aspects of this piece of equipment that affect us the most, being ultra marathon runners, yoga and acroyoga practitioners and world travellers.

 

PRODUCT UPDATE: Since writing this post, Monkii Bars 2 has been released, and they are a serious improvement on the incredible originals. Shop Monkii Bars 2 Now and get 5% OFF

Monkii Bars – Technical Specs

Just so you have a good idea of what we’re talking about.  The Monkii Bars are a pair of super lightweight suspension style system, that act similar to a pair of gymnastic rings, for bodyweight training.  They would be almost like an incredibly lightweight TRX system.

The bars themselves are 8 inches in length, weigh less than one pound as a pair, but they are strong enough to hold up to 220 lbs.  How can something so lightweight be so STRONG?  Monkii bars are made with some incredible materials, including hard Maple wood for the handles, Spectra materials in the line, and aerospace aluminum for the attachment hardware.  The lines that come standard with each pair of Monkii Bars is approximately 18 feet, making it extremely versatile to do all kinds of exercises, attached to all kinds of things!

 

 

Monkii Bar Pro’s

Compact Design

The technical specs above give you an idea of how lightweight the materials these bars are made out of really are.  But the beauty part of them is the entire line and attachment piece stuff into the handles themselves, so when all packed up you have to 8 inch handles!  These are super easy to carry in your hands as you run, toss in a pack, and of course pack into a suitcase for travel.  They also come with a small piece that attaches the two while being stored/carried to help keep them together.

Simple Setup and Take Down

The attachment piece of hardware can be a bit unique if you are used rock climbing hardware, but like anything new it only takes one or two times before its almost second nature to it.  The instruction card that comes in the box gives some super easy to follow instructions that get you setup in just a few minutes.  Now that I understand how the mechanics of the attachment piece work, and I’ve set up and taken down our Monkii bars a bunch, it will usually take me between 3-5 minutes to set the bars up to be ready for a workout.

Versatile

The one thing that stands out with the Monkii bars when you compare it to things like gymnastic rings or a TRX system, is their simple versatility.  Rings are designed to be used a certain way.  TRX you have to set up your anchor and can only attach to that.  Monkii bars you can literally wrap that line around anything you can think of then hang, pull or drag until you’re done training.  We’ve obviously attached it to high hanging poles and tree limbs, we’ve used the door attachment which makes it easy to hit an indoor workout, we’ve strung it to stairwell railings, we’ve hung it off a boardwalk and propped out feet up on the railing up the boardwalk to get a bit more difficulty in the workout, we’ve even wrapped the line around a big log to drag it along the beach.  I’ve seen some of the wild Monkii Ambassadors rig up huge boulders to do farmers walks.

And I know what you’re thinking, if this thin little line is being dragged and strapped to so many things, won’t it break.  Well right out of their websites FAQ; “Our Spectra® Line is insanely durable and strong. However, we’re certain that some of our users will be wild enough to wear down the line. If this happens, we have you covered.”  So if you ever do break the line, it will be replaced free of charge!

 

Monii Bar Drawback

As we mentioned above, we like bringing our bars with us on runs so we can find something to strap onto along the way, and get a bit of calisthenics worked into our workout. With the bars taking 3-5 minutes to setup, it creates a bit of a downtime, allowing your heart rate to drop down. This might be good to build up some energy for your bar workout, or bad because now you have to get your heart rate back up. Small thing that really has no easy fix, and no other product can really handle this issue, but just one thing we noticed.

 

Would We Recommend Monkii Bars

Whether you are a big calisthenics fan, an endurance athlete looking for some fast and light ways to keep muscle mass balance, a big traveller who is always on the go and living out of a suitcase, or even someone who just doesn’t like going to a public gym, the Monkii Bars would suit you well!  They have created a super innovative product to make fitness simple and accessible for everyone, no matter where you are, and the makers themselves are great people who really believe in their product and what it can do to the fitness industry.  If you feel like giving them a try, we’ve dug up a promo to get you all 5% off!! Get your set of Monkii Bars

 

The two of us have been running in minimalist footwear for many years now, and the vast majority of the miles we run are in running sandals made by Xero Shoes. Two of our favourite are the simple DIY Xero Shoe, likely the closest you will ever come to running barefoot, and the newest of their sandals the Z-Trek and Z-Trail, which are both a bit more robust for technical running or hiking. There have always been certain circumstances which prevented (or at least made it difficult) to run in sandals. Whether it was training in the cold Canadian winter, extremely muddy training, or some intensely technical trail where we felt we needed a bit more protection for our feet.

Well we’ve been asking (and let’s be realistic, many people have been!) and Xero Shoes has finally released their first performance shoe called the “Prio” and we’re going to share some of our thoughts on them.

 

We’ve had our Prio’s for about a month now, have put quite a few miles on them including big ascents and descents, muddy runs, rainy runs, outdoor agility cross training workouts, so in our minds, have got a really good feel for their strengths and weaknesses.

 

Prio Pro’s:

• The overall FIT

  • Stating the obvious, they have a nice wide footbed, a true zero drop sole, and no unnecessary arch support, meaning your feet will feel as comfortable as they are when barefoot. The thing we noticed though, that blew us away, is just how well the shape and fit of these shoes have been designed to give you all the room you need to move freely, but don’t allow your feet to slide around when going up or downhill or running along technical tracks.

• Durable but Flexible materials

  • You might hear other shoe companies promoting their zero drop shoes with widefoot beds, but let us be the ones to tell you the biggest difference between them and the Prio’s. The other brands shoes are made of rigid materials that will feel like boxes on your feet. Don’t believe us, we’ve been getting holes in our socks wherever our foot toes touch the inside of the shoe. That to us doesn’t seem at all like a shoe that moves WITH your feet. They’re containing them, and therefore restricting them. The Prio’s feel like a kick ass pair of socks because they are so flexible.

• Super Breathable

  • We started wearing the Prio’s during the melting of all the winter snow, meaning it was a time when the trails are muddy and wet. We noticed how breathable the Prio’s were, first when we kept getting out feet wet on the mucky trails, but noticed our feet were drying up faster than we expected. This helped a ton to prevail blisters from forming (even though with how well these shoes fit and flex with us, we’ve never even experienced a hot spot!). However, now that we’re starting to see warmer weather, we’re liking these shoes even more for how cool our feet stay during runs. This was one thing that we HATED about wearing shoes, is how your feet start to burn up and throw off your mindset.

• Traction without bulk

  • The Prio’s use the same chevron-like tread on the bottom of the soles as all the Xero Sandals, and we put it to the test during a technical and very muddy 50k race in Washington. Not once did I feel that the Prio wasn’t giving me enough traction. For being an extremely lightweight sole and overall shoe, it’s quite impressive that they have the same level of traction as some of the bulkier trail shoes with “gnarly” treads.

•  Affordable
  • The price of shoes seem to be rising all the time, so having a performance running shoe for under $100 is almost unbelievable. At only 89.99 (if Xero Shoes isn’t running a sale!) you almost can’t go wrong buying a shoe that will strengthen your feet and look pretty badass! Not to mention your 89.99 will go so much further than other shoes. While other shoe companies are recommending you switch out your shoes every 300-500 miles, Xero Shoes offers a 5,000 mile warranty on their soles! That’s not a typo, a FIVE THOUSAND mile warranty!!! The “price of shoes” no longer has to be a limiting factor to your training.

 

Prio Con’s:

• They are SHOES

  • Although this is obvious, and a pathetic topic to label as a “con” the fact that the Prio’s are a performance running SHOE, means they will catch rocks, will keep your feet wet for longer after a water crossing, will have more contact on your feet to possibly cause blisters. This is all comparing them to a running sandal though, and not to any other shoe.

• Limited Traction on Extreme Terrain

  • Even though I’d rate their traction as pretty stellar, the fact that the treads are “minimalist” in nature, means if you were needing to trek through thick mud or deep snow, you might be better off with something a bit more gnarly on the bottoms.

 

Who would the Prio Minimalist Shoes be perfect for?

Runners and walkers (obviously!) —> These are top notch running and hiking shoes

Crossfitters or Gym-goers –> With the Prio’s being zero drop they are great for stability during cross training workouts

Travellers –> Lightweight and easily packable, and you can use them for just about anything along your travels.

We probably don’t have to even say it, however, if anyone asked us if we would recommend these, we would tell them we already have! Many of our friends, family, fellow runners, or social media followers have ordered themselves a pair and have told us they’ve been loving them. So if you’re looking for a new shoe, and the Prio’s are sounding like a good fit (get it!) we’d say to give them a try. They really are as awesome as all the review and promotions are saying they are.

Run free!

Ultra Mel and Jon