Not the kind of “are you mental?!” question people ask me when describing this trip. The kind of mental preparation to be ready to spend 7-months mostly solo moving my body all day, every day.

Mental preparation is a slippery beast -- not matter how much I visualize what it is going to be like, reality, I know, will have different plans… and that is part of the prep too — I must be ready to “go with the flow”, “roll with the punches”, and “take each day as it comes”. My mental preparation has undergone several iterations.

I first started to voraciously read all of the books about individuals who've undertaken similar challenges in hopes of finding inspiration, advice, and nuggets of take-aways I can apply to my own trip. Some of my favorite books were:

• Endure by Alex Hutchinson,

• Natural Born Heroes by Chris McDougall,

• The Push by Tommy Caldwell,

• Mastering the Art of Thru-Hiking by Liz Thomas,

• Breathe by James Nestor, and

• Pursuit of Endurance by Jennifer Pharr Davis.

The last book I listened on Audible was Mud, Rocks, and Blazes by Heather 'Anish' Anderson that chronicled her journey Fastest Known Time (FKT) on the Appalachian Trail. Inspirational!

Next, I've practiced meditation and journaling to dig deeper into the motivations that drive me. It's allowed me to firmly create my "why" and also to create mental mantras that I repeat to myself when encountering difficult situations. The repetition allows me to focus on what I am capable of vs my struggle.

And lastly, tried to create small little mental tricks to bring joy, such as:

• Asking a friend (thanks Joe and Derek) to pick out the gaiters I’ll wear daily from Dirty Girl Gaiters

• Receiving thoughtful notes from friends in each of my resupply boxes (you all are the best!)

• And painting my toe nails for the first time … I chuckle every time I see them!

Here goes nothing!