Winding My Training Down

After the seed was planted 3+ years ago, planning began 9 months ago, and training 5 months ago I'm now only days away. I was actually due to finish my strenuous training by running a leg of the Saskatchewan Marathon this morning, but a little cold took that off the table. Better now than a week from now!

With five months of training behind me, I'm now just trekking with my pack. I'm actually at a point now where I'm a little concerned with a last minute injury, but fortunately, the real prep is done.

Now it's getting the last of the gear together, tying up all the loose ends, and getting some rest. I'll be 1/2 way across the world in no time...

Climbing and Mountain Illness Documentaries on PBS Tuesday May 13th

Tuesday is the premiere of David Breashears new documentary for FRONTLINE recounting the details of the May 1996 Everest disaster. He was filming an IMAX film on the mountain at the time, and participated in the rescue efforts.

The new film, 'Storm Over Everest' takes us back with re-enactments, interviews and more. It's available in High Definition on PBS and begins @ 7pm Saskatoon time (Shaw) but check your PBS station. If you happen to miss it, you can watch it for free online. Watch the railer below.

There is also a repeat of a NOVA program 'Deadly Ascent' which follows a group of medical experts investigating the mysteries of high-altitude illness on Denali, North America's highest peak. This is a great doc, very interesting!

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Keeping Healthy Away From Home

Never mind the animals, or the mountains, being so far from home in a country very unlike our own has it's own risks. Diseases and illnesses that we don't have to worry about in Canada can be devastating while traveling. For myself, this means a bag full of prescriptions, and immunization through vaccination.

Being that this is my first time out of Canada/USA, I've had to start from an empty plate. The International Travel Center has done a number on my limbs, all in the name of keeping my body healthy when I'm away. Following is the list of immunizations I've had in the past month:

Hepatitis A/B (Twinrix)
Yellow Fever (Required to Re-enter Canada)
Varicella (Chicken Pox)
Tetanus / Diphtheria / Polio
Meningococcal
Influenza (Flu)

Typhoid (oral, next week)

Some of these require several doses over a period of months.

The idea behind an immunization, is for the body to be exposed to foreign molecules and orchestrate an immune response. Not only can the body deal with this threat (often weakened or dead), but quickly respond if you ever run into it again (immunological memory). Now the process is not without it's side effects. The Tetanus shot kept my arm sore for days, and the Flu shot had me fevering and achy (still as I type this). All for the best though!


There are also a few prescriptions that I will be taking with me:

Doxycycline (Malaria)
Diamox (AMS Acute Mountain Sickness)
Ciprofloxacin (Antibiotic)
Tylenol 3

After speaking with a nurse @ the International Travel Clinic for over 90 minutes, discussing all of the diseases & risks in Africa, she playfully asked 'Still want to go?'

Of course !

Training Update

Well the countdown is on and instead of months, we're talking in weeks now. I'm down to about 3 weeks of serious training left before winding things down before I leave. I have upped my cardio & resistance training steadily, and will be adding a lot of hiking hills with weight as well. Gotta prep the knees for the beating they'll be taking... as best as I can in the flat Saskatchewan we all know. Finally more focus on my abs to be sure they'll be able to handle the extra weight being put on my back day in and day out.

My weight (or lack thereof) has been an issue I've been concerned with since the the first stages of planning, but I'm very happy to say that I'm up about 5lbs (2.25kg) or so up on my normal weight. This puts me right about where my target was that I had set out at the beginning... which is great! Now I'm happy to say that I'm now both bone AND muscle hah! Achieving this has been quite the challenge, and the new one is to make sure it sticks around before leaving.