2019-04-01 Women's Health

APRIL 20 19

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1. Re c e iv ing an An de an b le s s ing 2. Tak-

ing in Machu Picchu 3. Trekking into

the jungle on the Inca Trail 4. Soaking

post-hike at Mountain Lodges of Peru’s

Salkantay lodge 5. Refusing to get bug

bites with my stylin’ face net 6. Celebrat-

ing on top of the Salkantay Pass

HI I T se s sion s a we ek to bu i ld my

cardio, plus incline tread walks. I

felt ready but still scared of a vari-

able I couldn’t control: the altitude.

There was a 15,200-foot pass on the

trip! My doctor, Gabrielle Lyon, DO,

and I decided I should take Diamox,

an anti–altitude sickness Rx.

Trek Time

No joke, within the first 15 minutes

I felt like I was going to pass out—I

saw spots and couldn’t catch my

breath, the air was so thin. I was

de sp er ately t r y i ng to ke ep up.

Thankfully, our incredible guide,

L e o, told me to go at my sp e e d. S o I

swallowed my pride and took breaks

when I needed to (read: frequently).

The next day I huffed and

puffed uphill (when I wanted to give

up, I’d tell myself, “I deadlift 225

pounds—I can do this!”) to Lake

Humantay with its unreal turquoise

waters. There, an Andean priest led

an offering, called a despacho, to

Pachamama (Mother Earth) to bless

our trek. We each made a wish.

Mine: to believe in my strength.

Facing My Fears

I was so nervous, I barely slept the

night before our hike over the noto-

riously difficult Salkantay Pass. We

spent the crystal-clear morning hik-

ing alongside a roaring river and

grazing cows on the mountainside—

it wa s so pret t y t hat it se eme d fa ke,

like a movie screen.

L ater, my he ad st a r te d to fe el l i ke

it was in a vise. Each step up became

harder and harder...and then the

f re ez i ng r a i n h it. We got p ou nde d.

I couldn’t go 25 steps without stop-

ping. Five hours after we began, we

reached the top—cold, wet, and ex-

hausted. But the battle wasn’t over.

The four-hour descent to our next

lodge was rough. The trail was so

sl ipp er y a nd ste ep. My lef t k ne e wa s

screaming, and I fell crossing a river.

But I did it—at my pace—without

emergency oxygen or a mule ride.

Finishing Strong

I was next-level sore the following

a.m., but I pushed through. The fifth

day, I freaked—how could I do two

more days of 10-mile hikes? I had to

look in the mirror, tell myself I could

finish, and shadowbox to psych my-

sel f up. By t hose la st d ay s we were i n

lower altitudes, so I could breathe

again and ended up loving the hikes.

When we arrived at the train station

to head to Machu Picchu, I couldn’t

believe it—had I just done that?!

The Wonder of It All

The energy at Machu Picchu is inde-

scr ibable. It m ade me t h i n k ab out

our ability to do the seemingly im-

possible. Looking back, I realize this

t rek wa sn’t a te st of my phy sic a l

st reng t h so much a s my ment a l for-

titude, something Dr. Lyon and

I have been working on by breaking

old patterns. I couldn’t have done

this life-changing experience with-

out my brain telling me to push

through and stay positive and confi-

dent—even if my body wasn’t. Cliché

though it may be, I truly believe if we

set our mind to it, we can accom-

plish anything. Now, where to next?

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