Mountain Divas Banish the ‘Screaming Barfies’ with CrossFit
Winter mountain sports are literally weeks away. … Soon we’ll once again be experiencing the burn only known from skinning up a favorite backcountry run; the exceptional pump and pain known as the “Screaming Barfies” from ice climbing and the endless searching for oxygen as we skate ski behind our overly-motivated dogs.
Figure Four
Wait, we need fitness for this. …
There are precious few Divas lucky enough to live the Mountain Lifestyle full-time at altitude. Even for those of us fortunate enough to be living in the mountains, everyday life (you know, those minor things like work and family) can sometimes book-end play to the weekends. Add in the shorter days of fall nixing after-work rides and morning climbing excursions, and the activity equation continually shrinks. I also have loads of Diva friends who have a true love for playing in the mountains, but lead a life in the flatlands. How can all of us make sure we make the most of our time at play in the mountains? Well, being fit is definitely key, and that’s what Maija is going to talk about as she tells us how training CrossFit helps her be ready for her time up high.
I am well aware that my time in the mountains is precious, and so I train all year long to make sure I’m in top form when I get to head west whether it’s for ice climbing, skiing, snowshoeing, climbing or hiking (and sometimes a combination of many of these things!). In that time I’ve learned the only way to get good at hiking up and down a mountain with a backpack on is to hike up and down a mountain with a backpack on. However, for those of us who don’t have the luxury of mountains in our own backyard, there are other ways to prepare as best we can physically, and for me that’s been with CrossFit.
What is CrossFit? It is a strength and conditioning program that “delivers a fitness that is, by design, broad, general and inclusive. Amazing climbers like uber-Diva Kim Csizmazia, Will Gadd and Mark Twight, to name only three, embrace this cult-like fitness regime and see crazy results.
Kim Csizmazia
CrossFit’s specialty is not specializing.” What exactly does this mean? That with CrossFit you get to do a lot of different exercises, and almost every workout is different. CrossFit is designed to be scalable to people of all abilities, so everyone from elite military special operations units and professional athletes to grandparents and new mothers can do the same workout – just at a different load and intensity.
I’ve been doing CrossFit for more almost four years. I started when my husband bought in and set up a minimalist gym in the garage. We trained following the CrossFit main site programming. For those who aren’t familiar, the CrossFit main site posts a workout of the day (WOD) every day for three consecutive days, which is followed by a rest day (make sure to check the site even on rest days as CrossFit HQ puts up lots of resourceful articles to read).
Following the main site was at times very challenging, as many of the exercises – especially the gymnastics skills – were new to me. I spent a lot of time watching videos (also available on the main site) to learn how to do many of the new movements. There are also thousands of CrossFit affiliates across the country, and around the world. You can look for the one closest to you here on the CrossFit affiliate page. At my affiliate I finally got the coaching I needed to really start working on my deficiencies. In the past 18 months I’ve made huge improvements, especially with my gymnastics skills!
So, after all of that, why is CrossFit my training method of choice to optimize my time at play in the mountains? Because it’s a well-rounded program that keeps me in peak physical condition. I don’t have to worry about forearm pump (Screaming Barfies, as it’s affectionately known to many of us) in ice climbing thanks to the hundreds of pounds in farmer’s walks I do. I have only suffered from minimal and I mean minimal quad burn while skiing thanks to the vast amount of squatting we do – air squats, back squats, front squats, overhead squats, squats while doing a clean or a snatch – you name it, my thighs have been primed to handle anything! The movements in the gym correlate in some way to my time spent in the mountains, even if it is the sheer grit and determination (aka mental fortitude) to do a workout that’s just plain over my head (ever felt that at the top of a hill with your ski tips pointing down, or mid-way through a climb?). Thanks to my training I have a new-found mental edge, definitely hard-won but something that has proven invaluable in knowing my own true limits.
So, overall, the biggest benefits to my CrossFit training are that I am physically stronger, more confident in my physical capabilities and mentally tough. If you think about it, only one of those three benefits is physical – the other two are mental. And we all know that having a solid head can go a long way in having a safe and fun time in the mountains.
The biggest challenge I have found I still face when I first get into the mountains is one I can’t do anything about, and that’s acclimatizing to the thinner air when coming from sea level. It still takes a day or two to not feel winded faster than normal, but even then I feel like my acclimatization period is fairly short, thanks to the high level of anaerobic work I put in at CrossFit.
So, despite the fact that I’d much rather climb ice all winter to be a better ice climber, I have to rely on CrossFit to get me as prepared as I can be for my mountain opportunities. I have found it is the best way for me to specialize in not specializing, and therefore be prepared for the several multi-sport trips I make into the mountains each year as a weekend (aka vacation) warrior!
There are some other related programs out there (in lovely mountainous areas) that provide a similar exercise methodology. Mountain Athlete in Jackson, Wyo. uses some similar CrossFit principles in training professional mountain athletes, guides and ‘civilians.’ It caters to those that live and love the mountains including mountaineers, climbers, big mountain skiers, adventure racers, snowboarders, professional snowmobile racers, explorers and alpinists. Gym Jones in Salt Lake City is a sport-specific private gym created by Mark Twight with a similar “functional fitness” methodology as well. Both of these high-profile gyms offer different membership options for those looking for training plans and guidance, some of which can be done off-site, and also have a very impressive roster of athletes at the top of their sport, training regularly on site.
So, even you kickass mountain divas that are outside playing far more often than a flatlander like myself can benefit from the supplemental strength and conditioning benefits of doing an activity like CrossFit. Doing so will raise your conditioning levels, helping you to perform better in your mountain sports! And who doesn’t want to do that?
So, just between us girls, tell me – what do you do to train or stay active to ensure you are in top form while at play in the mountains?
