Magazines, magazines everywhere!

There are so many great magazines available on the market today - and I want to keep up on all my interests. Yet, I often feel guilty for subscribing to some of my favorites. Either they pile up on the counter, waiting to be read or I read them and then feel bad about all those trees that I have "assisted" in cutting down. So, I have taken to subscribing to many as on-line magazines. It is not always identical information as in the printed version, but it is faster to read (I can pick and choose the articles I want to read more about), I feel able to keep up on more topics, and there is no post-consumer guilt, especially if I don't get around to reading each issue. If you are wondering if there is an on-line version, just go to the magazine's web site- usually there is a tab to click to subscribe. In addition, I now pick one printed subscription that I want to read cover to cover. I use it to get me through indoor winter workouts (because let's face it, these get pretty boring). I bring it to the gym with me, read it while on the aerobic machines (sometimes the issue lasts one work-out, sometimes two) and then I leave it behind for others to read. I have motivation, I read the whole issue, and I re-cycle it for others. --Deb

Watching the fox

February 13, 2007, Golden, Colorado
The red fox jumped onto a rock overlook without noticing me. For about three minutes—which seemed like an eternity—I was able to secretly observe the beautiful creature as it rock-hopped among the boulders of North Table Mountain. I was on my daily walk before work, less than a mile from my home; I frequently see mule deer, coyotes, and cotton tail rabbits, but it had been a long time since I had seen a fox.
I was awe-struck at its beauty. The fox looked as though it had just emerged from a beauty parlor. Its winter coat looked silky and full, the golden red fur shimmered in the early morning sunshine. Characteristic of red foxes, its tail had a bushy, pure white tip. In high school (twenty five years ago!) we used to say someone was a “fox” if they were really attractive, and as I admired the fox, I actually thought about bringing the phrase back into my vocabulary.
I was also intrigued at the fox’s apparent curiosity and playfulness as it hopped in a dance-like fashion from rock to rock, pausing to observe, perhaps looking for breakfast, before moving gracefully again. All too soon, it noticed me on the trail above, and ran off in a flash.
The focus and dexterity I observed reminded me of my own quest for mindfulness and desire to experience each moment in its fullest. When I am in nature, I find it much easier to center my attention and be in tune with my own needs and thoughts, while being intensely aware of the world surrounding me. -- Brenda

Drink wine out of a box!

What does drinking wine out of a box have to with anything outdoors or travel-related? It turns out that the bag the wine comes in that sits in the box is a great water container for carrying water. We use these on our Grand Canyon Backpack when we have to carry water for one dry camp. Not only are they durable, they are very lightweight and take virtually no space when they're empty. My mom saves them for me; you should ask yours to do the same.-- Marian

Smart Sheep

There's a phrase I once heard to illustrate the importance of not wearing cotton when being active in inclement weather: Cotton Kills! It is a bit extreme, for sure, even though it's point is well taken. There are many choices of non-cotton clothing: fleece, polypropylene, Capilene, wool, and many others. Lately I have been really advocating for wool long underwear tops, especially for cooler climates. The main reason? Synthetics can really stink! I was recently on a winter trip, the first day and I was wearing one of my trusty synthetic long underwear tops. It kept me toasty warm and did its wicking thing, but when I changed clothes at the end of the day, the shirt smelled awful. And this was with a fresh laundering (the shirt), a shower (for me) and only one day - not even a very active day - of wear. I remembered when I was in Alaska last summer, where we pretty much lived in our base layer, one of the guides had a Smartwool long underwear top, and after 5 days it still didn't smell. This wasn't its first use, nor would it be the last. She is also not the first person to attest to this fact. I am beginning to think that a wool base layer is the way to go. Wool long underwear has changed a lot in the past few years, and it is really making a comeback in the market. It is much softer, lighter weight, and comes in many fashionable colors. It holds up to washing machines (I'd still air dry them) and the elements. It can be a little more expensive than its synthetic counterpart, but if I can wear it for years and not have it stink - it's worth it to me. Smartwool, Ibex and Icebreaker are 3 well known and high quality brands. --Deb

lunges and crunches and steps, oh my!!

I have to admit that I’m not naturally an exercise person. I do exercise but never am able to achieve that level of enjoyment that many of my peers seem to have. So, needless to say it is often hard to stay motivated, especially this time of year.

Backpacking is by far my most favorite outdoor activity and one that you do need to stay in shape for over the long winter months. Those winter months coupled with my natural inclination to “not” exercise make for some spirited conversations with myself which usually end up at the gym!

One of the most important muscle groups to continue to concentrate on year round are the abdominals. When thinking about backpacking one may automatically think that the back and the legs are most important. They are, of course, but having and maintaining strong abdominals will insure that aches and pains from your back will not interfere with the enjoyment of backpacking. This is a good month to start a little extra push for those strong abdominals.

There are lots of exercises that we can employ for this muscle group, the most boring of which are the crunches but don’t abandon them just yet. In addition to your normal abdominal workout try doing slow, double crunches. Concentrate on intensity rather than quantity.

Lie on the floor in your regular Crunch position, knees bent, hands over ears (not locked behind head) or in tight to chest. Now, crunch up approximately 10 inches, holding the peak contraction for a count of 4. In this fully contracted position, the key is to really squeeze your abs together hard. Imagine pushing your upper abs into your lower abs and vice-versa (like an accordion coming together).

From this point, you want to return to the floor very slowly. The trick here is to try to keep your abdominals tense and contracted during the return to your starting position. This return should be as slow as you can manage, try doing it to the count of 3 or 4.

Repeat the motion trying to maintain as much continuous tension on the abdominals as possible. This movement is not about "how many" reps you can do; it's all about how hard you can squeeze your abs and maintain tension.

Always remember to keep the small of your back against the floor. This puts your body in correct alignment and prevents injury during exercise. I try to do at least two sets of 10-12 and finish off with my regular abdominal exercises.

A variation of this exercise can be done actually sitting in a chair or better yet---if you dare! an air chair against the wall. Just use the same motion to squeeze both the upper and lower abdominals together and release. Can even be done in an airplane seat although your seat companions may wonder about you.

Remember what your ultimate goal is; to get in decent shape for those wonderful days of backpacking, to be able to go farther, enjoy the journey and feel better at the end of the day! Hope to see you on the trail! Jan

Keeping your hands warm

Now that winter has finally come to Baltimore, I am reminded how difficult it is to keep your hands warm in cold weather (and I recently read some research that suggests that women's blood circulation in the hands is not as good as men's, which is why our hands get colder). There are 2 things that help: 1) mittens are much warmer than gloves because your fingers help keep each other warm. If you absolutely have to have some manual dexterity, then trying a pair of fingerless gloves with a mitten covering is worth a try, but - trust me- they will not keep your hands as warm as a true mitten. 2) use hand cream liberally since dry skin makes the cold worse (and cold makes your dry skin worse). Try a heavy-duty cream like udder balm or Warm Cream (the makers claim that it promotes warmth by relaxing blood vessels thereby stimulating blood flow- don't know if it's true but it works). -- Marian

Red Sumac berries - ease your ills

We are in the throes of the cold and flu season and there are a variety of remedies to choose from. Everyone has her favorites and I wanted to add one more to the list: Red Sumac berries. Anyone who has driven along a highway has seen these grow in abundance. They are short trees with smooth bark, and clusters of red berries that are in bloom almost all year round, though most ripe in Autumn. Note: this is not the poisonous sumac which has white berries. Many Native Americans and folk herbalists have used red sumac to aid in health. These berries are very high in Vitamin C, Ascorbic acid, and have an astringent quality similar to tea. They cost nothing and are easy to use. You pick some of the ripe berry bundles (1-2 is usually enough), crush them gently and soak them in cold water for 15 minutes to an hour (like sun tea). Strain with cheesecloth, strainer or a coffee filter. They are very tart so you may want to add sweetner, but you can drink it without. What I like even more than drinking the juice, however, is gargling with it when I have a sore throat. You can boil the berries for a few minutes, let it steep and this will extract the juice. Gargles with it a few times. As I said it is astringent so depending on how raw your throat is it can sting a little, but afterwards it feel so much better. You can also sip it as warm tea and that will soothe your throat as well. As a side not, they also make a nice natural dye! Here's to a healthy winter season! --Deb