Week 1 of 14: Ready, Set, Go

Climbing up to the summit of a 14,000+ peak is an achievable goal for most everyone. It just takes the right attitude, some fitness, mental toughness, a few pieces of gear and a willingness to have fun!

Learn as much as possible about the 14er you want to climb. The Internet has loads of great beta on routes, gear, and more. Two popular web sites are 14erworld and 14ers.com. Check 'em out for the latest on gear, 14er-isms, route info and more.

Over the next 14 weeks, we’ll focus on “training”. Tweak these workouts as needed. They are not a substitute for commonsense. This is a work in-progress and the first time I have embarked on a project of this sort for an online audience.

If you followed through on the assignment from January, then you’ve observed where your energy flows, or is stuck, in physical, emotional, mental and spiritual realms. Observe any changes in these areas as you begin to put your training into motion.

Congratulations if your house is perhaps a bit less cluttered and you feel rested. Having a comfortable organized home environment reduces stress and will support your training. Sleep, the almighty sleep. Remember to continue to get plenty of sleep in order to recover from your workouts.

Set Your Intention
Write down your goal. For me, I prefer to use BIG note cards to write out my goals. For example, you might write something like:

On or before July 15, 2008 I climb Mt. Wilson quickly and easily with two friends who share my passion for the outdoors.

Be as clear as possible in setting your intention. Be sure to include a date and what you want to feel while climbing the mountain.

The cool thing about setting your intention is that it’s your own personal beeswax, so you can make it whatever you want it to be. After writing your intention, say it out load. This affirms your intention and in a sense programs your energy fields (physical, emotional, mental, spiritual) readying them for your upcoming adventure. There are probably people at Harvard who have done scientific research on the power of language.

Week One Training
NOTE: As for physical workouts, I am assuming a novice climber, or someone without a base level of physical activity.
1. Each morning read your 14er intention out loud.
2. Wearing a 10 lb backpack, walk 3 days this week for 30 minutes. You should be able to carry on a conversation during your walks. For weight in your backpack, you can use clothes, gear, plastic milk jugs filled with water or something else. Be creative and have fun.
3. Do some basic stretching 2 times this week. It can be on the same days as your walk or on other days.

Have a great week!

14 weeks to your first 14er

Learn from a pro

How is your New Year?
Have you set some goals?
Did you write them down?

Some of my goals for 2008 involve improving my training techniques and giving to others. When people ask me for training advice I am always happy to share with them techniques and systems that have worked well for me.

One thing I’ve learned is that seeking outside advice is imperative for improving and achieving success. For example, Mark Twight recently shared with me the fact that he trains more than 500 hours a year. He re-iterated what I have always thought, that there is “no magic bullet” to endurance training. One must be disciplined and put in the hours of training, if one seeks to excel. Thanks Mark. That little pearl of insight into your training gave me a boost toward continuing with my plan for 2008.

Recently, a woman approached me after our Core Power Yoga class. She was intrigued and completely fascinated with learning more about how I balance working ~50 hours a week, motherhood, and training more than 500 hours a year. She was wondering how she might do this and begin to train for her first 14er. (I was a bit baffled and taken by surprise that someone would ask me to create a specific training program for climbing 14ers.) This woman suggested I share some of my 14er training tips on this blog.

Ok….in the spirit of "giving more" here goes…….you can get ready for a 14er in just 14 weeks. This week involves getting ready to set your 14er intention….your assignment is:
1. observe how you physically, emotionally, and mentally spend your time
2. organize/clean your house and get it in order
3. sleep more than usual each night so that by next week you are refreshed and waking up each morning feeling absolutely yummy

Have a great week all!

Going the Distance

Happy New Year all!

"Only those who will risk
going too far
can possibly find out
how far they can go."
~T.S. Eliot

2008 is off to a great start as we've been adventuring throughout Colorado and more! Laughing, loving, learning it was a wonderful gift to spend much uninterrupted time with my daughter over the past month. Her exhuberance for skiing and exploring reminded me to pay attention to the little stuff.....it's what matters.

Children seem to know that "going the distance" is possible and achieveable without taking themselves too seriously. An important lesson, no matter what one is undertaking or striving to accomplish.

Your assignment for this week is..........risk going too far.

Power and Freedom

Recently my daughter gave me a delicate wooden horse figurine, which she artfully decorated in her own style. The timeliness of this unique gift couldn’t have been more perfect.

Some believe that the horse symbolizes the energies of power and freedom. This tiny object encapsulates much of my current training. Whether taking my ice tools & crampons for a walk or scraping my skis across the shallow snowpack, it is the unrelenting sense of power and freedom that drives me to continually venture into the backcountry …. across mighty ridges …. up to and over the summits of wild majestic places.

There is a primordial significance to this time of year when darkness beckons us to contemplate …. cradle our love, ideas, passions, exuberance for family, travel, friends. It is also time to rest in order to gestate our new beginnings for the coming year. For there is much power and freedom in harboring our creative outlets beneath twinkling lights before these blossom in tandem with our mother earth in springtime.

With these gentle thoughts we bid you all a joyous and happy holiday season. We look forward to sharing our adventures with you in 2008!

Namaste.

Landscape Wonderland

“Once in his life a man ought to concentrate his mind upon the remembered earth. He ought to give himself up to a particular landscape in his experience; to look at it from as many angles as he can, to wonder upon it, to dwell upon it.

He ought to imagine that he touches it with his hands at every season and listens to the sounds that are made upon it.

He ought to imagine the creatures there and all the faintest motions of the wind. He ought to recollect the glare of the moon and the colors of the dawn and dusk.”

~N. Scott Momaday

As we prepare for our upcoming travels, the excitement seems to permeate all our activities. Today we each climbed hard. Alison worked some 5.10 routes. Then she spurred me up a 5.11+. With the right mindset, you can accomplish anything.

Have a great week all!

Running Freedom

Two years ago, I started running as a way to deal with stress, often taking to backcountry trails at night. Immersing myself within the serenity of darkness, I’d often arrive at the end of my run without much memory of what I’d just accomplished. I'm hopelessly addicted to the laser focus required of night runs. It lets my mind go to amazing places. It’s during these times that ideas flow and the dreaming-of-things-into-reality takes place. Somehow it transforms me with a glow of newness. I call this state “running freedom”. In a sense, it’s a physical mechanism to release me from the bounds of this five senses world while remaining in it.

Last night, we ran in the mountains under the brilliant moonlight. Wearing my new shoes with fresh spikes made the outing extra fun as we cruised on top of crunchy snow and over scramblie rock sections!

On the way home we witnessed a fat fox running across the road, clamping a big fluffy bunny in its mouth. Running freedom.

What makes you feel free?

B. Creative

B. Creative

Say what you mean, mean what you say
Be creative each day
Listen the Beauty of worlds unknown
Clown around: work, play, home

Love Passion, starts the heart
Where are you in this art
Do you see the inside swirls
Or, are you one who never twirls

Know that Magic everywhere
Spider buttons, dot your hair
Dream creative, magic fire
Laser laughter in the choir

Sculpture, rhythm, design and more
Lense it baby, atop the door

Viewers, voyeurs, va-va-voom
Docuventures, from Whom

Spinning, dancers
Pueblo dwellers
Spoony sculpture tethers

The Fabric Lab
For some, not all
Bright lights always call