20 Pounds of Sugar on My Back

The more I have sugar around, the more I want it.
I have been doing really well in my training. I keep hiking higher and higher mountains as well as longer and longer trails but I am not dropping pounds. The only time that I have been truly successful in losing weight was when I drop refined sugar.
On Sunday I decided to walk to my friends' house, which happens to be eight miles away, as a training exercise and get together. It was my responsibility to bring the bagels -- a baker's dozen -- to the gathering so I loaded them in my backpack and away I went. The weight of the pack was significant and it got me thinking about all the food I've been carrying around with me all this time.
The following day, when I suited up to hike Mount Tammany, one of New Jersey's best training mountains, I decided to bring along sugar -- 20 pounds of it to carry along, as I would like to drop that many pounds (or more) before I take on the mountain itself. Here's how it went:


The experience made me really think about what I really want to carry with me on the journey ahead.
Read more about my story at: www.fatwomanonthemountain.com

3.20.11: Tribute to U2

Last night my husband and I had a great time seeing A Beautiful Day, which is a New York-based U2 tribute band.... I thought it was due time that I give my own tribute to U2, especially to frontman Bono.

I had used hiking as my path to wellness for many years. I started with flat trails, then moved to molehills, mountains that once left me winded and even down (and thankfully up) the Grand Canyon. However, after conquering the Grand Canyon, my I started to feel a little lost in my training.

I started going to the gym and do a 28-minute fat burning cycle on the elliptical trainer (without breaking a sweat), or skip my strength training sessions for yummy yoga. I decided I needed a new challenge and it had to be Mount Kilimanjaro.

Mount Kilimanjaro is the epitome of hiking challenges. It is Africa's highest peak and it is the largest mountain that you can hike to the top of. In other words no ice axes, ropes or supplemental oxygen are required. However, it is still an arduous task -- a grueling 5 and a half journey to the top, as you are stripped away from most of you comforts (your warm bed, your loved ones -- and a shower!)

I decided if I was going to take on this challenge, I was going to do it for a cause bigger than myself. It was because of Bono's use of his voice -- for not only his music -- that I learned about the AIDS crisis in Africa.

I was particularly taken by the plight of AIDS orphans in subsaharan Africa -- healthy children who have had a generation of parents, leaders and teachers stripped away from them by the deadly disease. To give you an idea about how many AIDS orphans there are in sub-Saharan Africa, prior to my first Kilimanjaro hike in 2007 there were 13 million. As I am about to take on my third hike, there are 18 million.

I found Global Alliance for Africa, a Chicago-based organization devoted to helping AIDS orphans through empowering programs such as education and microfinance. I signed up to date have raised more than $15,000 for their programs. I will raise $1 per foot of the mountain -- $19,343 -- through my next trip up Kilimanjaro. Click here to learn how to make a donation.

Now, as I gain some spotlight for my endeavors, I try to use it for good as well. Here is my latest live television interview and essay in Self magazine talking about my journey to wellness, hoping to inspire others to be active with their bodies and in their communities.

So thank you Bono for making me aware, inspiring me to do better and teaching me to use my voice in a positive way.

I'll be speaking 7 p.m. Tuesday (March 22) at Interweave in Summit, NJ about how to take Action Steps.

You can find my book on Amazon or on my website.

Heading to Hike THE Hill

On Monday (Feb. 14), I will join trail advocates and hiking enthusiasts in Washington, DC for the American Hiking Society's 2nd annual Hike the Hill.

I am so excited to join the trek which will begin 9 a.m. Monday at the Lincoln Memorial and will end at the U.S. Capitol. For me, this Valentine's Day event is all about showing my love for hiking. After all, it was those trails that set me on the path to wellness.

If you're in the Washington, DC area, I do hope you'll join me. Here's a link with all the details. Hike the Hill

Happy Trails,

Kara

Other upcoming appearances:

March 12 Vermont Women's Expo, Burlington, VT

March 22 Interweave, Summit, NJ

March 24 Moms & More, Summit, NJ

April 15 Somerset County United Way Women's Initiative Breakfast, Basking Ridge, NJ