Training for Everest

It’s slightly ironic that I’m writing about training for Everest as I’m doing this to procrastinate for today’s training session… It should consist of a 10km run which I’ll *likely* end up doing tonight after cleaning my room, doing my nails, washing my hair, scrubbing the floor, doing my family tree, writing emails to long lost family, twice removed… ‘Training for Everest’ is a pretty ‘hot topic’ and one that certainly deserves a proper entry in this blog as it has literally taken over about 90% of my evenings and weekends over the past 1.5 years..! * Shudder * - no wonder the highlight of my social life involves buying bags of frozen-peas from my local grocer to nurse sore joints … and, these days, having too much to drink involves being wired on orange-flavored Maximuscle viper gels rather than flaming sambukas….

As much as I complain and as much as I do often find myself regularly crawling into bed utterly exhausted I have thoroughly enjoyed my training for the adventures ahead. It’s been a tremendous commitment but has opened up a number of new doors and introduced me to some absolutely amazing, inspiring people. The changes I’ve seen in my own personal fitness have been remarkable and I have promised myself to try and maintain the same level of momentum upon my return from the mountain….

Monday evening Dragon Boat Paddle Sessions with the Hood (1.5 hrs)– in September I joined The Sisterhood. My weekly training with ‘The Hood’ has been a tremendously enjoyable experience that has introduced me to a fantastic group of women (and a few men from the ‘Wood’ side of the Hood!). At 7:15pm on a Monday evening, about 20 – 25 striking, stunning and fearless paddlers, regularly congregate on the banks of the Thames at Chiswick Boat House (near Barnes Bridge) for an evening of paddling in the Sisterhood Dragon Boat.

The Christmas Paddle

The standard crew of a contemporary dragon boat is around 22, made up of about 20 paddlers in pairs facing toward the bow (front) of the boat, 1 drummer or caller at the bow facing toward the paddlers, and 1 steerer at the rear of the boat. In our case, the drummer is generally the handsome Woody, Emma’s beautiful chocolate brown dog on the lookout for geese and ducks.

Flaunting utterly fashionable Hunter boots in an array of colors and styles, matching black Sweaty Betty leggings, soft-pink hoodies and coordinating gloves and hats these fearless women, with their perfectly manicured nails, drag down the muddy bank of the river the ‘Hood dragonboat’ and set into motion a fierce bicep and upper body workout complete with giggles and grunts. Over the course of the next 1.5 hours we race down the Thames doing our best to stay in rhythm and plough through the waves and battle changing tides.

There have been many a Monday evening as I battle the rush hour crowds of the London Underground to make training on time and wonder why I put myself through the hassle… this feeling is immediately negated the second I arrive at the boathouse and am greeted by the girls. We always have a laugh and I get so much inspiration from their positive spirits and adventure CVs which include the Marathon des Sables, the Bosphous swim, smashing the world record for dragon boating across the English Channel, completing the Great Amazon Raft Race, Venice Vogolonga, the Great River Race and numerous adventure races and triathlons. Not only are they incredible athletes, they also appreciate the importance of a good gossip, the morale-boosting power of Glee’s power-ballad rendition of ‘Journey’ and the extreme satisfaction provided by a plate of bangers-and-mash in the local pub post workout…

I’m proud to be part of the team and look forward to representing the ‘Hood on Everest and in future adventures ahead. Sweaty Betty is the kit sponsor for the Hood ensuring that we look as stunning as possible whilst continuing to take on the world one race at a time.

Climbing at the Westway

Tuesday Evening Wall Climbing at the Westway (2.5 hrs) – After returning from Everest last year I decided that it was time to increase my upper body strength in an effort to sort out my vulnerable rib cage and improve my confidence on exposed terrain. In August I began to climb at the Westway Climbing Centre. I took 4 weeks of 2.5 hr lessons with my two new climbing friends, Paul and Trevor from our leader Jerome (who I think thought of us as the three stooges). It was an excellent mental and physical work out and taught me the logic behind some of the basics that I’d picked up in previous expeditions. Paul, Trevor and I decided to continue to climb together on a regular basis with the addition of Andrew who I knew from my ’10 expedition. From that Tuesday and every Tuesday henceforth, we’ve met at the wall from 7:30pm – 10pm and try and master the 6b+ routes.

How someone can hold their complete body weight on one perfectly manicured pinky finger is beyond me… My personal best is a 6a+ which was great fun only I looked a bit like a fool as I shouted, ‘Look Andrew!!! I’m the guy from Cliffhanger!!! Hurry take a picture!!' as I slid down the wall on my face. The climbing has definitely given me more confidence on exposed terrain and has also improved my rope technique. Additionally, it’s been a great way to spend an evening doing exercise that doesn’t really feel like exercise…

Spin-a-thon at BWW in 2010

Wednesday Evening Spinning and the Dreaded Run (2 hrs) – My favorite sport, by far, is biking - whether that be road biking or mountain biking. Ever since I cycled 7500kms across Canada in 2008 (Lipgloss & Lycra), cycling has been my ‘release’. I genuinely believe that everyone has a sport that they truly enjoy and can ‘lose’ themselves in. For many people, this seems to be running… For me, it’s cycling. I can cycle for hours and hours and hours and not get tired or bored. I take immense pleasure in the ‘lactic acid burn’ phase as this generally means that I’m about to be able to eat whatever I want (full fat Starbucks vanilla latte, giant steak with mashed potatoes and pie and ice-cream for dessert… mmmm). This is why I love the spin classes at my local gym, BodyworksWest (BWW).

From 7pm – 8pm on Wednesday evenings the beats are pumping and the latest hits blast from the stereo as Lucy shouts at the top of her voice, “C’mon people! Turn up the resistance..! You can do it!! Just a little bit more!!” The trainer’s enthusiasm is infectious and I always end the class with a feeling of satisfaction and sense that I’ve had a good work out. Because I enjoy spinning so much I struggle to see it as ‘exercise’ so I force myself to walk up the stairs to the main gym for The Dreaded Run. Cue ‘mental’ pressure as I start to think of every possible excuse to try and get out of running…

I hate running. I feel embarrassed to say that because so many of the people that I consider ‘hard core’ love running… I honestly don’t understand how people enjoy it but have forced myself to do it regularly over the past 6 months as I suspect that it is good for me and is a good mental workout as I try and entertain myself for 1 hour of ‘stationary’ running… The perseverance has however paid off. I can now run 10kms in an hour and still have some energy left to do weights for an additional 30 minutes giving me about 2.5 hours of exercise on a Wednesday evening. Not bad… My only reward is the delicious pink raspberry Maximuscle Viper drink mix that I treat myself with over the course of the run. The only down side is that it’s the color of Peto-Bismol…

Thursdays 16th Centure Torture Apparatus aka Pilates Reformer & row & weights (2 hrs) – When I broke my ribs last year I consulted a number of specialists for advice about the best exercise to help strengthen my ‘core’. Everyone that I spoke to suggested ‘pilates’. I must admit, I was a bit skeptical as I entered my first class in early August. Pilates emphasizes the concepts of core strength and stabilization focusing specifically on the muscles in the abdomen, lower and upper back, hips, buttocks and inner thighs. There is a strong focus on controlled breathing and also efficient moving.

After being strapped into a ‘pilates reformer’ machine that resembled a 16th century torture apparatus complete with pulleys and levers and planks, I spent 1 hour being contorted in all sorts of positions with my legs splayed at angles that were beyond normal with my breathing anything but ‘regular and controlled’… The investment in the torture apparatus seemed ‘value for money’ as I struggled to do any sort of physical activity (eg. walking) for about 3 days afterwards. I decided to return the following week for another session of physical contortion with equally satisfying results… 6 months later and I am now officially a ‘pilates’ groupie, with ‘abs and buns of steel’. If I hadn’t booked Everest I would certainly consider heading down to the Caribbean bikini in tow…

Friday Whatever (1 hr) - Everyone deserves a break now and then and by Friday I’m generally up for a low-key evening. There are times when I feel slightly guilty about not doing a form of exercise so I’ll either do a ‘kick boxing’ class at my gym at work (this is where I try and fulfill my lifelong ambition to become a Brittney Spears backup dancer) or I’ll head back to BodyWorksWest for an hour or two and go for a run, a row or do some weights. The evening generally depends on how I’m feeling and I don’t like to over exert myself as Saturday is a big day….

Saturday Pilates, Run, Spin (3 hrs) – Even though Saturday’s are my most ‘hardcore’ day, it’s generally also the most relaxing as I don’t feel like I’m up against the clock to get to the gym on time and can eat a proper breakfast, and enjoy my workout routine. My 2nd pilates session of the week generally passes without incident as we’re contorted into weird and wonderful positions while listening to the dulcet tones of CCR or Lady Gaga on the more adventurous mornings. This is then followed by a Dreaded Run (where I often lose the will to live) after which I am rewarded by a super sweaty spinning session under the auspices of Charles and his packed Saturday morning class.

Sunday – I generally do a ‘Dreaded Run’ on Sundays as I have time to mentally prepare. I’ve also spent many a Sunday morning in a spin class followed by a session of weights. I use my Sundays to prepare for the week ahead…

This has been my routine for the past 8-ish months (!) give or take a few weekends and evenings here and there. These have included other outdoor related activities such as hiking in Dartmore, hiking in Brecon, ice-climbing in Iceland, hiking in Scotland. And of course the general ‘rule of thumb’ – the best training for Everest is climbing Everest… I learned a tremendous amount from last years experience and hope to build on that for further successes on the mountain...