Me, a mountain and a failed challenge

I want to start this entry with a quote:

„What is your job?” “Success.” – “And what are your qualifications?” “Failures.”
(Scott Sonnon)


It is just awesome having friends you can trust. Really trust.
Because trust leads to exchange of information. Through information you get to know a person. To an extent where you can assess borderline experiences/experiments beforehand, therefore modifiy them and reap the most benefits.


A few weeks ago a very close friend of mine asked me if I wanted to go on a mountain hike with him. We would take on the highest mountain in Austria, the Großglockner, 3798m high.
I was exited but the 3-4 day-long tour proofed too much for my holliday- schedule. "Well...", he said, "There is this one thing I always wanted to do...Get up and down in 24h. Are you in?".
Just a small information on the side...I never climbed a mountain. Ever. There are some bigger hills around Linz and Graz where I have been seen at the top but I never had any experience with a real mountain. You know, with a backpack, gas coocker, ropes, snow shoes, stuff like that...
I´m not into climbing that much either...

Now that you have this information about me you can guess what my answer was: "Hell yeah! I´m in!!".

Now, before you label me as crazy: Mathew and I are two of one kind. We like to get to know ourselfes, exploring where the phony exterior ends and where the real person, the very essence, this beautiful bright, energetic ocean of light is beginning. Through experiences the useless outer shell gradually gets, well, sometimes picked, sometimes torn, sometimes blown away.
Still: being save, being able to come back the next day, taking care of the man/friend next to you is important. Therefore is honesty.


We arrived at the bottom of the mountain at around 1400, after a car drive which lasted several hours and the previous night having been quite short since I was pretty nervous.
We started with a briefing of landmarks, the planned route. While changing into our gear we talked with some of the other climbers. Guys who have done stuff like this for years. When asked we told them we where about to start our trip up, leaving the guys suprised because it was about to get dark. Words like "crazy","hardcore" and "oh boy" were uttered. They silenced when being told 50% of this crazy group had never seen the top of a mountain or much of the bottom either.

We geared up, put our snowshoes on and started going up.
Most of the time we could move quite fast. If I brought one thing to the tour it was my level of fitnes.(nothing fancy as you know but no average-joe anymore either)

We ascended and after the first part which felt like a stroll in a snow- white park due to the terrain I stumbled about my main lesson from this event: I´m getting quite good at completing challenges I set for myself.
When confronted with a situation dictated by external factors, circumstances I still have much work to do.
But one thing I learned(especially when reading lots and lots of special forces soldiers, Seals,...) was quite valuable: one step at a time.


Very soon, not too far up the mountain we took a break, had a cup of tea and started to talk.
We both realized we had a bad feeling about the whole situation, about a further ascend.
Fact was, I wasn´t sure I could make it up there.
Fact was, my friend wasn´t sure he had enough capacities to take care of himself and me if something would go wrong.

At this very moment we realized something very beautiful: we really had left our egos in the cars, maybe even at home and only took ourselves and a backpack of honesty with us up the mountain. So we turned our back to the mountain and started descending.

Do not get me wrong, we failed. We set out to do a challenging task and failed. That´s it.

But this time we did not have the capacities to make it. Our at least not the capacities to deal with the consequences.
We will be back there, with more potential, both physically and mentally, and I´ll take a picture for you when I´m standing on the top of the Austrian mountain world. ;-)


Train hard and enjoy every step!
All the best,
Harry

What it takes

I met some strong guys during my short training career.
Strong meaning both physical as well as mental strength.
One can not develop one without the other.


Guys who pushed themselves through workouts who would blow an average person right off the bench, the field, the track, platform, out of the building, garage, cellar,...
Workouts fot time, reps, sets, both.
I did some things ordinary people consider crazy. Well...


One can push oneself beyond many limitations, discover new aspects during the process, right after it or even when months have passed.


Imagine loading a bar onto your shoulders with your bodyweight and go for 30+ squats...

Imagine loading the bar with 2 times your bodyweight...

Imagine sprinting 400m, all out, only to get to a station where you need to perform 10 Clean & Press with a 40kg stone. Then repeat the process several times.

Imagine running a marathon...


People close to me, friends, family, sometimes ask me "Why are you doing this to yourself? "
"Because through my workouts I develop my mind.", is usually my answer.
One person asked me once "And what happens when you are too old to do such workouts? What will you do then? Then you cannot do such things anymore..."
I thought about tis question and answered "Hoepfully when I´m at this point I wil not depend upon physical exercise as my only tool to develop my mind."
To me(!!) exercise is the best tool. Period.
To others it may be painting, singing, religion, yoga, feeding animals at the zoo, taking care of their parents/loved one/friends/...,working at an office...

To me, mental strength is the most important thing because all the physical things can be taken away from you very quickly and very easy.
When all that is left: Who will you be then.


People like my push themselves in their training, just for the sake of pushing oneself.

Still...There is one thing in common when you are training in such a way:
You can always quit. "Stop...Right know...I do not have it in me today...I´ll come back stronger the next time."
It´s ok, right?

One question haunts my thoughts, training physically, being a martial artist for several years: What if I have no choice?


What if you are in a live-or-die-situation? Two ways: forget the flight, fight or die.
Many people in history, in this very moment go through tremendous terrors due to slavery, torture, prosecution...Some will survive, some will not.


How will one react if put against a wall, left with no more than the two options? Who will fight till the end, who will give in to the illusive easy way out?

Who will be able to face any situation any fight till his end?
Who will never take the easy way out?
Who can be put against the wall and still think clearly?

Thos are questions which keep me up at night, make me do crazy things, write these blog-posts...


Now I have recieved an astonishing opportunity to ask someone who knows.
I´ll keep you posted...


Train hard and enjoy every moment!
All the best,
Harry

Still alive

I have not been posting for some time.
Do not worry... I´m still improving, learning, watching, listening and recording.
Just not putting it out into the world via this medium.


So, a sign to prove I´m alive:




An improvement to my last attempt in October.
Not too much but I´m satisfied nevertheless. 4 reps more each arm with that weight is good for me, especially since I did not use kettlebells much since october.


Train hard and enjoy each moment!
All the best,
Harry