What is the most physically challenging thing you ever did?

[James28]

Before Kili I was also toying with the distant idea of trying Everest or at least base camp. But after Kili I know deep inside me that I will die on that mountain. So after Tanzania that was it for me and mountaineering.

[OTHstrong]

As in physically? Well you'll lose some weight off course as you burn so much more calories under the effort of walking. I think I was around 215 going up and in pretty decent shape. Didn't weight myself for a day or two after coming down but when I got back to England I was just over 200 and had a few big meals inside me already.

Thing about acclimatisation is that you either have it in you, or don't. At the top or near the top I saw overweight people laughing and joking around, posing for pics, while also seeing slim, lean and seemingly in shape people suffer greatly and not make it at all all the way to the top. For me it was very hard. I'm not going to claim I have the greatest build in the world but I have clearly more muscle mass than the average person so it takes more oxygen to keep me going. On summit morning I swore I was near death. Imagine the most tired you've ever been, compound that x10 and put an elephant on your chest after all that. Afterwards I was thinking that I may have been in actual shock. But the team of porters that go with you can see when you start to struggle and walk with you, forcing you to drink as much water as you can. Some of our porters have summited over 500 times. 500 fucking times! It's incredible to do it once, never mind twice.

My tip would be to take an extra day. Do the 7 day trip. Believe me, you're going to appreciate that extra day.

Wow, incredible. Thanks man you got me sold, this would be a challenge and a half. I want to try this badly sometime in the next 5 years. So how much training would you need prior? would six months be enough? Also someone like me would probably have to lose at least 30lb of muscle right? I am 5'9 230 single digit (9%-10%) bodyfat. This is awesome bro, thanks for the info, keep it coming, nothing is better then getting info from first hand experience.

[James28]

Wow, incredible. Thanks man you got me sold, this would be a challenge and a half. I want to try this badly sometime in the next 5 years. So how much training would you need prior? would six months be enough? Also someone like me would probably have to lose at least 30lb of muscle right? I am 5'9 230 single digit (9%-10%) bodyfat. This is awesome bro, thanks for the info, keep it coming, nothing is better then getting info from first hand experience.

That I can't actually figure out. As I said, I saw overweight people breeze up there and in shape people like myself suffering greatly. One French guy in our group just came off running a half marathon in Paris (iirc), he dropped out on day 5. He was near unconsciousness and couldn't speak properly. Then we have a short and fat clearly-out-of-shape Danish girl who made it to the summit. She also suffered though. Only one guy in our group of 6 walk all the way up there without breaking sweat or breathing much faster than usual. He was built like a normal person. Only difference was that his body handled the altitudes well. Ours didn't.

Only training I done was a few walks up some peaks in Wales. Also bumped up my cardio slightly but take it from me my friend, while fitness helps, it's all down to your body being able to handle decreasing amounts of oxygen. It's a bit like steroids and body-building. How much sides you can withstand.

Might be easy for you, but probably going to be difficult. You just need to plod along. Taking your victories in little 10-20ft distances. Because I promise you that 10ft is going to seem like a fucking mile after day 5  

[OTHstrong]

That I can't actually figure out. As I said, I saw overweight people breeze up there and in shape people like myself suffering greatly. One French guy in our group just came off running a half marathon in Paris (iirc), he dropped out on day 5. He was near unconsciousness and couldn't speak properly. Then we have a short and fat clearly-out-of-shape Danish girl who made it to the summit. She also suffered though. Only one guy in our group of 6 walk all the way up there without breaking sweat or breathing much faster than usual. He was built like a normal person. Only difference was that his body handled the altitudes well. Ours didn't.

Only training I done was a few walks up some peaks in Wales. Also bumped up my cardio slightly but take it from me my friend, while fitness helps, it's all down to your body being able to handle decreasing amounts of oxygen. It's a bit like steroids and body-building. How much sides you can withstand.

Might be easy for you, but probably going to be difficult. You just need to plod along. Taking your victories in little 10-20ft distances. Because I promise you that 10ft is going to seem like a fucking mile after day 5  

Thanks again bro, I will probably die after 3 days but hey it is something that would be rewarding to try.

[funk51]

when i was 16 i had to unload a trailer of syrup drums weighing 650 lbs a piece, you had to flip them down roll them about 100 ft than stand them up again like you see strongmen flipping tires now, there was over 100 drums on the trailer.good times.

[Jadeveon Clowney]

Wow, incredible. Thanks man you got me sold, this would be a challenge and a half. I want to try this badly sometime in the next 5 years. So how much training would you need prior? would six months be enough? Also someone like me would probably have to lose at least 30lb of muscle right? I am 5'9 230 single digit (9%-10%) bodyfat. This is awesome bro, thanks for the info, keep it coming, nothing is better then getting info from first hand experience.

i weigh over 200 at low bf (don't feel threatened, i'm taller than you are) and I have had no problems at all. i won't say what all I've climbed (hi true adonis, wiggs and Alex23   but i have done some. the key is to figure out how you're going to do in high altitude.  i would go to colorado and do an easy but relatively high mountain (elbert and massive are two of the tallest in lower 48 and require no technical skill).  some people do have issues handling altitude and  lots of times people (including doctors) say it doesn't matter what kind of shape you're in, but i disagree.  the people who ive seen have issues never are in great shape.  lots of them think they are in shape, but they're not and they don't spend enough time acclimatizing.  big mountains are no joke. i train seriously for months if i'm doing one.  because of my job i  usually don't have time to acclimatize, but it's never been an issue.  another thing i have seen that fucks people up is that they do not drink enough water and get dehydrated.  also another issue with type a people is that they push themselves too hard, so their stomach shuts down while they are climbing and they can't keep fluids/food down, both of which are essential.  if you are good at listening to your body you know when you need to stop and take a breather.  the flip side is if you take too many breathers is it makes summit days hard.  lots of times weather gets bad in the afternoon and you want to be down before then.  also don't want to be coming down some dangerous ridge after dark.  

[OTHstrong]

i weigh over 200 at low bf (don't feel threatened, i'm taller than you are) and I have had no problems at all. i won't say what all I've climbed (hi true adonis, wiggs and Alex23   but i have done some. the key is to figure out how you're going to do in high altitude.  i would go to colorado and do an easy but relatively high mountain (elbert and massive are two of the tallest in lower 48 and require no technical skill).  some people do have issues handling altitude and  lots of times people (including doctors) say it doesn't matter what kind of shape you're in, but i disagree.  the people who ive seen have issues never are in great shape.  lots of them think they are in shape, but they're not and they don't spend enough time acclimatizing.  big mountains are no joke. i train seriously for months if i'm doing one.  because of my job i  usually don't have time to acclimatize, but it's never been an issue.  another thing i have seen that fucks people up is that they do not drink enough water and get dehydrated.  also another issue with type a people is that they push themselves too hard, so their stomach shuts down while they are climbing and they can't keep fluids/food down, both of which are essential.  if you are good at listening to your body you know when you need to stop and take a breather.  the flip side is if you take too many breathers is it makes summit days hard.  lots of times weather gets bad in the afternoon and you want to be down before then.  also don't want to be coming down some dangerous ridge after dark.  

Very good advise here on trying something small for starters. Now one more question, do people get sick, fever, headaches, colds etc.

[Jadeveon Clowney]

Very good advise here on trying something small for starters. Now one more question, do people get sick, fever, headaches, colds etc.

headache is the primary symptom then lightheadedness.  if you do get it then you need to go down immediately.  usually people feel better immediately.  you will see lot of people throwing up, but i think that is primarily because their stomachs are closed for business and they tried to drink/eat.  if you try a super-high mountain and stay in high altitude (18,000+) for days on end, it will undermine your system just because you're not getting enough oxygen for essential processes and your body is wearing down.

[Jadeveon Clowney]

to what james28 said - many different factors.  some people are better able to deal with altitude physiologically.  others live in altitude and so their appearance is deceptive. if you took a granny from Denver and a runner from LA and put them at 12,000 ft, granny is going to hold her own.  that said - being in really good shape is important.  also a lot of climbing is mental.

[James28]

to what james28 said - many different factors.  some people are better able to deal with altitude physiologically.  others live in altitude and so their appearance is deceptive. if you took a granny from Denver and a runner from LA and put them at 12,000 ft, granny is going to hold her own.  that said - being in really good shape is important.  also a lot of climbing is mental.

True. I grew up in West Sussex close to the ocean and from there moved to London which is maximum 30m above sea level. Hardly the ideal background for going up nearly 19341 foot in a week. I guess my body wasn't used to that type of altitudes. I know that Tour de France cyclists and Kenyan athletes in particular do tons of altitude training. Kenyan athletes dominate in long distance running. Even if they're on some kind of EPO (which all the others would be on as well), they still have a clear advantage over the others.

[BikiniSlut]

Sex with a black man.

[BILL ANVIL]

O u whoore

[The Idol]

Hardest thing I ever did was fist fight a machete weilding trannie then get through a barricaded door before the trannie came to and went after me again. Long story.

[Radical Plato]

Did the OXFAM Trailwalker a while back.  100KM hike through the Mountains.  Was pretty tough.  Harder than I thought.

Also, the Physical recovery from the pitbull attack was very painful, having your Achilles tendon severed by an angry pitbull is not fun.  It was over 6 months before I could walk again, the physiotherapy was intense.  I was living on my own at the time, so everything from showering to shitting was physically difficult.

[galain]

Most physically challenging was a ballet class I took out of interest after having a couple of dancers train with me. Ballet dancers are strong as fuck, fit as fuck (and a lot of them smoke like chimneys).

Mentally challenging was having to go against a kickboxer from Thailand after spending the afternoon watching him obliterate the rest of the fighters in our division.

[BigCyp]

Read E-Kul's posts.

[Dr.J]

FUCKING A GRAPEFRUIT MUST BE A VERY HARD THING TO DO!!

[BigCyp]

FUCKING A GRAPEFRUIT MUST BE A VERY HARD THING TO DO!!

Yes, i've always wondered how badly that would sting your japseye?

Did he use a condom?

[oldtimer1]

Going through basic for my specialized unit. It was six months long. Many days of less than 4 hours sleep. Standing at attention at 3AM in a snow storm for hours. True no rules submission wrestling. Boxing matches wasn't the toughest. It was a system of sparring where they kept changing opponents until you were beaten.  The swim part was tough for me because I suck at swimming. I made it through that part barely. Every meal was rushed. I don't know how I didn't choke being screamed at to hurry up with a fork in my hand. The 8 hours a day in a class room was hard with all the studying and tests. When you went from building to building you had to run. Marching drills were everyday. My previous training they would say do 50 push ups. Here they would say, push ups. They would time out say 20 minutes. We would look like a camel fucking a football after awhile trying to do something that looked like a pushup. They did this with everything from mountain climbers to sit ups. We ran 5 miles in the afternoon and 3 miles after lunch. In the end we were beat up skeletons but nearly 30 years later we still have a strong bond.

[BigCyp]

Going through basic for my specialized unit. It was six months long. Many days of less than 4 hours sleep. Standing at attention at 3AM in a snow storm for hours. True no rules submission wrestling. Boxing matches wasn't the toughest. It was a system of sparring where they kept changing opponents until you were beaten.  The swim part was tough for me because I suck at swimming. I made it through that part barely. Every meal was rushed. I don't know how I didn't choke being screamed at to hurry up with a fork in my hand. The 8 hours a day in a class room was hard with all the studying and tests. When you went from building to building you had to run. Marching drills were everyday. My previous training they would say do 50 push ups. Here they would say, push ups. They would time out say 20 minutes. We would look like a camel fucking a football after awhile trying to do something that looked like a pushup. They did this with everything from mountain climbers to sit ups. We ran 5 miles in the afternoon and 3 miles after lunch. In the end we were beat up skeletons but nearly 30 years later we still have a strong bond.

Ahahaha that killed me 

[Childish///AMG]

Working my full time time job for "Uncle Sam" and going to school full time. My day started at 0600 and by the time I got home from clinicals it was after midnight.

[CalvinH]

Read E-Kul's posts.

Double whammy when shitzo is posting in the same thread.

[freespirit]

Climbing the Pinnacles in Mulu, Borneo, was a nice cardio workout.

[Thick Nick]

1997 AAU Raw National Championship with a bad umbilical hernia... I duct taped a super ball over it with the ball pressing it back into my gut and put my belt over it for my lifts. It was painful as all fuck... But I got through the day. I missed a shot at the world championships by 5 lbs. on my total. I blamed the injury. Man was that a bitter pill to swallow.

[Dr.J]

Yes, i've always wondered how badly that would sting your japseye?

Did he use a condom?

RAW!!!