Marta in her own words:
“My name is Marta and I come from a small town in Poland called Pila. Growing up I was raised by a single mum; I had a good but humble upbringing, I always loved the outdoors and hanging out with my friends.
My childhood in Poland was a happy time in my life, but after my first trip to London as a teenager it all changed. I realised very quickly that living in Poland wasn’t for me anymore; I had big dreams and ambitions that I knew I couldn’t pursue in my hometown. I spent one more year living in Poland, learning English and saving ready to finally enter the ‘big world’… then I moved to London.
Taking this chance opened up so many opportunities for me. I got a good degree, good job, I travelled the world and had some awesome adventures whilst doing so, that I’ve decided to share them here. So, here I am, writing my blog, hoping to inspire and invite you on my journey.
My love for travelling has grown immensely over the years. The more countries I saw, the more countries I wanted to see. Along the way, my style of travelling changed; I had even bigger accomplishments on my agenda. So I set myself two goals: to climb to the highest peak on each continent, the challenge known as 7 Summits; and to reach the highest peak of each European country, which I call The Crown of Europe.
Out of the 7 Summits, I’ve already completed 5 (the highest peak in Europe, Africa, North and South America, Antarctica) and I am getting ready to attempt another one later this year… Everest. I am extremely excited about it as this is also the last continent I still haven’t seen.
The second goal is to reach the highest peak of each European country, which I call
The Crown of Europe There are 50 countries but 48 peaks and I have already completed 17 of them. However, this leaves plenty of adventure still ahead…”
*This episode was recorded in 20th January 2022 - Marta summited Everest 6.25am on May 15th, 2022.
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Show notes
- Who is Marta
- Moving to the UK from Poland 17 years ago
- Her goal to climb the 7 summits
- Wanting to climb the highest peak in each European Country
- Growing up in Poland and what her early years were like
- Not being close to the mountains as a child
- Being inspired by her father who was very outdoorsy
- Getting use to the cold weather
- Her passion for travel
- Wanting more from travel and wanting to combine it with adventure
- Setting herself 2 BIG goals
- The Crown of Europe of Challenge
- Climbing Kilimanjaro first
- Climbing Mt. Blanc and then Elbrus.
- Climbing Aconcagua in South America
- Climbing Denali in North America which was the toughest climb she’s done.
- Go to Antarctica to climb Vincent and why it was her favourite climb so far
- Taking on Everest in April 2022
- Leaving Carstensz Pyramid until the end due to the political situation and the costs involved.
- Costs of climbing mountains and how she’s paying for the adventures
- Going to Everest in 2021 and having her trip cancelled
- Funding her challenges
- Her fear of dying while in the mountains
- Dealing with the downtime and how she handled the waiting.
- Handling her period while in the mountains
- Using wet wipes to shower
- Stop taking the pill when you are at high altitude as it thickens your blood
- Wearing a nappy on the summit push?
- Trying things out in advance
- Dealing with stress diarrhea while climbing
- The mental side of the challenge
- Dealing with stress and anxiety
- How you can change your thinking
- Focusing on what she can control
- Visiting the Altitude Centre in London
- Getting physically strong and what training looks like this year
- Developing her own training plan and being flexible with what it looks like
- Stretching for recovery and eating well
- Being anaemic and feeling tired
- Feeling more relaxed and knowing what to expect this time around
- Being guided by Nirmal Purja team
- Elite Expeditions
- Being inspired by Martyna Wojciechowska
- How you can follow Marta
- Final words of advice and wisdom
- Being a normal person and making the decision to go for it.
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