Health & Fitness
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Fasting: Critical for Weight Loss
Photo: Pronghorn Peak from Bonneville Pass 5 days into an 8 day through hike in the Wind River Range, WY. At age 65 made possible by strength training, interval training and intermittent fasting. Mark was frustrated. He was out of shape, thirty pounds overweight and pre-diabetic. He came to me for strength training and help…
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Pain: The Body’s Call to Action
Photo: Credit Paul Gardner 2009. The view from Jackass Pass looking back at our rock climbing route which ascends directly up the classic 1200 foot Northeast Face of Pingora in the Wind River wilderness, Wyoming. Note my knee brace. Six weeks after our trip I had a total knee replacement. It was a memorable, but…
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What I learned this Week: Memory: How It works, Why it Changes with Age, and How to Manage that Change
Photo Charlie Markusen on a memorable pitch: The Window, Direct Petzold Ridge, Grand Teton, August 2018 Do you forget where you put your car keys? Mixed up the names of your kids? Last summer backpacking with my daughter in the Jim Bridger Wilderness I stopped to check my GPS. I resumed hiking, but left my…
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A Purposeful Life: Training for Sport, Adventure and Life
Photo: A purposeful life backpacking in the Escalante Wilderness. Credit: Paul Gardner, 2019. The names on the map tell stories: Scorpion Gulch, Deadman Ridge, Carcass Canyon, Fifty Mile Cliffs, Rattlesnake Bench and Little Death Hollow. This is the Escalante, three million acres of National Monument and National Recreation Area in Southern Utah; among the most…
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Keeping it Simple: Nutritional Supplements
Featured Photo: The author keeping it simple: no motor, no gas flying his paraglider a mile above the fields of Western Minnesota. The fifty plus year old man standing in front of us demands attention. We listen spellbound. With square jaw, close cropped grey hair, and bright eyes he is preaching the benefits of nutritional…
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When Muscles Lock: Understanding and Preventing Muscle Cramps
Featured photo: Fertile ground for muscle cramps… high intensity criterium racing. Bent over our handlebars, hearts pounding, the spectators on the shoulders are a blur. There are four of us in the lead breakaway pack; our bicycles inches apart. Seven hundred yards ahead is the finish line for the 2020 Minnesota Senior Games Men’s 40…
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The Long Way Back: Recovering From Traumatic Injury or Major Surgery
Featured photo: Teton Rescue Ranger Nick Armitage airlifting his “package” Steve Markusen. The rest of the rescue team (lower left corner) remain on the Exum Ridge, Grand Teton, August 8, 2014. Credit Brian Carver “What is your name? Where are you?” My eyes opened to see a chiseled face with furrowed brow. Pain stabbed my…
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Feeding Your Fire: Nutrition for Training, Competition, and Adventure
Featured photo: Bob riding the world famous Slick Rock Bike Trail, Moab, Utah. The heat from the rising sun activates the sweat glands on the back of my neck; drops of sweat snake down the center of my back. It is 6 am on a clear June morning. The deep blue sky outlines the desert…
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A Question of Balance: Staying Upright as You Age.
Featured Photo: Balance traverse on the East ridge of Wolfs Tooth, Wind river Range, Wyoming. Photo Credit: Paul Gardner I balance on the balls of my feet pressing the sticky rubber soles of my climbing shoes to the narrow ledge. The heels of my shoes stick out over five hundred feet of big air. I…
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What I Learned: Training for Hiking and Backpacking
Featured photo: Escalante wilderness at sunset. The names on the map tell stories: Scorpion Gulch, Deadman Ridge, Carcass Canyon, Fifty Mile Cliffs, Rattlesnake Bench and Little Death Hollow. This is the Escalante, three million acres of National Monument and National Recreation Area in Southern Utah. One of the most remote wilderness areas in the country,…