YEP 6 Camp Mongolia Day 4
Day 4 Blog written Jen Ho and Nicolette
“Keep on going!”, “You’re doing great!” and “Keep those legs pumping!”… These were the phrases which echoed through the Swiss Alps throughout the day.
These words first began when we set off on our morning exercise along the winding pastoral roads of Chateau-d’Oex. We had no idea that we were embarking on what would be the most strenuous morning exercise yet. Up the road, up the hill, and up one steep slope after another we went. Only teamwork kept us going, as we supported each other in times of exhaustion. Nevertheless, it was all worthwhile as the view from the top of the hill was breathtaking.
After a satisfying breakfast, we split ourselves into two groups – one to the gym for the Mayo Clinic fitness tests and the other to learn the art of filming from the 師 父 (pronounced as sifu, which means “master”), Moose. Then we had a break for our sumptuous lunch of lasagna and switched our activities.
The Mayo Clinic test evaluated our body composition, i.e. BMI, bioelectric impedance (which basically tells you how much fat you have), waist to hip ratio, breath holding and VO2 max, which is the maximum rate at which the body takes up and utilises oxygen during exercise. For the VO2 max test, we had to run on a treadmill, the speed and gradient of which increased progressively every two minutes. We had to run until our breaking point. It was inspiring to see the perseverance and endurance shown by all of the Young Explorers and Martin and Alexis. It was also interesting to find out how fit we were as both of us had never done a fitness test before. Here are what some of our fellow YE’s had to say about the test:
“It’s a good experience to get pushed to our limits by the support of our friends.” – Tirza
“I have never experienced a test like this before. For me it was really worth it to get to know my limits and to push them.” – Joanna
Meanwhile, the other group was given a crash course on the various ways of filming: from storyboards to panning, and from crash zoom to time lapse. We got to view some of the Himalaya camp videos for inspiration. And off we went gallivanting into the countryside, a video camera in hand and bursting with ideas.
Later we went back to the hotel where we had a surprise in store: we were to go out somewhere for a mystery activity that was nowhere to be found on the schedule. Together, we walked to a nearby field where we found two pairs of wooden boards to which we strapped ourselves. Our task was to waddle as gracefully as was humanly possible across the field, around a cone and back to our original position, and with the lead of Martín Añón and Lucas respectively, we worked great in our teams. Truly, teamwork and communication are key in reaching our goals.
Before we finally floated into dreamland (on the super comfortable Hotel de Ville beds), we had yet another surprise. We could watch the World Cup semi-final match between Spain and Germany (after all, half of us YE’s here are German supporters!). Later, we all went to sleep contemplating the just as exciting day ahead!