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Justin Frazer

The Hardest Part is Starting

By 29029 Everesting

May 5^th, 2023

Weight has always been an issue with me. My entire life I’ve struggled to keep it under control.

Of course, I knew it was an issue, and I knew what I needed to do to fix it. But as the cliched saying goes, you’re not ready to make a change until you are ready to make that change.

It had to come from within, and for whatever reason, I didn’t have the drive to do it.

I had worked in the events industry at hotels for most of my life. Late nights, thorough planning, and hectic execution were all part of the gig. After long working hours of doing things for others, I rarely had the energy left to do something for me.

In 2020, I decided to make a career change, leaving the events and hospitality industry behind. It was a big change, but it was also a small step that would change the trajectory of my life.

In July of 2021 I had an annual check-up wth my doctor. As usual, my weight was a concern, and for some reason, when he told me the number, this time it actually landed with some impact.

I was sick and tired of being sick and tired.

It was time for another change: I was going to start investing in myself and taking weight loss seriously.

Three months into my weight loss journey, I had lost 40 lbs! It was a massive achievement, but I had started to plateau. I still had a long way to go to be at my healthy goal.

I needed something to refresh my drive and focus.

One day, while browsing YouTube, I stumbled onto a video about 29029.

This is a different event. It’s not a race, it’s you versus the mountain - both the literal mountain and your own metaphorical mountains within.

It was exactly what I was looking for: an event that challenged my body, and my mind and soul.

I signed up as soon as registration opened.

With the worry of my plateaued weight loss hanging over me, I decided to sign up for one-on-one coaching for the extra accountability and insight. It felt like a lot was on the line, and I didn’t want to leave it up to chance.

Coach Wooch put together a bespoke training program for me, which featured heavily on doing things outdoors and in nature.

But there were also some unorthodox methods that required more of a leap of faith. Knowing Wooch had climbed many 29029 mountains made it easier to buy in, but I’d be lying if I didn’t think ‘what the hell are we doing here’ more than a few times.

One such occasion was the spit mile. It was all about nasal breathing - training yourself to breathe better without your mouth.

So, with an ounce of water in my mouth, I was to run a mile without spitting any of it out.

During my first attempt, it felt like I was drowning! I barely made it a half mile before I had to spit out the water, gasping for air.

While it wasn’t the easiest to draw the parallels between running a mile with an ounce of water in your mouth and climbing 29,029 vertical feet, I knew I just had to trust the process. I trusted the training program - trusted that it would get me to Everest.

As the training progressed, my weight started to decline again. I had broken through the plateau!

After countless spit miles, tens of thousands of burpees, and who knows how many miles of walking/rucking/hiking/jogging, I was down 95 pounds!

it was finally time to tackle the mountain.

I drove to Stratton with my sister, and the entire drive I barely said a word. Nerves had set in, and once we arrived, they only intensified.

I know Wooch said it was going to be hard, but wow… this mountain really is just steep and straight up.

I was stuck in my head. I stumbled around the event grounds the day before the event in my shell, barely even able to make eye contact with others. I was a bundle of nerves, and my nature was to pull back and fade into the background.

Darkness enveloped us all at the start, but the vibes felt electric. I nervously fidgeted with my gear, waiting for what lay ahead. I still had not come out of my shell.

Then, it began.

It felt better to be moving, and I could feel myself slowly opening up to the experience.

I just kept climbing, and as I crested the summit, the sun started to break over the horizon.

That was when it felt like my experience at 29029 truly began.

I was no longer held down by nerves. I was finally doing something truly for me.

I leaned on a few strategies as the event wore on throughout the first day.

The first was just starting. I knew if I started moving up the mountain, I wouldn’t turn around and head back down. Just a few steps up the slopes was enough to guarantee me finishing another ascent, even if the summit was many more steps away.

The second is what I call the Wooch-zoop: zig-zagging up the mountain during the steepest segments to reduce the grades, something Wooch taught me. Sure, it probably meant adding many miles to my total distance, but it kept me moving. I wanted to stay in motion.

After a handful of ascents, I started having some major hip issues. The problems with my hip had started during the training, but usually only during the longer days.

I was not even quite a quarter of the way in, and already, there was a constant dull burning pain in my hip. I kept going, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about what it might mean for my ability to finish.

I stopped very late in the evening after finishing my 11th climb. It was time for a break.

I returned to my room, and although I wouldn’t call it restful, I did enjoy about 5 hours of downtime, with the tiniest amount of shuteye, before 5 am rolled around.

It was game on and time to climb again, burning hip pain and all. I knew the hardest part was to start, but with a little morning energy, and some Wooch-zoops up the steep slopes, I was off and climbing again, well before sunrise.

The hardest part was to start, and once I got moving, the ascents kept ticking away.

Yes, my hip still hurt. Yes, I was still tired. Yes, I didn’t want to keep climbing.

But I did anyways.

Each ascent, I would focus on starting, and after that, all the footsteps would fall into place.

Before I knew it, I was on cloud nine with my final ascent. I was seeing each rut, each root, and each steep segment of the trail for the final time.

That first step on the Red Carpet felt surreal. It was the culmination of my lengthy journey to get here. Changing careers, changing lifestyles, losing weight, and all the training had led me here.

Not only had I conquered my mountain - my weight loss journey, I had also conquered Everest.

I did something for myself, and the Red Hat was the reward.

The hardest part is to start.

If I had to pick one of the most lasting impacts that hit me during 29029, that would be the one. Whether it was deciding to finally start my weight loss journey, getting through an early morning workout, or climbing an ascent at 29029, the hardest part had always been starting.