First day on skis for the season and it was SO FUN! I had not fully remembered how fun this bright side of winter can be. Instead I’d been remembering the hard times from last year and feeling apprehensive about winter mental health… I had been bracing for winter and putting all the coping strategies in place but now I’m also psyched! And reminded of how helpful funding fun & play & joy are to embracing the season and not just surviving it. anyways, yesterday’s fun on snow totally shifted my wariness about winter to excitement for all the fun gliding we’re about to be able to do. Yay! ☃️❄️🎿 Where are you at on this? Excited, wary, or something else? If you’re not a skier, do you have other things that bring out your winter fun? 
Someone recently asked me what my favorite part was about Ski Babes, as an instructor.
My answer: it’s how these workouts make me feel. They always make me feel better. Both the short-term post-workout endorphin & accomplishment rush, and the long-term sturdiness, less scared, more embodied, more confident. I do believe we can shape the future of our family, country, & planet when we are connected to our sturdy, vibrant power. We were born for this ❤️
Oh and also, the strength I build helps bring me to gorgeous places like this! 📍Dena'ina land
Now I want to know yours: What do you love about your movement practice, whether it's Ski Babes, outdoor rec, or something else? 👇🏼
🎉We have our winners! 🎉🎊🎈🤸🏾♂️
Thanks to all of you who told your friends, shared on social media, and helped get the word out about #SkiBabesTraining this season. I appreciate you!
Our prize winners are as follows:
⭐️ Jess Rigby wins a Ski Babes Full Season Membership
⭐️ Leah Boch wins a Ski Babes Round One Membership
⭐️ Lydia Houghton wins an @alpinefitco Long Sleeve Base Layer
⭐️ Hannah Smith wins a $100 gift card to @trickstercompany
⭐️ Dana Loutey wins a dreamy pair of custom @fairweatherskiworks Skis
🎉🎉Congratulations winners! You'll be getting an email with information about how to claim your prize.
🙏🏼🙏🏼Everyone else, thanks for playing and for helping us get the word out!
I hope you check out the incredible brands we featured in this giveaway -- they're Alaska-grown small businesses with high-quality products & missions I love supporting.
And finally, one last reminder that Ski Babes started yesterday! There's an incredible group gathering inside & we'd love to have you. You can still squeeze in the first workout today!
💕 💕💕💕 This is why this work matters. So you can take really good care of yourself without having to do it all yourself. We start tomorrow! Which of these is the most compelling for you? 👇🏼 
Where are my data dorks at? 🤓🤓🤓
I tend to talk more about feelings and body sensations and playing outside and loving on your body...
But the truth is I have big respect for science and have built Ski Babes on evidence-based practices.
➡︎ interval training, specifically tabata-style intervals, is amazing for heart health (Tabata 2019) - yes, the interval style was named after the guy who researched it!
➡︎ adequate rest after high intensity interval training is critical. For heart health, 24-48 hrs should be given between anaerobic efforts (Stanley, Peake, and Buchheit 2013, Holt 2018)
➡︎ adding exercise can be a tool for prevention of depression. One study from the Harvard School of Public Health found a 26% decrease in depression for each major increase in objectively measured physical activity. (Choi et al 2017)
And we're always tracking the data inside the program, watching for what works and where we have opportunities to improve.
Swipe the slides to see what we learned about mood/energy changes after Ski Babes workouts, and over changes from the program.
We love seeing these results and hope you're inspired by them like we are!
Ski Babes: Online Training for Winter starts on Monday, and we'd love to have your results in our next data set! Peep the link in my bio for all the info.
LMK in the comments 👇🏻 do you love data too or not so much?
#skibabestraining #winteriscoming #backcountrybabes #backcountryskiing #readyforwinter #alaska
🏂 We'd love to have you at this workout! 🏂
Our final donation-based workout partnership is THIS SATURDAY!
In this workout we'll cover:
➡︎ Winter sport-specific exercises to build strength, stability, stamina, and balance.
➡︎ Exercises to prevent ACL injuries -- the most common winter sports injury for women
➡︎ "Mobility Track" options for those who are off-the-couch or recovering from an injury
➡︎ Up-level opportunities for those who are looking for a challenge
➡︎ Body-positive training focused on building capacity & functionality
➡︎ Mindset & nervous system training to begin to tackle self-doubt, workout perfectionism, & weakest link syndrome.
We are honored to move with Boarding for Breast Cancer @B4BC and contribute to their triple-focused mission aimed at:
1) Preparing young people with education on early detection
2) Promoting the importance of maintaining a healthy, active lifestyle as the best means of breast cancer prevention
3) Providing survivor support for those affected by breast cancer
Thanks to one of last year's Ski Babes, Germaine who is a B4BC member, we were able to connect with this amazing organization and fundraise as a part of their Breast Cancer Awareness Month efforts. It's connections like this from our badass community that make my 💗 soar!
Coming to this workout will not only be a great way to check in on some great breast cancer prevention resources, but also support @B4BC because....
When you register (in the link on my bio) you'll receive a special Ski Babes discount code. If you use that code when you sign up, you’ll get a discount AND we’ll donate 10% of your purchase back to that organization 🥰
📅 See you Saturday! Link in my bio to register 📅
Drop some emojis & tag your friends who might want to come! We appreciate it 🙏🏼
Been loving this one lately.
It came to me during a nasty bushwhack in the Alaska Range this summer. I was feeling caught off guard by the challenge and stressed because I didn't want to push my body as hard as the conditions were demanding.
When I found a moment of pause, though, I realized the challenge was within my body's capacity, and that I could drop the stress about the stress. [PS i made an IGTV about this if you want to hear more]
"Thank you body." Both for being up for the challenge so beautifully and for letting me know it was stressed so I could address that.
This week I find myself using it again -- I'm under the weather during launch week and while I'm frustrated about that I'm also remembering to trust my body's signals.
As someone who had deep patterns of overriding my body and its signals --pushing through-- this work of listening and trusting myself has been both incredibly challenging and incredibly fruitful.
One example: as the trust between us grows, my anxiety levels have dropped. It feels like my body trusts me to listen so it doesn't have to be in almost-freaking-out-mode all the time.
I offer this one to you if it serves you, and would also love to hear yours if you're up for sharing ♥︎
📍Dena'ina land
We're all about efficiency with winter training -- because I know most of you would rather be outside!
It's cool though; you can build awesome mind & body strength with short, intentional workouts that work on multiple layers at once.
My Mindful Interval Training Methodology is just this.
Mindful Interval Training works on four layers:
➡︎ Move
➡︎ Play
➡︎ Feel
➡︎ Rest (and celebrate)
In each of these layers we focus on different priorities, which are described in the slides. (I’m still learning how to do alt text for these- in the meantime if you need image descriptions please send a note & we’ll get that to you)
But the coolest thing about this work is that no matter what you're focusing on (and you can't focus on it all at once, it's too much!) the impact is happening on all the layers at once.
A lot of folks come in looking to "get in shape for winter" -- the MOVE layer is their priority.
But then they often share that the other layers made all the difference, even if they weren't looking for it.
I've been working with all of this for years and just now putting it into words and a formal methodology (with the help of my teachers @kelly.diels , @rachrodgersesq , & others)
I hope seeing it laid out like this helps you identify which layers are most important to you -- and also maybe get excited about some layers you hadn't considered yet!
Thoughts, reflections, new priorities for your winter training? Share them here & let's chat 👇🏻
Soliciting applicants for Ski Babes equity pricing! Please help spread the word:
"Sistering" is a construction term in which a post that's holding up too much weight is supported by additional posts on either side. This metaphor conveys what we're after: helping take some of the weight off those who are carrying a lot right now.
Especially for BIPOC, queer, disabled, bigger bodies, and others who are underrepresented in the outdoor world; we need more of you on the slopes and in the pictures on this page.
We've got a number of equity-priced spots available, and we hope you grab one! [We currently have more funding than applications -- please apply if you're considering it!]
Apply for Sistering Support & Equity Pricing at the link in my bio (2 min application). Application deadline is October 9. You’ll be considered for full or reduced pricing for Round One and/or Ski Babes full season.
➡️ I’d super appreciate your help spreading the word on this! Share, tag friends, pass it on to your network of diverse outdoorsy folks. Thank you!
🎉SKI BABES ENROLLMENT IS OPEN🎉
We always appreciate our community’s support getting the word out about Ski Babes — and also love rewarding you with sweet prizes from Alaskan small businesses that we love! There are many ways to enter:
➡️ Tell your friends/family/coworkers/etc about Ski Babes (text, email, over a cup of tea, etc). Let them know what you like Ski Babes & why they might be interested.
➡️ Share on your Instagram feed or story. You can share a Ski Babes post from my account or create your own. Use the hashtag #skibabes2021 and tag me so I can track your shares. Screenshot your post if your account is private so we can verify it.
➡️ Head over to @alpinefitco IG account & give them a like. They’re one of my favorite companies and they’ve donated an amazingly warm, comfy, & stink-free base layer for this giveaway contest.
➡️ Head over to @fairweatherskiworks IG account & give them a like. Fairweather makes gorgeous handmade skis from local wood with art by local artists and they are donating a pair of custom skis (swoon!!!!!) for this giveaway contest.
The specifics: one Instagram share = 5 entries, each person you email/tell = 1 entry, each relevant comment on this post = 1 entry, Alpine Fit Co/Fairweather Ski Works Instagram Like = 1 entry. You can tell as many people/enter as many times as you want!
📅 CONTEST ENDS OCTOBER 10TH AT MIDNIGHT 📅
👋 Important: Click on the link in my bio to submit your entries! The form resets each day for you to allow for multiple entries in the same category (ie. if you share multiple posts or tell all your friends).
HERE ARE THE PRIZES:
🌟 One free full season of Membership to Ski Babes (3 Rounds!)
🌟 One free round of Ski Babes
🌟 A pair of custom skis from Fairweather Ski Works ($1000 value!)
🌟 One AlpineFit long sleeve baselayer
🌟 $100 Gift Car to Trickster Co @trickstercompany, an Indigenous-owned design company with lots of beautiful options to choose from!
🙏🏼 Thanks in advance for your help getting the word out about Ski Babes! Word of mouth has always been the best way to find people who are a fit, and I'm super grateful for your willingness to share!
Let's get real about winter 2021/22. Not to scare ourselves, but to really take an honest look ahead so we can be prepared:
1) these last 18 months have been hard
2) summer is usually the easy time of year
3) winter 2021/22 might be really extra hard, again
4) we can do hard things
5) and it's easier to do hard things if we set ourselves up for success ahead of time.
This is an amazing tool from DBT called Coping Ahead. Look forward to the potentially tough situation coming at you, and put practices in place so it's not as hard.
Things like:
⛷ a way to discharge stress (exercise, outdoor rec, chopping wood, etc)
🙋🏼♀️ a way to connect (Zoom can work for this if we're really intentional about really noticing that we are WITH other humans)
🏗 some structure & accountability to help us keep doing the things that make us feel better even when we don't feel like it (help soothe short-term reward brain so that long-term reward brain gets to lead most of the time)
🛠 mindset & mental health tools that work for you to feel your feelings AND move through them so you avoid overwhelm & can act intentionally
🌈 practices of pleasure, joy, gratitude, and play to help us remember that it's not all darkness, even if it might feel like it for a while.
👉🏼I've been wrapping up my strategies (all of the above!) for handling winter mood & energy (and election stress) into my online winter training program, Ski Babes. And of course Ski Babes won't solve all our problems but it is basically designed as your one-stop-shop for Coping Ahead this winter.
I hope you consider joining us, and tag other folks here who could use the support. Honestly, I think we could all use some extra support these days. October 11 is the start date!
📸 @lucmehl
📍 Alutiiq land
#skibabestraining #mentalhealthmatters #especiallythisyear #copeahead #yougotthis #backcountryskiing #alaska
I'm super excited to team up with the amazing @shejumps to support their mission of increasing the participation of women and girls in outdoor activities!
SheJumps welcomes all women and girls (transgender and cisgender) as well as non-binary people who identify with the women’s community.
Thursday's workout will be ~45 minutes, appropriate for folks off-the-couch to super-athlete, and introduce you to my favorite exercises for the winter sports season.
We'll be live on Zoom with the replay emailed out to all who register. We'll cover:
🏂 Winter-sport specific exercises to build strength, stability, and balance
⛷ Exercises to prevent ACL injuries -- the most common winter sports injury for women
🤕 Mobility Track" options for those who are off-the-couch or recovering from an injury
🤩 Up-level opportunities for those who are up for a challenge
💪🏼 Body-positive training focused on building capacity & functionality
🥳 Mindset training to begin to tackle self-doubt, training perfectionism, & weakest link syndrome
I hope you join us on Thursday, October 7th! Tag friends who might want to come too!
🤫 And P.S. there's a SheJumps + Ski Babes discount code that you'll get if you come to this workout!
Hop on this movement train 🚂 as we partner with @womenofwinter for a Ski Babes workout!
Women of Winter's mission is to inspire, educate and empower women and girls to get outside, to be courageous and to embrace and boldly pursue their dreams by carving their own paths in the mountains and in life.
Our fundraiser with WoW is going toward their 2021 focus: providing opportunities to the BIPOC women and girls who currently have the least access or representation in the snowsports industry.
Outside of supporting this awesome organization, this will be a great chance to try out a Ski Babes-style workout if you've been curious what they are all about!
Some 🔥 tips:
✨ Register in the link on my bio
👯 Tell your friends! (we appreciate tags & shares)
😉 Come to the workout and get a Women of Winter + Ski Babes discount code!
⚡️We'll be live on Zoom and will email the replay out to everyone who is registered
Join us as we move, sweat, and laugh on 📅 Monday 10/4 @ 3pm AKST / 5pm MST / 7pm EST
Drop an emoji if you're excited! ⚡️
How are we different from other online programs? Check these points out and see if they resonate with you:
The slides read:
Ski Babes: Online Training for Winter
✅Train from your living room
✅Get strong & prevent injuries
✅Discharge stress
✅Improve mood & energy
✅Have as much fun as possible this winter!
🔹Online video workouts
🔹3 workouts each week
🔹35-45 minute each
🔹Bodyweight moves (with a few "toys")
🔹Specific exercises for strength & injury prevention for outdoorsy folks
🔹Bi-weekly mindset & nutrition practices
My style is down-to-earth, body-positive, and mental health-informed.
➡️Check out the Busy Day Workout on my website or register for one of our upcoming partnership workouts (link in bio) to see if it resonates with you.
⭐️We start training Monday October 11!
Head to the link in my bio to sign up!
What are you looking forward to this winter?
Listen, the last 18 months have been heavy, and we're tired. Our attention naturally goes to the problems, and there are lots of those to worry about these days.
But right now, I want to open some light into your daily feed with what we can look forward to this winter ❄️🌞
Winter can be really fun! For example, this perfect ice day on Grewingk Glacier Lake was a highlight of last winter and I can only hope we get another day like it this year. 🤞🏼 What are some happy winter memories that live in your mind? Or what parts of winter get you excited?
So here’s my answer(s): Ice skating ⛸️ Skiing 🎿 Snow angels & snowball fights ☃️ Catching snowflakes on my tongue 👅❄️cozy sweaters & cups of hot drinks. 📔 Reading good books by the fireplace. 🍜 Soup. 🍦 Candy cane ice cream. ✨ And northern lights!
LMK yours in the comments! 👇🏼 Bonus points for finding an emoji that goes with yours :)
......
Ski Babes: Online Winter Sports Training (my other favorite part of winter) starts Monday October 11.
We focus on build mind & body strength so that you can manage the hard times, and fully enjoy the good times! Would love to have you, link in my bio.
📍Dena’ina land/ice 📷 @lucmehl #readyforwinter #protectourwinters #mentalhealthmatters #skibabestraining #yougotthis #Alaska #nordicskating
Which one are you?? (swipe 👈🏻)
Or maybe it’s a little bit of both? At least it is for me.
I can’t wait for ice skating and ski season and all the cozy things: sweaters and soup and books by the fire.
Also, there’s a part of me that dreads the darkness… and especially the energy and mood lag that often accompanies it.
This year more than ever -- we survived one covid winter and do we really have to do it again?
I absolutely believe it’s possible to thrive in the winter.
And for many of us, winter thriving requires really solid mental/physical/soul care.
My favorite winter care tools:
✅ regular sweat sessions
✅ outdoor time, in the sunny part of the day if possible
✅ community
✅ embracing hygge- intentionally seeking pleasure & comfort
✅ feeling my feelings (+1 for therapy)
It’s no accident that the top three on this list are the foundation of Ski Babes, my online winter training program.
♥️ The quality of my winters increased dramatically when I started doing these workouts. And then it increased again when I put the workouts online and the Ski Babes Community began to grow.
So if you can’t wait for winter… or if you already can’t wait for it to be over…
...I hope you take really good care of yourself this winter.
Put some thought in now about what can help set you up for success this season. Get a plan in place and a community around you to help you pull it off even when you don’t feel like it. If Ski Babes can help, we’d love to have you! We start up October 11.
NOW IN THE COMMENTS: if you had to pick one, which would you be?
⛷ if you’re “patiently” waiting for winter
🙈 if you’re getting ready for winter by hiding in a box
And if you have favorite winter self-care tools I’d love to hear them too!
Our lives have been full of plan B's in the last year
Life, especially pandemic life, seems to be determined to keep us on our toes.
Most recently @lucmehl and I had plans to go on a 3 week Brooks Range trip -- our annual tradition -- we canceled it in June when it was originally planned because Luke broke his foot and in September we canceled it again due to early winter conditions in the North.
We were definitely bummed about canceling the trip -- the route we had planned looked awesome -- but in retrospect, I'm realizing there are some things about Plan B that are also awesome.
Instead of this long trip with my typical trip partner, I was able to jump into a girl’s weekend in the Fall colors. Luc & I do a lot of trips together and we have our backcountry system dialed, but I'd forgotten how special it can be to travel with other folks, especially groups of women. I had such a great time with these friends -- this pic is @betsi_oliver … Plan B for Betsi?!
Luc & I also got in a shorter, closer-to-home trip that was amazing and speaks to the benefits of going with the flow & the potential for creative backup plans.
Shifting to Plan B might initially feel like a downgrade, but it also can help us shift out of our comfort zone and discover other cool new zones that we may want to visit more often.
What’s been your experience with Plan B’s this year, and what have you learned? 👇🏼👇🏼
👀 Fresh workout coming your way! 👀
We are so happy to partner with @jujumil for a fundraiser workout to benefit @colourthetrails and the amazing mission they have advocating for inclusive representation for outdoor spaces. Colour the Trails subsidizes outdoor adventures, create diverse content, and are actively working with allies to create the change they (and we!) want to see in the world.
Please join us in a celebration of movement with a Ski Babes style workout that lifts up the voice of Colour the Trails and all their efforts towards inclusivity in the outdoors!
When: Wednesday 9/29 @ 4pm AKST / 8pm EST
We'll be live on Zoom with the replay emailed out to all who register.
Tag your friends, family, community and be sure to register at the link in my bio 👆🏻
Come move with us and get a Colour the Trails + Ski Babes discount code! 🤩
And the textures ✨✨ 
It's no secret that berry season is one of my favorite times of the year. We owe so much to the Indigenous stewards of the land, who have kept these traditions alive and the ecosystems healthy enough to keep producing such abundance. Aakaluk @auntie_badooks shared this advice on Facebook last year and kindly gave me permission to share it here again -- I found it so helpful and hope you do too. After you read through, let us know how you’ll be using this guidance! 
Some lessons I've learned from walking uphill:
🦶🏼One step at a time will get you there.
💁♀️It's important to take breaks.
🍑The butt is the boss.
⏱It doesn't matter how long it takes.
💃Moving is winning.
🏔The work is always worth it.
✨______________ (add yours)
…….
P.S. many of these are mantras from the Ski Babes program!
In Ski Babes we train for winter from our living room, building functional strength for outdoor rec fun & injury prevention. The mantras help build the mental strength that often is helpful in a surprising way.
This year we’re starting up October 11, with free & by-donation classes in the two weeks prior. Join my email list at the link in my bio for all the info!