Latest / Fit for Hiking / Ep. 75 Hiking the JMT and Staying Fit for Life with Meg Farley @movingmountainsmeg
Transcript
- Hi, my name is Brady and I'm a long time fitness professional and midwest girl turned mountain living hiking addict. And combining my knowledge of fitness and passion for hiking, I've helped hundreds of women get lean and strong for the trails. Think of this as your one stop shop for both education and inspiration on all things female wellness, trail talk and adventure. Hiking, female metabolism, motherhood, nutrition, travel and fitness are all topics you'll hear discussed here. If you are outdoorsy and active, looking to level up your health, unlock your potential, and become inspired to live your most vibrant life, you're in the right place. You're listening to the fit for Hiking podcast. Hello and welcome back to another episode of the fit for Hiking podcast. Today we have a special guest on the show. We have Megan Farley, who is an outdoor and fitness enthusiast that aims to inspire others through sharing her daily life on Instagram. From hiking to backpacking, skiing and fitness competitions, she will definitely inspire you to get moving. She's also one of the founders of Girl Get Going trips, which launched this year, so I'm really excited to have her on the show. Thanks so much for being here, Meg. Hello. Thanks for having me. Yeah, I feel like we are so. Aligned in, like our passions, our interests. Like we both have very similar things that we're sharing on Instagram. So it just made total sense to have you on the show, especially in light of your recent trip to hike the DMT, which I definitely want to get into today. Yes. Um, actually, when you had asked me to be on the show, I was thinking about how we like, FaceTimed or chatted on the phone like 3 or 4 years ago. I think I like, picked your brain about things I like. Totally forgot about that, I know. Yeah, we've both been in like the fitness outdoorsy cross section space, which I feel like there hasn't been a lot of people who are like equally sharing both. So it's really cool to get to have this conversation with you. Definitely. I'm excited. Yeah. So tell us a little bit about yourself and how you kind of got into the hiking adventure space. Yeah. So I, um, grew up in Nebraska, so outdoors, you know, um, has always been a part of me, but I moved to Washington back in 2017, and that's where I really fell in love with hiking, camping, and just, like, climbing mountains and all of that. Um, my ex-boyfriend now, um, his dad at the time, or his dad, I guess he was the one. Not at the time. My boyfriend at the time, his dad got me into backpacking, um, took me on my first ever backpacking trip and during Covid to Mount Whitney. And after that I was just, like, hooked. I was just like, I love the outdoors. Um, and I always have, but like, this is a whole different, you know, side of the outdoors being in the PNW. And so, um, yeah, I that's really where it all started for me. And I used to be a teacher. I was a first grade teacher for five years. And I just during that time found like the outdoors was very, you know, healing for me and very, um, just gave me a lot of, of power to, like, get through those crazy, you know, teaching days. And so every weekend I would find myself outdoors skiing, hiking, all the things. And so that's really where it started, 20, 20 ish, um, in Washington. And, and now I've just kind of, I guess after that Mount Whitney, I started sharing my journey of outdoors, you know, um, my backpacking things, my camping things. And that's kind of that kind of like took off and like, I found my people. And, um, I haven't looked back. I guess I left teaching in 2020 to pursue, um, what I do now, which is essentially, you know, sharing my wellness journey. Um, I do freelance photography videography for different brands in the outdoor space, and I host group trips. So it's just it's been really cool just to see where this journey has taken me because of the outdoors. Yeah, it's so wild. How just like little weekend excursions. Like it starts out as just totally like weekend warrior status. I was the same way when I was working full time managing a fitness studio for five years. Um, it just started out with, like, just dabbling, like I had just moved to Colorado. I really didn't have a ton of outdoorsy background. And then every weekend I found myself, like, wanting to go somewhere new, doing a road trip, trying out like a new hiking area. And from there it just like, grows and grows and grows. Yeah, I love that. So true. Yeah. So okay, over recent years, you've started doing like a little bit more as far as bigger backpacking trips. What are some tips that you would have for just getting comfortable backpacking? Because they can be a little bit daunting for people who are like newer to hiking. Mhm. Definitely. Um, well, what I would say is, you know, and this is something I want to share about more, is that people like follow me and they think like, maybe I've been a backpacking my whole life or I, you know, I've done this forever, but I feel like it's been recent. And so it really is like trial and error. You just have to get out there. And, um, if you don't have any of the gear, I think that it's really cool that the rea or, you know, different spots allow you to rent gear. But really, it's like every trip that I've been on, I take notes while I'm on the trip, like, okay, don't need this. Should have brought this next time, you know, invest into this. Whatever. Um, but really, it's just getting out there and seeing what you prefer because everyone's different. And so I did start with Mount Whitney, which is a little, you know, which is a pretty big trip to start out backpacking wise. But then after that, I took a few, you know, 2 to 3 day backpacking trips. And with each trip, my gear has improved. Um, I am a big believer in, like, you get what you pay for. And so when I first started, I, you know, I did have like some of the cheapest things, but that's because I didn't know. And also I was just starting out trying to figure out, is this something I really want to invest into because it can be pricey? Um, but since then, um, you know, I've upgraded to the ultralight gear and I will never go back. And so really. Gear wise, you know, you just got to get out there and try things. Try the tents, tried the shoes. You know, I've gone through multiple different brands of shoes, have lost several toenails, have had multiple blisters, but have finally found that ultras are the shoe for me. Um, it just it takes time. And I think, just like I said, starting with 2 to 3 or 1 to 2 day backpacking trips, um, is where you're going to fall in love and then, you know, you can start planning for those bigger ones. Um, so yeah, yeah, I totally agree. It is so much trial and error. Like, I feel like the things that I packed for my first few backpacking trips just were ridiculous. Like, I've had way too many outfits, like so much stuff. Like just didn't really understand how much all of that added up and definitely toll on my body throughout the trip. Um, I think the first backpacking trip I didn't even have, like a proper backpacking pack. Like, it had no, like, hip support. I mean, my shoulders were like done by the end. Yes. Um, yeah. I think like to renting, using some cheaper stuff initially borrowing if you can, like going on group trips where maybe some stuff is provided so you can see how you like it before. Like you said, investing in like the ultralight stuff. Because while while hiking is a pretty cheap hobby apart from, like, you know, boots. Yeah. Pack. Backpacking can definitely add up with like all the little things. So I think that's really good advice. Um, and recently you completed the JMT, which is the John Muir Trail for anybody who's kind of unfamiliar with that. Um, so could you just tell us a little bit about that trek? Yes. So honestly. Okay, so I did this with one of my friends, Mac. Um, I met her when I lived in Washington. She had, like, the day we met. We met on Instagram, and we met up for a hike. And the day we met, she told me like she wanted to do the JMT the year she turned 30. And I was like, cool, good for you. Like, that's awesome, you know? And then she kept dropping hints, like more info about it, and she never really asked if I wanted to do it, but she had like, you know, just been giving me all this info. I think she knew, like, maybe I was one of the only crazy ones to do it with her. Um, but I committed last January to do this with her. And I will tell you, this is very much out of my comfort zone to do such a long trek. It was. It is like 200 and 211 miles. Um, because of the route we did, we did 250 plus. But, you know, you can do it anywhere from we saw we saw people on there on the trail doing it like seven days our day. We did it in 20 days. Um, that's just a huge a huge commitment and a huge journey and something that I have never done. I think the longest backpacking trip I had done was eight days and 100 ish miles, and even that was like, Holy crap, what am I? I'm not a true hiker. Like, what are your what are you doing? You know, but it was life changing. Um, 250 some miles. We actually did. We went northbound. You're supposed to go southbound. So we started, um, at Mount Whitney or a few mile or, I guess, like 30 miles outside of Mount Whitney. Um, summited Mount Whitney on day three, and we made our way up to Yosemite, and, um, like I said, we went northbound. The real route, you know, like how it's built to do or whatever is, um, to go southbound. But we couldn't get a permit for that. So they they do allow you to do that that way, obviously. Uh, Mount Whitney is the tallest, um, mountain in the continental US. And so you you'd want to end there at the tallest point. But we hit it on day three, which was really cool. Um, the JMT was amazing. So it was definitely the most beautiful, um, route and trail I've ever done. Prior to this, the most beautiful I had ever done was The Enchantments in Washington. Yeah, which was incredible. I, um, applied for it, I think in 2021, 2022 and got it the first year ever, which is crazy. I got a five day permit to that, but, um, it was cool. It was a journey of a lifetime. I learned a lot about myself, about the outdoors, about Mother Nature. Like, truly just what? You know, we were out there for 20 days and we kept saying we had like all four seasons in those 20 days, which is really cool to say and to be able to hike and camp, you know, in those conditions. Um. So, yeah, it is, um, supposedly, you know, one of the most beautiful spots in the US. Yeah. Um, John Muir, he was the one who set out and made this trail, you know, years and years and years ago, we saw multiple people, people from other countries that were there on the trail. And they did confirm without prompting, you know, us prompting, but like, this is the most beautiful place I've ever seen. And so that was really cool to hear because, um, like I said, you know, I, I'm not an expert at anything backpacking, hiking, whatever. I, you know, done only four years worth of of these things, these trips. And while we kept seeing all these people from different countries, I kept wondering, like, why are they here? Like, don't they have beautiful places there? You know, what brings them here? And then it was like halfway through our trek, we saw, like I said, multiple people that were just like, this is incredible. And it was just like, cool. It made me really proud that, like, I live in the United States and we have, you know, the most beautiful, one of the most beautiful trails in the world. Yeah, the hiking in the US is so diverse. Like, that's a pretty cool thing about the US. Like think about all the different national parks and like the topography that we have. It's pretty, pretty awesome. People do come here from all over just to experience like our parks and our, our wilderness areas. Mhm. Um, okay. So what was like the daily breakdown then. Do you know like what the typical. Milo. I'm sure you know, because you did it. Um, what was the typical mileage on on a daily basis? We were averaging between 14 and 15 miles per day, and our elevation was like 2300, I believe, um, average per day. I think the most we have was like 4300. Um, it was tough. Yeah, it I actually just started doing, um, a recaps of the trip. I literally like it's already been a month ago and I'm like, I have hardly had time or made the time to, like, share it on Instagram and look at all the stuff. I'm just like, I cannot. I still cannot believe that I did that. Like, actually like that. It was rad. So how was that on your body? Like, did you ever reach a point where you were like, I don't think I can hike today? Absolutely. Um, I mean, as you've already shared, you know, like, I love fitness, I love I've been doing CrossFit competitions this year randomly, you know, I consider myself a very active, fit person leading up to this trip. I, um, really put it into high gear with the lifting, having heavy lifting also, um, eating like I knew I wanted to go into this trip heavier than I normally am because I'm going to lose weight, um, quickly. And so I did do that. I, you know, I felt really prepped there. But my knees are horrible. I was a college volleyball player and one of my knees doesn't even have like a meniscus. And so I've always had knee pain when hiking, um, long, you know, downhill and stuff. Yeah. Um, so I brought extra ibuprofen and all that. But there was a point, I think it may be day like five where I was just like, this is like, not even fun for me. Like, with every step, it's, you know, it's I'm in pain. And so I finally just had to, like, embrace the fact that, like, I'm going to be on ibuprofen, I'm going to be taking ibuprofen like, every three hours, every, you know, not allowing myself to, to have to deal with that pain. And then day like nine, we went to a hot spring and I don't know they do say like your hiker legs kick in, you know, eventually. And I think day 8 or 9 my hiker leg is kicked in. Did that hot spring. And like I had no knee pain hardly after that. And so that was incredible. And I am so thankful because truly I was I we kept seeing like these older couples that were, um, retired. So in their 60s and 70s and I'm like, how are they doing this? And I am like in tears because my knees hurt so bad, you know? So I, I keep saying I climbed so many mental mountains during that trip like it was, you know, it was all mental, like I knew I could do it physically, but it was just like how you know, how much pain is like, am I going to be in? Yeah, I feel like with backpacking, it turns into just like mind over matter. Like like you said, sometimes you're like, I'm not having fun. This isn't even a fun experience right now. But like I said this and I'm going to do it. Exactly. So what did the prep look like? You know, you mentioned like the training that you did eating wise. What other prep went into this as far as like planning your meals and gear and things like that? So, um, a lot. Mac. My friend, she lives in Utah. Um, her and I were on the on FaceTime multiple times. Um, a week planning. I would send all my food to her. She then packed it and did the shipped, our resupply and all of that. Um, we went over it several times, you know? Okay, we're going to have this many days for this resupply, this many days. Let's make sure we have extra, you know, whatever. So that took a lot of time. And, um, honestly, we did really well. Mak had some leftover food I like, ate everything. I maybe could have had more snacks. Um, but really, there was, like, no room. Like, the bare vaults were packed. Um, but I also just, like, need a lot more food than most people, but a lot of prep there. Um, and because we, we also in April, March and April, we went on two backpacking trips in Utah to just try out some new gear. Um, figure out, you know, what are the highest protein or highest caloric, um, meals that we're going to want on this track? So that was good to prep wise there several months in advance. Um, gear wise though. It was stuff that, um, we didn't really know. Neither of us really got anything new. New? Like I said, in March and April, we went on backpacking trips. We got new packs, ultralight packs, tested those out. Um, we already knew, like, what shoes we wanted when we're going to, you know, and both of them were like, brand new. And now they're done because we went so many miles and they're just trashed. But, um, just nothing like crazy like that. But just like lists upon lists, making sure we have everything for every scenario, you know, rain, snow, fire, whatever, like we have, have it all. So it was just a lot of communicating, um, excel sharing and like, triple checking everything when I flew to her in Utah because then her husband took us to California. We drove, um, she had me, like, undo my whole pack. We, like, laid it all out and, like, made sure because, like, and and it was good. We did because we realized, all right, it's going to be a little colder than we anticipated. We got some more hand warmers. Um, we got we both were like going to be on our periods, which is horrible, like when you're backpacking, but like extra tampons, um, you know, stuff like that. Yeah. Did you ever have any moments or days where you were hungry or like you didn't have enough food until your next resupply? Yes. Um, our first resupply was day five, so we had five days, and then we had like seven days. So it was on day five. Then we had a seven day resupply. I on day like 9 or 10, I was like running low. And it was like kind of an ongoing joke, like, oh, when is Megan a run out of her snacks? Like, you know how quick? Because truly, I just like, I can eat any and eat and like, if it's there, I'm going to eat it. So like, I would eat tomorrow's snacks because I'm like, I need it, you know? Um, thankfully on day 11, I think we got to, um, MTR, which is mere mere trail ranch. And that is where they do have resupplies. We didn't send hours there. We had two more days, but, um, they had hiker boxes and it was the end of the season. There were probably 15, um, buckets filled and organized protein, carbs, snacks, electrolytes, whatever, wipes, tampons. So I like just filled up and a whole bunch while we were there. Took some for the next two days, and I was so thankful for that because truly, um, the day before that, I never, never once was I like, okay, this is it. I have to get off the trail. But Max said to me, she was like, Meg, if you need to get off trail like it is okay. I was like fighting a sinus infection. I was on my period. I was running out of food, I was dehydrated, I like, got so sunburnt because I was stubborn and wouldn't put my son shirt on. And like, I just was dizzy and crying and, you know, just wasn't myself. So I was very happy the next day to find the food, get in the hot springs. And just like. Mentally get it together. Yeah, that I always think about that when people do really long through hikes and they have to wait till resupply, I'm like, that would make me so nervous to have to like, ration my food because I'm the same as you were. I just feel like I eat and eat, and I would feel very panicky if I knew, okay, I don't have very many snacks left and I have to make it, you know, three more days or whatever, right? That's wild. Um, well, thank goodness you found that extra snack spot. That was a bit scary. Um, so what were your biggest takeaways, like personal takeaways from this experience? Gosh, I that's a really hard to answer. I think the one that just keeps coming to me and is very just is a great reminder for myself during this like newer season of life is just that, like I can do, you know, way more than I ever thought I could. I one of the reasons I like didn't commit for a long time. To do this track with Mac is because, like I said, like this is very out of my comfort zone. And I thought, what if I fail? Like, that's embarrassing. I'm going to be upset with myself. You know, all the things. And like this track, there's a lot of alone time, you know, people, um, were so shocked to, like, find out that it was just her and I, you know, because a lot of the trips I do, it's with 20 other people. And it was just her and I. And like, we hike it much different speeds. And so there's a lot of alone time for you to just like, think about things and get in your head, you know, work through things and obviously physically, physically, what has was the hardest thing I've ever done as well as mentally and emotionally. And so just completing that and like coming off honestly, I felt, you know, on day 20, I'm just like, oh, we're already done. Like, you know, there's no pain. I've worked through everything physically wise. Like, you know, I could have maybe kept going. I wanted to be done. But, you know, it's like. Once you push through those things, those hard things every single day for 20 days, it's just like you feel so proud that, like, you know, whatever comes my way in life now, I'm just like, no way. It's going to be harder than that. Hopefully, you know? And if so, okay, I can do it because I know I've proved myself. I can do hard things, not just for a day, but for 20 days. You know, so much more. I'm stronger, more capable than I truly ever thought and just proud that I did complete that and not just complete it, but just get to experience such a thing, you know, such a beauty in this in the US. Yeah, absolutely. Um, okay, so you're really big on sharing your fitness journey and workouts, you know, within your community. How do you feel like your fitness routine has helped you show up in the outdoors? Like obviously with an experience like that, but also just all the other things that you're doing on a weekly basis? Yeah. So when I had shared that, I started hiking, um, in 2020 essentially 2018, 2019, I guess when I started hiking. But, um, when I first started in Washington, I did like an eight mile hike, and I couldn't walk for days after that hike because my knee, my, my bad knee was like so swollen, was in so much pain. And I after college, I was very lazy, did not work out much, lost all my strength that I had, you know, had built up and all that. And so that was a an eye opener for me. Like if you want to be able to do these things outside, you gotta you gotta pick it up, you gotta get back in the weight room. And so truly, I, I know that if I. You know, was to just be lazy and not move my body, not do home workouts, not go to the gym, whatever. Not, you know, build that muscle. I wouldn't be able to ski, I wouldn't be able to backpack and all of that. And so my like mantra is to just be fit for life, you know, whatever adventure comes my way, whatever CrossFit competition comes my way. Like I want to be ready. You know, I don't train to get ready. I train to be ready. And, um, I'm just really proud of, you know, the the work I've done leading up into to this point of life, you know, the last few years, because I truly do feel ready. And this summer was the craziest summer I've ever had with travels, group trips and all that. And so I wasn't the most consistent with my workouts. But like, because I have that foundation built, you know, I can hop back in really quick. Yeah, absolutely. I feel like, um, you know, a lot of the women who go through our Mountain Metabolic program are shocked by how much of a difference it makes when they actually have muscle. And they've been strength training. And I feel like a lot of people think, well, how does like, strength training really even matter that much for hiking? Like it's basically just walking and cardio, but it makes such a difference with like how you actually feel in the middle of it, how you recover the next day, like just your total enjoyment. And I totally agree. Like I want to feel ready to just be able to say yes to anything and not be like, oh crap. I like, haven't been keeping up with my fitness, so there's no way that's going to be an enjoyable experience. Yeah, exactly. Um, okay, so another area that you are super passionate about is women's adventure group trips. So tell us a little bit about the girl going trips and what those look like. Yeah. So, um, my best friend Hailey and I, we started these trips. Um, we just launched them within the last, like, month, um, this last year. So in 2024, we hosted five group trips together, her and I, we went to Nepal, um, Yellowstone, Canada, two different trips there and then one in Colorado. And for the next year we are hosting girl get going trips where we, um, are promoting different itineraries to our audience, um, as an opportunity for them to meet other rad friends who love to get in the outdoors or who maybe are new to the outdoors, you know, and want to learn how to go camping or hike and and so on. And so her and I both are from very small towns. Um, she's from Kentucky. I'm from Nebraska. And like, we didn't grow up with this, like, you know, we we have met all of our friends in our, you know, late 20s to 30s because of these trips, because of our communities and like. We want to help other like minded women do the same. And so we won't. We personally won't be going on these trips next year. Um, but in the years to come, we will. So each year we're going to be hosting girl get going trips where we have ambassadors, people that have, um, have been in our like, wellness community and have gone on multiple of our group trips. Um, they will host the trip and they will go to the, you know, the location with you all. But, um, we also will be, you know, doing our own trips to Hailey's having a baby next year, and I'm doing one trip next year, and we, um, we just want to slow our life down a little bit, but also have, but still have that space for women to do to to adventure and get outdoors and see what's out there. Yeah, absolutely. That's super cool. So what itineraries do you know of for next year? Like where do you where are you planning the trips for. So the girl get going trips. Um, there will be one in Canada. It'll be in Banff. We it's one that we did this past summer. That was amazing. Um, if I were to do one again, we're we're very big on, like, we're not going to go back to a location we've already been to because there's just so much to see. But I definitely would go back to Banff. Um, and then Yellowstone. So those are the two girl going trips. Um, and then I personally am hosting a trip for girls to go to Bali. So that's in April. The other two are in the summer. Um, but yeah, really excited. Those are the those still have spots. Yes. So Canada just booked this week, but you can join the waitlist because people do um, sometimes, you know, back out. But Yellowstone has a handful of spots left and then um Bali has like four spots left. So there are still spots. And if and when we book them all, we're thinking of launching one more trip, one more girl. Get going. Trip for 2024 2025. Oh, awesome. Okay, that's really good to know. And we'll link. Um, do you guys have like a website platform for that or how do people sign up? Yep. I can send you the link and they can check out all three itineraries and then join a waitlist. They can um, but it has, you know, the days, the cost, what we're doing, where we're going, all the things perfect. Yeah. So we'll link that in the show notes. So if you guys want to check out those trips, you can, um. Where else can people connect with you? Um, mostly on Instagram or, um, email. So moving mountains. Meg is my Instagram. Moving mountains? Meg at gmail.com is my email. Um, yeah. We'll link those in the show notes too. Um, thanks so much for coming on today. This was such a fun conversation and I love hearing about your experience. I think it's just so inspiring for people who are listening to this. You know, maybe they're on their commute or stuck in kind of like a rut with life and just not feeling very inspired. And I think just hearing about these experiences kind of helps. At least it helps me when I'm just like stuck in the mundane, like routine to like, think about, okay, how can I put myself in situations like that that are just like really challenging me mentally, physically and just bringing back some of that excitement for life? Mhm. Yeah, definitely. Thanks for having me. Yeah. Thanks so much for coming on. I will talk with you guys in the next episode. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of the fit for hiking podcast. As always, I hope it leaves you feeling inspired and informed on how to take your health and adventure into your own hands. For more content like this, be sure to follow along with my daily posts at Ponytail Underscore. On a trail that's ponytail underscore on a trail. You can also stay up to date on my new episodes being released at Fit Underscore for hiking, and find more free resources at Pony Tail on a trail.com. Happy and healthy trails.