Jammy Minx goes to Everest

Day 1 - Kathmandu

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After a teary farewell (me) at Heathrow I zipped across the skies en route to Kathmandu via Doha.

Not much to report apart from I got upgraded for my Doha to Kathmandu leg, a last, welcome little slice of luxury for a while no doubt!

All the team had gathered earlier in the day or even the day before and I was the last to arrive at The Yak and Yeti hotel at 7pm the night before the Trek began.

Lots of the ladies have already over shopping expeditions into Thamel to pick up final bits and pieces for the Trek and I'm feeling a bit envious that I didn't get here sooner. Oh well, nothing to be done about it now, and Sue, the lady leading us, reassures me that we're to see the mountains so the way I've done it keeps focus.

After a quick dinner at the hotel's buffet - my last chance for meat and fresh fruit & veg I was told - and a trial run of the satellite phone and Sabre 1 (basically a portable mobile that connects via satellite - how cool!) from Inmarsat my awesome friend Ali gave me to borrow, it's time for bed.

Wake up call at 4:30 am for a shower and to gather everything together for our 6am flight to Lukla, the world's most dangerous airport (!) where we start our trek. Should be nothing if not exciting.

Bed time.

Posted November 1, 2011 by Jessie Allen

You don't know what you can do until you try

I've just experienced the most mentally and physically toughest three weeks of my life. Harder even then the four days I was in labour delivering my daughter (yes, really 4!)

I'm just back from 18 days of trekking in the Himalayas to reach Everest Base Camp in aid of international charity Women for Women. But just like my daughter's birth, the trek was one of the most rewarding and life changing events in my life.

About six months ago, I received an email from the charity looking for nine women to do this trip with Sue Harper Todd, one of only 5 British women to reach the summit of Everest. While we would not be summiting Everest, the trek to Base Camp would involve a serious time commitment, with travel and acclimatization, of 18 days. 9 days up, 3 down and a few days in Kathmandu to rest.

As part of the Everest Base Camp challenge, the charity asked each of us to pay our own way and commit to raising £10,000 each. £100,000 in total, all of which would go directly to the charity. Women for Women run year-long programmess in which women from war torn countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq and South Sudan, are taught marketable skills, their legal rights and are given counselling to rebuild their lives so they can become self-sufficient.

Physically, the Trek involved long days of trekking ultimately reaching an altitude of 5600 metres.

It was hard. Really, really, really hard. Uncomprehendingly-until-you-actually-experience-it-you've-got-no-idea-how-hard-it's-going-to-be-hard. And of course I didn't train enough. The trek was labeled as suitable for moderately fit walkers, which I thought, hey presto that's me. I do go to the gym after all and walk everywhere in London and regularly do yoga and pilates. Ha! Double ha!

We walked on average every day between 4 to 8 hours, mostly up hill with severe gradients, often on uneven, rocky terrain and always at ever increasing higher altitudes. High altitudes means there's less oxygen in the air so your muscles have to work that much harder. Just putting one foot in front of the required a serious conscious effort. Someone from our team saw us all trudging up one particularity steep hill on the way to Labouche and she likened us to astronauts. We were walking so slowly, she said it looked like we were walking on the moon. That's exactly what it felt like too. Moonwalking up a mountain but without the benefit of a can of oxygen on your back.

There were times when I only manged to get up steep 'hills' like Namche Hill which had a 500 metre rise at a gradient of 30 degrees by repeating to myself 'One. Foot. In. Front. Of. The. Other.' on a loop. It might have taken me five hours to get up that hill, but I did it.

But it was the combination of the physical challenge, with truly primitive conditions (I didn't shower for nine days and toilets are often just holes in the ground), increasingly limited food choices (rice, bread or potato and that's about it), the length of the journey, and of course, the group dynamics of nine strangers thrown together on this intense and tough journey, which really made this an endurance test. There were days that I really didn't think I could take any more - being unable to breathe or sleep, slipping on yak poop in a particularly perilous patch of trail, the no shower for nine days, the same stinking clothes, the altitude sickness, my heart continually pulled away by my two and a half year old daughter whom I left behind at home and missed deeply.

I despair to say that the day we trekked to Base Camp, our goal, my mind was tugging me back to relative comforts of our lodge. I no longer cared about reaching accomplishing our mission anymore. I just wanted to go home, see my daughter and get clean and eat vegetables.

But the strength of the group pulled me along and I did make it. And what an experience it was.

Not just to reach accomplish our goal, though that sense of achievement I'll take with me everywhere for a long time. But because we had a truly magical time there. We were blessed with having the Base Camp to ourselves for well over 40 minutes. We used the time to unfurl a string of prayer flags made by our supporters and some of the women in the programmess from around the world with wishes for love, peace and compassion we had brought with us. With the crisp Himalayan wind cracking the flags and the sun shining down on us, you could feel the energy of the prayers being taken up to Chhomolungma, the Tibeten name for Everest which means Mother Goddes of The Earth and granting their wishes.

As we were trekking back down to our lodge, one of the girls from our group received a call from a dear friend to say she had beat her cancer. Of course I said my own prayers for friends and family. I really do think the universe was listening to us that morning.

Above and beyond the innate amazingness of this trek, there was something extra magical about this group of women that spanned four generations and socio-demographic groups. I think it was because we were all drawn together by the philanthropic mission of the challenge and, that doing good karma spun its own magic in the universe.

Despite being strangers to each other, our group of ten disparate women bonded together and as a team we all urged each other on and made it as a group to Base Camp. That in itself was a major accomplishment; Sue said that at least one person from every expedition normally doesn't make it to Base Camp. 100% of our group making it is a rarity.

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In the end, ten women who did not know each other (but know, and like each other very much now) all made it and thrived. No one got hurt, injured or sick. We all accomplished our goal. We had the most glorious weather for the entire trek - sunny, crisp skies and no fog despite being just at the tail end of the monsoon season. Flights to and from Lukla, the village where the trek begins were delayed for two days but we were completely unaffected. There were no hiccups, no problems. Everything was as it was meant to be.

I wanted to do the trek for a myriad of motivations - for the love of my daughter - to do something really worthwhile that's worth telling her about. To step outside of my comfort zone - to reset my compass. Rather less inspirationally, to finally shift the extra baby weight I've been carrying around for over two years. And of course raise awareness (and money) of the amazing charity Women for Women International.

I succeeded in all those aspects, plus so much more.

Our trek leader Sue often says 'you don't know what you can do until you try'. It's so true. There were many times when I doubted myself and ability to do this challenge. But I did do it. And that feeling of empowerment is something I'll carry within me like a light that can never be extinguished. Within each of us lies such an incredible energy and power that daily life and routine dull over and we forget what we're made of. You can do whatever it is you set your mind to.

Having done this challenge now, I realise how lucky I am to be able to freely embark on such an amazing journey to the Himalayas and make it an achievement to be proud of.

But not all women in the world can claim such privileges and these are exactly the same people Women for Women are attempting to serve. Take Pari Gul's story for example.

Pari Gul is a 42-year-old Afghan woman, who after taking part in Women for Women’s first vocational training session in Afghanistan in 2002, took up stone polishing and as a result now heads a profitable, 500-employee stone cutting and polishing company in the Afghan capital, Kabul. Despite being threatened, harassed and accused of corrupting Afghan women by the local community, Pari Gul has persevered and been able to send her eight children, including three daughters, to university – a luxury she was deprived off. “Afghan women face so many problems in Afghanistan – beating, stoning, killing,” Pari Gul says. “Here we feel so lucky to be able to be a part of Women for Women, to learn skills, help our families, educate our children.”

You can read more incredible stories of empowerment here.

By supporting me today, you will invest in these courageous and underprivileged women who are eager and desperate to sustain their children and give them the chance of a brighter future.Thank you very much for your time and I hope from the depth of my heart that you can join me in making a difference in the world today. http://www.justgiving.com/Jessie-Allen

Namaste and much love. Jessie

PS. I was over ambitious in thinking that I'd be able to keep my blog up to date from the Himalayas. The hard physcial work and 6:30am starts often meant that rest was often the only thing on my mind. I did keep a daily diary though and will be updating it over the course of the next few weeks on here.

Posted October 26, 2011 by Jessie Allen

The adventure begins

I'd be lying if I said I was 100% looking forward to this. As I put the final touches on my preparations and countdown the hours until I board my plane bound for Kathmandu, I'm a bag full of emotions.

Nervous. Surely that plane going down near Everest a few weeks ago means they'll be extra cautious now?

Sad. I've never spent more then two days apart from little girl. The previous enticement of having so much 'me' time has waned by how much I'll miss her.

Scared. Have I packed all the right kit? Is my sleeping bag going to be warm enough to cope with minus 20 degrees?

Anxious. Have all those boxercise, yoga and Pilates sessions been enough or am I still dreadfully unfit?

Grateful. For the support of friends & family not only financially in these tight times, but for happily mucking in to look after Liv while I'm away. And of course Husband who pushed and pushed and pushed me to do this in the first place.

Because he knows what I'm like and that I need to shake my life up every now and again. Why can't I just take up sewing my mom asked. I don't know, maybe it's the Aquarian in me, but sewing is not headline hard enough for me.

As I sit here on the plane, waiting for take off, I have to keep reminding myself why I'm doing this. Because life has been lovely and content and comfortable.

Oh, that comfort. It's a killer that one. It is the death knell for growth, for pushing your boundaries, for becoming a wider and better person.

It all starts with a single step forward.

Posted October 4, 2011 by Jessie Allen

Jimmy Choo for £10!

T-minus 6 days to go until I swap my heels for some hiking boots. But while I'm stomping around in these rather less saucy beasts, you could be kicking around with this beauty on your arm.

The lovely ladies at Women for Women have organised a luxury raffle including lush products from Jimmy Choo, Alice Temperely and Joe Malone to name just a few.

It's a beautiful win-win for all.

Tickets cost £10 each and all the money raised will go towards our Trek Team’s fundraising goal. We're aiming to raise £100,000 for Women for Women International, to help women survivors of war rebuild their lives.

There's loads of fantastic prizes to win:

Jimmy Choo Parker L bag in Khaki python
Alice Temperley bag
Jo Malone Cologne
Crate of Champagne
Nancy Dee vintage dresses
A full outfit, styled and exclusively available from TopShop
Kate Spade Hand in Hand bracelet
Beauty Goody Bag
Odlo Women’s Sports Underwear
Augustina Gold Charm Necklace
Bottle of Smatt’s Jamaica Gold Rum

You can buy your tickets online by visiting my Justgiving page found on this blog and by making a donation of £10 per ticket.

Please specify the number of tickets you would like to purchase in your personalised message on my page.
Remember to register your name and contact details so we can get in touch with the prize winners!
Donations for purchasing tickets are not eligible for Gift Aid so don’t tick the Gift Aid box when you make your donation

Alternatively, you can buy tickets over the phone by calling Izzy Clark at Women for Women International on 0207 922 7774.

The raffle will be drawn on 30^th September and we will be in touch with the winners directly.

Good luck!

Filed under // Alice Temperly Champagne Jimmy Choo Jo Malone Kate Spade

Posted September 28, 2011 by Jessie Allen

Feeling like Tiger Woods or Why I love Cho Yung Tea

Cho Yung are a client of mine and thankfully I really love them. True, you would expect me to say that anyway as they pay my bills even if they were nasty buggers. But the joy for me is that they are a super group of nice, enthusiastic people to work with, so declarations of my affection are very true and run very deep.

Not only that, but their products actually WORK, which is something of a surprise in these days of over marketing. .Their flagship product is a weight loss tea and they're launching a heathy coffee soon which I'm sooooooo excited about.

But what makes me really love Cho Yung is that they share my belief in bettering the lives of women the world over. Be that women in the West who suffer fromlow self-esteem and confidence in themselvesbecause of their weight to helping women who have been through and seen terrible things in their lives becuase of war.

Drilled down, Cho Yung and Women for Women share the same belief that empowered women make the world a better place.

As such, Cho Yung have appointed Women for Women International as its Charity of the Year and are sponsoring me on my Everest Trek. How cool is that? I feel like Tiger Woods, only minus the adultery and car crashing of course.

Cho Yung will be donating a portion of its sales to my fundraising target and making a flat cash donation as well. They will also be pushing this blog and my fundraising page to its massive database of customers.We're also currently orghanising a celebrity gala ball with all proceeds going to the charity!

Please bear in mind though that I am still bearing the cost to actually go on the trek, a good £3,000 all in, so all money raised goes directly to the charity.

I'll still need your help in reaching my target of £10,000 though, so please continue to give so generously. All the better if I go over target. It only costs about £400 to send a woman on one of Woman for Woman's courses, so the more money, the more women who can benefit.

Filed under // cho yung everest women for women

Posted September 27, 2011 by Jessie Allen

The Wiggle Jiggle

Two words I never want to hear again:

Bleep.

Test.

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Prior to this Friday I was blissfully unaware of what one was. We didn't have to undergo that particular torture in my high school gym class (though we had others).

For those of you who don't know, bleep tests rate your VO2 and cardio vascular fitness. I learned about the bleep this weekend at the boot camp I was sent on by the lovely Cho Yung.

The test makes you run between two spots 20 metres apart. You have to run from one end to the other before the beep sounds. The beeps get shorter and shorter as the levels go up, there are 20, so soon your sprinting lots of metres lots of times with no rests. The idea is that you push yourself as far as you possibly can before you just can't beat the beep anymore.

Friends have said they've thrown up after they've had to do it in PE.

A perfect score is 20. David Beckham is the only known person to ever achieve that.

I am not David Beckham. I got to level 4.7.

Oh dear.

This does not bode so well for the trek. I'm working on it though and going to join a sports team to help with the cardio. The last time I donned sports kit was when I was goalie for my high school field hockey team. The thought of going back there seems pretty humorous to me but actually very compelling. Me competitive?

I learned all kinds of other things this weekend. I did a body composition test and found out that I weigh a figure that is too horrible to say. So I won't.

I don't believe in what scales say anyway - it's all about the wiggle-jiggle for me. If there's too much shaking going on in places that shouldn't, then it's time to do something about it. Some people join a gym. I decide to climb to Everest Base Camp.

I also learned I have 33.1% body fat (plus or minus 5%) which given my height and age falls a tiny amount into the overweight category. I should be somewhere between 25 - 33% body fat.You can see from these pictures where most of it resides. Ahem. Nigela and Katie Price better watch out,.

So that .1% extra equates roughly to 3-5 pounds. Roughly the same amount of wiggle-jiggle I felt unhappy with.

The wiggle-jiggle test is far more healthy and happy for women then those damn scales. Chuck em away sisters!

It's worked pretty well for me and is far more mentally healthy then striving to achieve some random number out of the air.

Posted September 19, 2011 by Jessie Allen

No pain, no glory

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I've definitely packed far more glamorous suitcases in my time.

I'm off on a weekend bootcamp tomorrow afternoon to help rev up my fitness levels in prep for the Trek. Or more appropriately kick start them post foodie - beachy France holiday last week. I'm so going to get my ass kicked this weekend.

My amazing and wonderful client, Cho Yung, are generously footing the bill for me to go this weekend. It's part of a wider initiative - deets soon. Love you guys!

So tonight instead of sarongs, espadrilles and big straw hats, it's trainers / sneakers, my trek boots, sports bras (sexxy), waterproof pants (trousers for you Brits, but can we just pause to think about water proof knickers for a minute. Ew. Carry on.) and my trusty North Face fleece all tucked away nice & neat in my weekender.

And of course a dash of leopard print, as I wouldn't be worthy of the self proclaimed Jammy Minx title without some animal pattern goin' on.

Today I also got my first round of three travel vaccines and my arms are killing me. Stupendous timing on my part just before some intensive physical excursion.

Two more rounds of Hepatitis A or B, I forget which, to come and some shots to buy me an extra day to get medical attention before death if I get bit by a rabid animal.

I also found out coffee might be a no-go thanks to a Cholera outbreak over there - apparently boiled water doesn't kill it 100%.

On the comfort level, today's prep is scoring pretty low. Especially about the news about potentially no coffee. Forget climbing 18,000 feet, this has got me shaking.

Putting all jest to side, these little traumas are seriously diddly-squat compared to the greater and wider traumas happening to women all over the world and especially in countries where Women for Women operates. I'm fortunate to have these problems, if they can even be called that, in the first place.

That reminds me, have you checked out what Women for Women do? If not, I urge you to. It is a truly extraordinary organisation: Www.womenforwomen.org.uk

Updates from the field this weekend as I sweat it out.

Filed under // Jammy Minx bootcamp cho yung everest leopard print travel women for women

Posted September 8, 2011 by Jessie Allen

Sneakers for swimsuits

I'd just like to say that I'll be swapping my stinky sneaks for a Speedo for the next few days as my training takes the form of morning swims here, sun salutations on the beach and cycling all week. BIkes out number cars where we're going which is going to be grand for Little Jammy Minx and my thighs.

Apparently il de Re is like Martha's Vineyard meets Paris on the beach. A sweet double hit to soothe my nostalgia for America while getting a dose of chic French off-duty life.

Shame Husband has to stay behind for work as we're both gasping for a break not having had a holiday this year. It's been torture listening to friends and colleagues talk about their recent summer travels and upcoming trips as we labour away.

(You probably all hate me now. Sorry. At least be comforted that I don't tan being a fair skinned, freckly red-head so there won't be any brown boasting when I get back.)

Au revoir for now.

More exciting news to come soon.

J xoxoxo

Filed under // Holiday sneakers swimming swimsuits training

Posted August 24, 2011 by Jessie Allen

Stiff dogs

Yoga and I have had an off and on relationship for about a decade now. We veer in and out of love together, sometimes intersecting, sometimes repelling.

Or rather, as a thousand year old practice (or older even - how old is Buddha?) yoga stays its ancient constant self and my exercise fitness regimes deviates from this to that and back again like a caffeine hyped up fly. But I always find my myself returning to the ancient practice.

Nothing quite beats its combination of strength, breath, calmness and acceptance. If you do yoga, you'll know what I'm talking about.

The last time I did yoga was when I was pregnant and divinely relaxing as it is, pregnancy yoga not hugely physically demanding.

Apart from doing that Princess posture where you've gotta lean back on your heels while your toes are curled under and try to be all serene while the tendons in your feet nearly tear with the all the extra weight you're lugging around. Apart from that though, it was great. And employers are legally obliged to let you go to health & well being classes when you're preggos. How cool us that??

Anyway.

It's been many 3 years since I've practiced with any real gusto and devotion.

So it was with no small amount of trepidation that I found myself back on the blue warrior mats at the local studio. In the intermediate Asthanga class no less.

But hey, you gotta start somewhere and there aren't that many weeks left of training left before 5 October.

After all those recent body combat and spinning classes, my hamstrings are tight, my hips high and my heels right off the floor in down dogs.

Yoga teaches us to breathe into areas of tension and pain - which is going to be really useful in the coming days when my arms are going to ache for the next week and on the trek itself.

So yoga, pilates, spinning and body combat have been my choices methods if training? Will it be enough when climbing to 18,000 feet?

We shall soon find out.