Field notes:

Thriving below zero: an Antarctic experience with the Frozen Dagger expedition
Umeå Sweden, Hello Nature Sweden, Tales of Adventure, Chris Shirley MA FRGS, carbohydrates, fats, protein, Chris Shirley, partners, expedition partners, ski, biomedical sciences, human performance, Rock to Recovery, Movember, Royal Marines Commando, Royal Marines Commando officer, recaffeinate, social mobility, anaerobic respiration, katabatic winds, adventure nutrition requirements, Ali MacDonald, resilient nutrition, Swedish nature, Antarctic experience, expedition, joie de vivre, Cold management, Umeå Northern Sweden, world-record expedition, south pole, the tales of adventure, brand design, Haus of Hiatus, Frozen dagger, Frozen Dagger expedition Chris Shirley MA FRGS Umeå Sweden, Hello Nature Sweden, Tales of Adventure, Chris Shirley MA FRGS, carbohydrates, fats, protein, Chris Shirley, partners, expedition partners, ski, biomedical sciences, human performance, Rock to Recovery, Movember, Royal Marines Commando, Royal Marines Commando officer, recaffeinate, social mobility, anaerobic respiration, katabatic winds, adventure nutrition requirements, Ali MacDonald, resilient nutrition, Swedish nature, Antarctic experience, expedition, joie de vivre, Cold management, Umeå Northern Sweden, world-record expedition, south pole, the tales of adventure, brand design, Haus of Hiatus, Frozen dagger, Frozen Dagger expedition Chris Shirley MA FRGS

Thriving below zero: an Antarctic experience with the Frozen Dagger expedition

After designing his expedition’s branding in 2022, I travelled to Umeå, northern Sweden, to meet Sam Cox, a former Royal Marines Commando officer, and see how he is preparing for a world-record breaking expedition to the South Pole at the end of 2023.

 Entitled the ‘Frozen Dagger’ project, Sam will be skiing almost 2000 kilometres in the name of biomedical sciences and human performance, whilst also fundraising for the Movember and Rock to Recovery charities. A hugely inspiring endeavour, I’m sure you’ll agree!

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The 7 principles I follow for taking on physical challenges that intimidate me
ironman, resilience, silk road mountain race (SRMR), social mobility, determination, perseverance, motivation, neuroscience, BBC, physical challenges, intention-behaviour gap, BJJ, Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, London marathon, life goals, mountaineering, mountain biking, Kyrgyzstan, bikepacking, world record, silk road mountain race, marathon, run, bike, Swim, IM triathlon, ironman triathlon, the Iron-nun, Madonna Buder Chris Shirley MA FRGS ironman, resilience, silk road mountain race (SRMR), social mobility, determination, perseverance, motivation, neuroscience, BBC, physical challenges, intention-behaviour gap, BJJ, Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, London marathon, life goals, mountaineering, mountain biking, Kyrgyzstan, bikepacking, world record, silk road mountain race, marathon, run, bike, Swim, IM triathlon, ironman triathlon, the Iron-nun, Madonna Buder Chris Shirley MA FRGS

The 7 principles I follow for taking on physical challenges that intimidate me

82 years old and completing an Ironman triathlon. That’s a 2.4-mile (3.8-km) swim, followed by a 112-mile (180-km) cycle, and finishing with a 26.2-mile (42.2-km) run. Just think about that for a second longer.

It’s stories like hers that motivate me to keep going when the journey ahead seems impossible to move forward.

In the next few years, I'll be aiming to complete the Silk Road Mountain race, a 1700-kilometre continuous bikepacking race in Kyrgyzstan, and one of my biggest personal challenges since a mountaineering accident in 2019 almost permanently stopped me from doing things I love altogether.

There are the 7 principles that I use to fit training to previous adventures that I’ll use to get myself to the finishing line.

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