Why I'm Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro
Next month, I’ll be flying to Tanzania, Africa to begin the adventure of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro (affectionately called Kili) with my husband and two friends. When we booked the trip in February of 2023, I couldn’t contain my excitement and shared this trip in any context that was remotely related. When I would tell people of our plan to climb Kili, I got a mix of responses, and still do, but the most common one was a question - “What made you want to do that?”
The short answer to that question is because our friend Kim asked one day if we wanted to do it and we said yes. It was a less than 5 minute conversation that launched us into preparing for this incredible physical and mental journey. It didn’t feel like an irrational or impulsive decision - it felt perfectly timed and meant to be.
Now, the long answer to that question has taken shape over the past year of planning, training, researching, and learning. I’ve only been to one country in Africa (Namibia) and up until this point that time remains the most incredible trip of my life. The people, the animals, the food, the landscape…everything about Namibia has stayed with me almost two years after the trip ended. So when the opportunity to go back to Africa came by, I didn’t give it a second thought past YES.
The first elephants we saw in Namibia. July 2022
Kili Calls
I’ve been asked whether climbing Kili has been on my bucket list or if it’s something I’ve always wanted to do. It may surprise many that the answer to both of those questions is no. I don’t keep a bucket list (my opinion on bucket lists are for a different post) and while I’m always up for new adventures, I can’t say that I had Mount Kilimanjaro in my sight. I’ve only been interested in hiking for about 6 years and gotten more serious about it since moving to Colorado almost 3 years ago. If you would’ve asked me a couple years ago whether I’d ever climb Kili, it would’ve been a strong maybe at most.
I may not have always been a hiker, but now my weekends usually look like this. Taken on the Lake Dorothy Trail and Arapahoe Pass. October 2023
The only reason I was open to this trip was because of the personal growth I’ve immersed myself in the past couple of years and how much I’ve grown physically, mentally, and emotionally. I’ve been working on myself to be open to new adventures, see the world with a more positive light, and focus on saying YES. If you’re still wondering why would I spend all the time, money, energy, and focus on exercising for 7 days straight? The answer to that is a two-parter: challenge and opportunity.
Challenge
Climbing Kili will be the most physically demanding challenge I’ve ever accomplished. I’ve never trained for anything so intentionally, and that includes when I was a competitive athlete (sorry, coaches). I’ve had to choose what I want most (summitting Kili) over what I want now (skipping a hike, alcohol, unnecessary spending, so many things) over and over again. I’ve challenged my ability to prioritize and commit to things I say I’m going to do. I’ve challenged my ability to stay focused during workouts and push myself harder. I’ve challenged myself to get my mind right as this adventure gets closer and closer. I’ve been challenged at every turn, and while I’ll be the first to say I haven’t always succeed in the moment, I’ve never backed down.
Opportunity
How often do you get the opportunity to climb the world’s tallest freestanding mountain with your husband and two dear friends (one of which I met in Namibia!)? The answer is very rarely. I knew this was the right time in my life to seize this opportunity. My focus on growth and expansion the past couple of years has prepared me for exactly this type of opportunity, and I know I will bring so many lessons and stories back to share with my coaching clients. By seizing an opportunity to get out of my comfort zone, I’m expanding myself to a place where I can help others get out of theirs. Not to mention the opportunity to experience a new culture, new traditions, new food, new animals, and a new country
Physically Preparing for Kili
After people ask why I’m climbing Kili, the second question is usually “How do you train for something like that?”
Reading about as many people’s experiences climbing Kili as I could find, which was a lot, I dove into other people’s packing lists, training plans, do’s and don'ts, mistakes, successes, and more. And while a lot of people said they didn’t start training until 2-3 months out from their trip, I kicked it into high gear right away at the one year mark.
Kili is not a technical hike, which means you don’t need helmets, ropes, axes, or mountaineering equipment to summit. Kili is essentially a very long, very steep hike where the goal is to summit the world’s tallest freestanding mountain at 19,341 ft above sea level. The route we chose to climb Kili requires 7 days of hiking, with thousands of feet of elevation gain every day, sleeping in tents, and everything else that comes with living outdoors.
My training for Kili started by going to OrangeTheory Fitness 4-5 times a week and a hike on the weekend. Then as we got to the 6 month mark, we increased the intensity of the weekend hike and I traded some OrangeTheory HIIT classes for a weightlifting class. I began honing in on my leg and core strength, focusing on squats, lunges, step ups, and planks. After Thanksgiving was over, my husband and I committed to two trainings every weekend. The first being a “home loop” where we put 20-25lbs in our backpacks, suit up in our hiking gear, and walk the neighborhood for about 8 miles. The goal of this training is miles and time under tension. The second training is a proper hike out in the Colorado wilderness, where we typically find a hike with at least 2000ft of elevation gain and clocking in around 8 miles. The best way to prepare for a tough hike is to hike! And we’re very grateful to be living and training at high altitude (over 5200ft), which is a huge benefit to us for this adventure.
Summitting Grays Peak at 14,275ft. September 2023
Starting January 1, with so many others, we also chose to stop drinking alcohol until after we get off the mountain at the end of February. More and more we’ve realized the effects alcohol has on our moods, bodies, sleep, and minds, and they’re not positive effects. Having a drink is honestly not worth the literal and figurative headache accompanied by mental fog. (Side note, is this what maturing feels like?) So we cut it off in order to get our bodies to a prime state. It’s not a choice for everyone, but hey, neither is climbing Kili.
My confidence really skyrocketed when we had a crazy cold front come through Colorado with negative temperatures over one weekend. The weekend is when we do our training, and the cold wasn’t going to stop us. After all, there are glaciers on Kili - it’s going to be cold - and we can’t bail on the side of a mountain just because we’re a little chilly. So we bundled up, got out our Hot Hands, and ventured into the -9° F weather for our “home loop”. We learned a lot about our gear, how to layer properly, and I learned that putting warmers in your sports bra is a total game changer. After a second hike at 0° F, we were layering better and figuring out how to best function with our giant mittens. Confidence soared, my mindset leveled up, and true excitement began pouring in.
Hiking in Boulder, CO. It may be 0° F, but our red faces say our gear keeps us nice and toasty. January 2024
Mentally Preparing for Kili
An overwhelming agreement from all the blogs and videos I watched was that Kili is a mental game just as much as a physical one. Yes, it is physically demanding and I know my body will be tested in terms of endurance and strength, and pushed to many of its limits. The tougher part to train is the mind. What your mind thinks, your body will follow. Have you ever thought to yourself, “I can’t do this, this is too hard” only to find your body agreeing with you and stopping? Our minds are where it all begins, and where it can all stop in times of struggle and stress. I have some mantras, some training from Tony Robbins, and my ongoing commitment to my personal growth as a solid foundation. I’ve started curating a playlist for summit day if I need it, because music has such power and I can feel my energy changing when I hear the right song. I’m preparing to be on my own team, to set myself up for success, and I know that starts with what I tell myself every single day - I will summit Mount Kilimanjaro.
I won’t lie - I struggled with my strong mindset in preparation for Kili last year. For a month or so, I kept thinking about what would happen if I got altitude sickness, or if I couldn’t make it, and I started seeing myself defeated and not making it to the summit. I let those mind gremlins consume my thoughts and it showed. And I’m a mindset coach after all! This is proof that even professionals trained to coach others on mindset and habits can have bad days, too. So what did I do to flip my mindset? I pushed the mind gremlins out and started visualizing myself at the summit. I started seeing myself succeeding, smiling with my husband and friends, being supported by our guides and porters, and having the absolute best time of my life. I started seeing the successes and the opportunities for joy instead of the very small potential of failure. Isn’t it interesting how we can take something so exciting and fulfilling and push ourself to find one teeny little negative to focus on instead? We’ve all been there. Things are going so well that you have to find something wrong in order to bring you “back to earth”. The brilliant Brené Brown has labeled this as “foreboding joy”. Look it up.
More To Come
I’ve been training for a year in preparation for this adventure. Now there’s only days between now and when we board our first flight, and I’m not stopping to rest quite yet. There are still hikes to take, workouts to accomplish, and plans to make. So, these last couple weeks before the trip I’m focused on a few things:
Continuing my training with OrangeTheory and hikes up until the day before we leave.
Practicing packing the bag my porter will carry to ensure it’s at or below the KPAP required weight limit.
Be present each day, soak in the preparation, and trust that I’ve done all I can do to prepare for this climb.
Remind myself every day that I will summit Mount Kilimanjaro.
There will be more posts about Kili coming, including ones about the gear I used, the cost breakdown, and of course my takeaways after it’s all done. For now, send good wishes, positive vibes, or whatever support you can our way. I’ll see you on the other side.