That's what I've been doing this week. Two at the gym, two walking the dog. And the two days at the gym were more than three miles--I've been setting the "personal trainer" mode to run a 5K, and then there's a cooldown at the end, so it ends up being more like 3.4 or 3.5 miles. I've also been incorporating more hills--the 5K mode does that automatically, but when walking Davey I've been taking a route that goes into the hillier parts of Catonsville. Not that there's a lot of them, but I do what I can. In spite of this, my weight has gone up to 138.2. Not gradually--it hit that on Wednesday, so I think Tuesday's 137 had more to do with Sunday's stomach bug. Today I'm going to try to get to the gym again, but might not make it. We've got commencement this afternoon and I'm scheduled to work from three to five at the alumni table. In the rain. Fun.
The other thing I've been doing this week is reading about Mount Everest. There was a documentary on Frontline about the 1996 disaster, and the Washington Post followed up with a chat with the filmmaker. In the course of the chat, this guy said something to the effect of "if you can run ten miles, you can climb Mount Everest." Geez, why do people have to say things like that to me? I could run ten miles if I worked at it a bit. Therefore, I could climb Mount Everest! Wow! I could climb Mount Everest. How cool would that be? But of course what he meant is that it's not an especially technical climb. You just need a decent level of fitness and endurance to do the climb. What'll kill you is the altitude. High Altitude Cerebral Edema. Low oxygen. Blinding sun. Oh, and the occasional freak storm off the Bay of Bengal. Plus, you fart a lot at those altitudes (which, oddly, doesn't make it into these documentaries). And that doesn't even get into the insanity of creeping along a knife edge ridge at 29,000 feet. I'd rather row a boat across the Atlantic, thank you very much. Or ski to the North Pole. I've decided that any insane activities I take on from now on must meet the minimum standard that if I get into trouble, a burly guy with a rope and a helicopter can save me. That just won't happen on Mount Everest. I'm not sure where this puts my Antarctic ambitions--there was that story a couple of years ago of the scientist who needed medical treatment who couldn't be rescued because it's just not possible during the winter there. Maybe I'll just do the usual cushy cruise ship in the summer when I'm 67 years old and retired.
But it's an interesting question--why are there certain types of people in the world who just like to do insane things? Not just mountain climbing, but any sort of activity that pushes your mental and physical limits. Some people seem to be attracted to those things, and some people are perfectly content to not really push anything. I think we have a blog full of people in the first category. I think any one of us, given the opportunity, would want to at least TRY to do something difficult and out of the ordinary. Like touring India by train. Or joining the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. Or working on a living history farm. Or moving north of the Arctic Circle in February (with three kids no less!). At the gym on Monday there was the usual bunch of women coming out of the pool and they were talking about Burma and China, then talking more generally about Asia and one of them said something about not having any desire to go to that part of the world. Then a couple of them agreed that maybe Japan would be o.k. And one person mentioned how she would never in a million years go to India. They all agreed. And I was listening to this thinking "I'd go to any of those places. Tomorrow if someone offered." There are only a few places anywhere in the world where I just wouldn't set foot, and that has more to do with the possibility of getting shot than anything else. I'd go to the base camp for Mount Everest. Tomorrow if I could.
4 comments:
I have tried Jesuit Volunteer Corps and it sucked.
There's Peace Corps. I hear that's great if you'd like a 7-foot intestinal worm. A great for weight loss but otherwise unpleasant.
I'd consider Everest if I had $50K or didn't think my brain would explode.
I have gone whitewater rafting a fair number of times on some difficult rivers and I dig it. It's scary and thrilling.
I would probably consider skydiving.
As far as travel goes, there are so many places in the world that would be great to check out.
Mostly it's about having the money to schelp off on some of those adventures. My list would be long if I did.
Also, it's a good thing you're doing those walks. But you don't really have a choice because your personal trainer, Davey, isn't giving you one.
Eventually it will add up to weight loss. You're within 3-8 pounds of your goal so that's pretty good. But that's a tight margin. All you can do is keep up what you're doing and, if you can, get to the gym to keep your body guessing. i.e. I've done a mini-triathlon where I do 10 minutes each on three different pieces of equipment. (treadmill, elliptical, bike) I've found that gives me a great workout. You can also try intervals. I'll e-mail you a routine or post it here from my fitness book I follow. At this stage you've got to play tricks on your body to lose. I find intervals to be great.
You know how Daniel is a Theoretical Smart Person? I think that is what we are Theoretical Adventurers. We are fasinated by the IDEA of doing extreme things - we go so far as to research and plan adventures - but when it comes right down to it we just don't want to go through the pain and suffering. That is why we are perfectly comfortable with a vacation that might NOT include a 5 star hotel and fancy restaurants (i.e. tree houses in Turkey). But we have ALWAYS been like this. Remember planning to walk from Portland to Portland? I think that was partly why we ended up camping in the wilds of Newfoundland in 1982. Seriously - how many 13 year olds can make that claim? We come by it honestly though - Dad is the same way. We have seen the picture of him spulunking. I always planned to cross the Artic circle in Alaska - but I will settle for Norway. We are like my Rowboat Boy that way - we just want to be able to say we have done it.
I would DEFINITELY row across the ocean before I make that final assent on Everest. Seriously - walking a knife edge - and it isn't SHORT - at 29,000 feet just ain't right. The air isn't quite all there up that high. I don't fancy the idea of anything that requires a breathing apparatus for an extended period of time. Why do you think I quit smoking?
That's it! We're Theoretical Adventurers. Theresa (Betty) and I planned a bike trip to the Eastern Shore when we were 12. I had the route all worked out and everything. But we knew we wouldn't be allowed to get away with it until we were at least 16, and by then we had jobs and activities and so on. I'd totally go on any of these adventures in a heartbeat -- if it didn't mean having to have the money for it and having to miss work, not to mention dragging kids along. And every year I think about the Appalachian Trail -- but, realistically, I can't stand gnats in my face and mosquitos on my legs.
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