Athleta Chi

Ski Conditioning

Women's Quest — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 23:23:03 +0000

by Christina Russell, Women's Quest
Every fall, the approaching ski season brings excitement to avid skiers across the country. When most of us think of returning to snow, we recall the sizzle of our quads as they seared with burning pain from the first punishing bump runs of the year. The natural inclination is to head to the gym and push some heavy weights to gain strength. While it is important to prepare the legs for guiding us downhill, neglecting other aspects of the sport’s demands leaves some body regions incapable of matching stronger areas and thus we can be more vulnerable to injury. A comprehensive program blends leg strength and power with core strength, agility, aerobics, and balance, incorporating a series of progressively harder exercises to challenge your abilities and skills as they progress. Here are several of the basics that can get you started on your quest to grace the slopes with panache...

Training, Riding and Guiding in Africa

Sarahlee Lawrence — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:58:35 +0000

by Sarahlee Lawrence
Inquisitive, reticulated giraffes walked gracefully up to us while our horses grazed. Some days we slipped through a herd of sixty or more, towering like a cathedral. I rode where the only trails are elephant trails, the sky is so vast it seemed to wrap around me, and the Southern Cross and Big Dipper sat in the same sky. Horses carried me through the still wild bush of the Laikipia District in Kenya...

Climbing Problems

Shannon Mullen — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 18:03:07 +0000

by Shannon Mullen, Journalist & Outdoor Girl
In climbing, you learn mostly through failure,” my instructor said with a grin, “but success is that much sweeter.” I’d just fallen off the rock wall for the fifth time at an indoor climbing gym in Lander, Wyoming. The small ranching town in the Rocky Mountains is famous in this sport for its proximity to breathtaking, steep-walled canyons, towering boulders left by the glaciers that carved them, and the scores of talented athletes who come in droves to scale both...

Comfort and Joy, Comfort and Ease

Margaret Burns Vap — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 15:00:50 +0000

by Margaret Burns Vap, Big Sky Yoga Retreats
Welcome to the holiday season. It can easily become overwhelming and stressful if we get swept up in the current of consumerism and the idea that more is better. How to find holiday joy and meaning? Firmly ground your heels in tadasana (mountain pose), adopt an attitude of gratitude, and sprinkle a little yoga philosophy over whatever your holiday serves up this year...

Glacier Racing

Stacey Cook — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:49:24 +0000

Stacey Cook, U.S. Ski Team Member, October 28th
The first race of the year is now under my belt! We raced on a glacier in Austria called Solden, under blue skis and on very icy conditions. Solden is always a weird race...

Hooked on Triathlons

Team Athleta — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 23:07:34 +0000

by Renee Scherck-Meyer
About two years ago, I decided that my sedentary lifestyle at age 41 was not healthy, and I started training to run a 5K. In 2007, I completed my first 5K in 48 minutes... pretty slow, but I felt I had accomplished much when I crossed that finish line...

No More Excuses

Shannon Mullen — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 17:15:04 +0000

by Shannon Mullen, Journalist & Outdoor Girl
In a few days I’m leaving almost everything I know to head west in search of new challenges, with only a sketch of a plan and the freedom to ditch it entirely. I’ve always thought that I’m the type of person who needs a big catalyst to make a decision like this, some life-altering event. Instead all it took was admitting to myself that I’ve stopped learning where I am, mostly because I can’t see past my limits...

Fit for Good

Kristina Pinto — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 08:00:45 +0000

by Kristina Pinto
Like many women, I started running for the most basic of reasons: to stay fit. In a relatively short time, I realized that being physically fit is one thing, but as a whole person, I can be much more fit if I translate my running into community service, and running races to benefit various charities has become important to my fitness routine...

Holiday Behind-the-Scenes Gallery

Team Athleta — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 21:52:32 +0000

Team Athleta knows how to weather the cold in style by skiing, snow boarding, ice skating, hiking, and being on the move into the wee hours while shooting in Portillo, Argentina and Park City, Utah. Enjoy this glimpse into the creation of our Holiday catalogs along with spectacular scenery, spoon balancing, snowman hugging, and all-around silliness...

Kettlebell Sport Comes to Athleta

Team Athleta — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:02:22 +0000

The ladies and gents of Athleta had a special treat last Friday when Maya and the Ice Chamber Kettlebell Team came to our Petaluma headquarters to share their passion (and shed their perspiration) for Kettlebell Sport. Here are some of the highlights...