These 4 Simple Things Helped Me Conquer My First Mountain Trek (being an absolute beginner)

Use these to nail your first trek like a pro

At the top of the mountain (Image credits: author)

Here’s the thing — I have never trekked in my 31 years of existence on this planet.

So, when the opportunity presented itself, I was excited to try something new and fun.

I didn’t even bother to analyse if I was ready or not. But it turns out I was.

Here are a few things that helped me get through a challenging trek, making me feel like I can do anything.

#1 Telling yourself that it’s not that hard helps

Before starting, we asked our trek guide, “What is the difficulty level of the trek” — he replied, “Easy peasy.”

Even during the trek, whenever we were out of breath, we continued to ask him, “How was the trail ahead?” but his reply remained constant.

Had he told us that it was a challenging trek, we wouldn’t have even attempted it in the first place.

Imagine if you keep hearing that being a millionaire is very difficult. Your brain would automatically start believing this, and you would feel that you can’t become one.

It’s not hard until you tell yourself it is.

Don’t make stuff more difficult for you than it already is.

Negative self-talk gets in the way of achieving what you are trying to accomplish because it demotivates you.

Whereas positive self-talk can work like magic because it makes you believe in yourself.

Internal dialogue is powerful stuff.

Choose what you tell yourself very wisely.

#2 Surround yourself with a supportive and positive bunch

I want to be honest with you. I am not the fittest person I know; I can do better.

I was overweight once and lost 70 lbs in under a year. I am very proud of myself for this achievement.

But if I am being true to myself, I know my stamina stinks, and I need to work on building it.

Even the slightest cardio makes my heart race to 186 beats per minute.

As a result, I needed to take constant breaks to catch my breath. And because I walk like a snail, it felt like I wasn’t climbing the mountain but crawling on it.

But I always had friends walk beside me. They gave me company throughout.

They motivated me, informed me whenever I needed to watch my step, kept talking to me and told me stories to keep my mind off the fatigue.

And before I knew it, with their help, I was on top of the mountain (quite literally).

#3 Maintaining even a moderate level of fitness helps your body

I don’t go to a gym.

It’s been 12 years since I dropped all the extra weight; however, till today, there is still this positive fear in me.

This fear keeps me in check, constantly reminding me that I don’t want to go to a place I strived so hard to get myself out of.

So, I do a few things regularly:

• Practice yoga 3 times a week
• Do a 15-minute workout on the non-yoga days
• Go for a 30-minute walk in a nearby park 3 times a week
• Try and eat healthy (limiting my cheat meals to just once a week)

I wouldn’t have gotten halfway through the trek had I not done the above things.

Maintaining an active lifestyle can help you enjoy fun things in life, like running around with your child or completing the trek of your life :)

Why should gym goers have all the fun?

#4 Meditation

I have spent years living in a Himalayan cave.

Just kidding :P

But I do meditate daily.

Meditation does different things for different people.

To me, it brings calm. “How?” You may ask.

You know how whenever we are in a panic or stressful situation, someone tells us to breathe, “Breathe in, breathe out.”

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar says, “Incoming breath energises the body, the outgoing breath brings relaxation”.

Meditation helps you focus on your breathing.

Deliberate and focused breathing oxygenates your body, which slows down your racing heart; this, in turn, sends calming signals to your mind.

You see how the breath, body and mind are related. You learn the power of this relationship through meditation.

So, every time I felt like giving up during the trek, I would pause to breathe deeply.

This technique kept refuelling my mind and body.

Just breathe, and you’ll be fine.

Summary

I was a beginner until my last trek. But not anymore. Now, I am excited to get better and go on my next trek soon.

If I can do this, so can you. Here is what we discussed:

1. Avoid negative self-talk
2. Company matters
3. Maintain an active lifestyle
4. Meditate just by breathing

I hope the above will help and inspire you to go on that first trek you’ve been saying no to all this while.