Mikael Strandberg

Mikael Strandberg Explorer and Documentary Film Maker. All info can be found at
http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/

Första gången jag försökte mig på meditation var i Indien år 1981. Bilden här är tagen av min gode vän Lars Wanfors. På ...
03/03/2023

Första gången jag försökte mig på meditation var i Indien år 1981.

Bilden här är tagen av min gode vän Lars Wanfors. På ett billigt hotell i norra Thailand. Ett sådant där hotell där det fanns hål i väggarna och man kunde kika in i grann rummen där det stönades mycket. Jag vägde strax över 45 kg.

Ett av huvudmålen med den resan var att eventuellt bli munk. Jag var inte den ende resenären i Indien som var intresserad av detta. Det var högvis av mer eller mindre förvirrade västerlänningar med lite pengar, höga förhoppningar av ett mer spirituellt liv och för flertalet blev det mest en spännande resa. Som för mig. Jag var redan såld på resandet, men under det här året bestämde jag mig för att mitt liv skulle bli att skriva och berätta. Men jag var på det klara att det inte räckte med att vara en "vanlig" resenär för att få folk att läsa det jag skrev. Men vad?

Jag gav upp min munk idéer, med det alla tankar om 1 månads vattenfasta, meditation och ett enkelt liv utan ägodelar. Likväl fann jag livsriktning. I Katmandu träffade jag en irländare som hade cyklat dit från sin gröna ö. Där föddes min idé om att långfärdscykling var vägen för att nå "framgång".

Jag hade redan innan denna resa insett att det är viktigt att vara i fysisk form också. I Vansbro hade Medborgarhuset öppnat ett gym och det passade mig perfekt på alla sätt och vis. Som ni ser på fotot här har jag en T-shirt av en kroppsbyggare som hette Andreas Cahling och var för sin tid. Han var någonting så udda som en vegetarian.

Då, den tiden under början av 80-talet så var spiritualism, veganer, meditation och yoga sett med allra största misstänksamhet av det västerländska samhället.

Idag är förändring på gång. Helt enkelt för att det behövs. Livet är för inrutat, stressigt och alla skall vara perfekta. Här hemma. 40 år senare har jag börjat meditera igen. Mycket till följd av att jag inspireras av Hannah. En guldklimp i mitt liv. Jag försökte redan år 2015 återskapa mina munk idéer för att det var en tuff tid i livet och jag behövde riktning och lugn. Men den munken jag träffade, tyckte att det var bättre jag hittade en bra terapeut. Han hade rätt. Nu blev det inte så, livet rullade på och Grönland hände.

Nu mediterar jag igen. Det gör skillnad. Mer fokuserad, lugnare och mer nöjd med livet. Det är dessutom en del i min plan att leva maximalt och länge! Rätt diet, rätt träning, rätt sömn och meditation!

Best lesson I have learned in my life of training?Listen to your body. Sure, I measure my sleep,heart rate, pulse, HRV, ...
26/02/2023

Best lesson I have learned in my life of training?

Listen to your body.

Sure, I measure my sleep,heart rate, pulse, HRV, VOmax each day and training session, but it is how you actually feel that decides what one can do. For this reason, even though doctors advice was, rest for 1-2 weeks, after my injury last week. I just rested one day. ecause my body was fine, leg was stiff and swollen, but not blue! Then I started to cross country ski and do a few hours each day with my girls alpine style. I see the alpine skiing as training too, important one, to measure speed, focus and balance. Needed for sure in arctic expeditions on ski! And it turns out all the leg training AND, this I believe nowadays, choice of food, active sleep and daily training made it possible to just rest one day.

Not hard training each day. I do a schedule looking like this:

I have a 9 day week, train 3, rest one, train two, rest 3. Start all over.

I hope my heel, tigh and knee is ready for running again: i feels a bit like start all over again. I talked to Joel Friel last week, who´s book Fast after 50 is a great book, https://joefrieltraining.com/, and he said recovery is more than fine up until 70. Then it gets trickier. If one eat properly, rest as one should, sleep well and train regularly.

I have lost 4 kg:s since I returned to Marta Naczyks diet again, https://www.instagram.com/martanaczyk/, mid-January. Still 3-5 kgs to go to get back in perfect shape. I checked my develpment or tracked my results since I started using the Oura ring, https://ouraring.com/, in April 2020 and I can see sleep patterns, medium pulse is definitely getting better. I avergae 6.30 hours of sleep a day, which seems to be ok considering age. But when together with Hannah, a slept another hour a day. So Hannah rocks! She has also made me interested in breathing, meditation and spritualism. I am looking into it and did my first meditation this morning since I was 19 and wanted to become a monk in India.

On route up to Lima and the north, again i listened to Rich Roll´s podcast. I like him because he has gone through a lot of hardship in life but turned it into something good. He is an athlete and does ultra running and triathlons. I really liked these podcasts, which i recommend for those who care about having a healthy life!

1. A great interview with Alexander Bu, who trains the two best traithlon athletes in the world. Really, really good. https://www.richroll.com/podcast/olav-aleksander-bu-729/

2. Dan Buettner, my old cycling buddy on aging, longevity and food. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMNQflEDaWg&ab_channel=RichRoll

3. A great masterclass in longevity https://www.richroll.com/podcast/longevity-masterclass-688/

4. David Siclair on the science aroung longevity (for anyone over 40!) https://www.richroll.com/podcast/david-sinclair-498/

5. Matthew Walker on the latest science on sleep https://www.richroll.com/podcast/matthew-walker-600/

I get a lot of questiond about training, longevity and so on. I hope this helps a bit!

More to come!

Do comment!

25/02/2023

Dana and Eva contemplating our next cycling adventure. And where too.

Yet another setback.For this reason I feel sorry for myself. Meaning cheap red wine and 200 grams of chocholate. Sending...
20/02/2023

Yet another setback.

For this reason I feel sorry for myself. Meaning cheap red wine and 200 grams of chocholate. Sending texts, voicemails and videos to Hannah and her love is bigger and stronger than any love I have ever received. I am a very priviliged man. And she gives perspective to my situation.

"You are never slowing down. You just force everything at full speed. You need to take time to enjoy life. Breathe, meditate and love."

What happened? See here, a proper, I feel sorry for myself and life is unfair video https://youtu.be/sTfPEFMdNXQ

Hannah is obviously right. The problem is, I KNOW how short life is. I just need to live it to its fullest at full speed. Reality is, in a hundred years nobody will remember anyone of us reading this. This is life. Few understand this. So live!

So, I am in recovery again. But it is just as life is, full of obstacles. You swear and curse when they happen, deal with them and full speed again. And meeting Hannah is like written in the sky, she will make a difference. Hannah is an old long distance cyclist with China as a speciality and she works as hard at training as me, as motivated, has two kids, want to achieve things and home school her kids. All which I find very, very interesting. She is also into breathing, mediation, yoga and spiritual depth. All helpful to me, for sure. I am looking into it. She is a blessing in my life. Right now she´s in the mountains north of Quebec with her lovely kids.

Every time I run into an obstacles, my girls show their super sides. They are so loving, helful and very able to sort out problems. They cook, get groceries, clean the house and show that they have what it takes in tough situations.

That said, I am still a parent. So today, when I couldn´t ski, a bit cold out there, it was like at every football training that I am there to watch them (every one of them), most of the time I freeze my butt of just in wait for them to turn up. I love it though. most of the time.

Ok, I am still targeting the North pole, north west passage and the Greenland icecap. Just another setback. Many more to come.

Girls wanna watch a móvie now.

I am really to exhausted to write. I have just left the girls at their football training, hurried to a shopping mall, fo...
15/02/2023

I am really to exhausted to write. I have just left the girls at their football training, hurried to a shopping mall, found a store selling rubber rings for my Bialetti and I have bought a birthday cake. Princess tårta. A big one. Half for Dana, half for Eva.

I have bought it for the girls because I am in shock. Eva actually remembered my birthday. She came home from school just in time for a snack before cycling to the football pitch, 4 kms away, smiled at me, gave me voluntarily a hug and said Happy Birthday papa!

Dana had no clue of course. She is just like me. I wouldnt know if it is Christmas if it wasnt for the girls. But Dana know other stuff. Like how to get papa to buy her stuff.

Cake she shouted. Princess Cake! And a big one. We need to celebrate.

So I found one. Discounted because I have bought way to much food at the food chain ICA. She won't know. I think. She is good at seeing through my investments of cheap stuff. She is too old to see what is fake or not.

I love being with the girls. Every minute. But it isnt easy to be the only parent at times. That is why I get up at 4 every morning to get my work and the first part of my training done before they wake up. I cycle with them to school every morning, so I can be with them as much as possible. And get some excercise too. A 45 min ride.

I do get things together, just. That is why I go to bed at 9. Exhausted. Every night.

That all said, on my birthday, I feel like the most priviliged fella on earth. Great kids, great woman in my life, great friends, great family, great ex wife, great job and a great inspiring life.

But, I do have some trouble with my left calf. Forced rest until...maybe after the upcoming week in Lima?

A Swedish take on life.

Published 7 years ago.A great evening indeed! So sorry Fred have moved on to higher exploration!Honestly, nowadays I try...
14/02/2023

Published 7 years ago.

A great evening indeed! So sorry Fred have moved on to higher exploration!

Honestly, nowadays I try not to don a suit. I just ain´t my style anymore. But the other day, I did it out of respect and it turned out a really nice evening. And, I came across a Swedish explorer/traveller who for change I think does something really good. Lars Larsson has dwelled deep into the life of Sven Hedin and I really enjoyed listening to his stories. Yes, the suit is to big. This happens when you loose 19 kg and weigh the same as I did as a 20 year old. AND, yes, wine does cause a higher effect with less wieght I did notice. This is just after two glasses.
Right now I am packing again. But not a suit, but newly invested clothes (my yearly clothes investment picked by my wife, since i only wanna look presentable for her and the daughters). I have bought clothes for a humid, around 30 degrees Celsius climate. I am also packing my work tools, the cameras, hard discs, tripods, Zoom H6 and SD-cards.

I met Don Walsh the first time back in 2016. He immediately struck me as a very down to earth fella. He told me a lot ab...
24/01/2023

I met Don Walsh the first time back in 2016. He immediately struck me as a very down to earth fella. He told me a lot about his upbringing, which was demanding. He immediately felt like a good friend.

We have communicated irregularly throughout the years since. Last time I heard from him was at the end of the pandemic and I wrote to him that I was reading Barry Lopez last book and who just died and that the two met regularly as well. He wrote he was getting older.

I write this, because on this day in 1960, Don Walsh and Jacques Piccard descended to 10,911 meters (35,797 ft) in the Pacific Ocean aboard the bathyscaphe USS Trieste.

A famous real first! And I know the Explorers Club have/Had a tribute with him today. I wish I could have been there!

80 kg står det på vågen. Jag har just kört intervaller, bastat och doppat mig i det iskalla vattnet vid Ribersborgs badh...
15/01/2023

80 kg står det på vågen.

Jag har just kört intervaller, bastat och doppat mig i det iskalla vattnet vid Ribersborgs badhus. Jag är i någon sorts chock. För det första för den handlingsförlamning jag upplever när jag stiger ned i det iskall vattnet. 5 grader. Detvär som jag fryser till is. Och min första tanke är, hur skall det då vara om jag hamnar i det iskalla Nordpolsvattnet redan iskall i kroppen på grund av den låga temperaturen? Med alla grejer?

För det andra så visar vågen att jag trots all aktivitet både i Lima och på Teneriffa, gått upp 2½ kg. Det är Hannahs goda mat! Det gör att jag inser att det är dags att på allvar justera vardagen återigen till ett enda tränande och rätt ätande. Start måndag. Ultralöparen och dietisten Marta Naczyk´s Nutrition plan 1. Jag kommer att vara hungrig en månad, men det är som det är. Jag måste ned till 73 kg. Min bästa vikt.

Mitt mål är fortfarande att skida till Nordpolen från Ward Island, Kanada. Men innan dess behöver jag en förberedelse tur. Endera Grönland. Eller kanske Baffin Island i Kanada till hösten? Något blir det. Problemet med Grönland är de enorma kostnaderna, de osannolika pappersarbetet och att man måste ha sällskap. Och att hitta rätt sällskap är inte lätt.

Varför Nordpolen? Allt har att göra med mitt stora intresse runt åldrande. Jag vill verkligen utmana åldrandet. Och det går. Visserligen spelar generna en betydande roll, men genom att äta rätt, sova och träna på rätt sätt så går det att skjuta fram döden. Forskandet runt åldrandet är oerhört intressant. Läs boken Evigt Ung av Peter Ottsjö. Spännande och mycket inspirerande.

"Hur orkar du hålla på så här?" frågade en bekant häromdagen: "Hur får du ihop vardagen?"

Rutiner, planering, ha kul, njuta av livet och disciplin, svarade jag. Jag har svårt att förstå folk som inte vill satsa fullt ut att leva, utan kasta bort livet när det är så kort. Om man är frisk. Och genom träning och äta rätt går det ju att hålla borta en massa onödiga sjukdomar.

Jag går ju upp 3 eller fyra varje morgon. Då hinner jag göra en halv arbetsdag innan tjejerna vaknar. Så ge dem all kärlek och stöd de behöver för ännu en skoldag. Så har jag en hel dag att jobba eller träna. Eller bägge. Jag lägger mig nio. Trött och nöjd.

Klart jag går in lite i väggen av och till. Men jag har fantastiska människor runt omkring mig. Och tjejerna är ju helt underbara. De långa dagarna är måndag och onsdag när de har träning på Malmö IP. Och så har jag ju Hannah nu, trots att hon återvänt till andra sidan jordklotet, till sina barn. Men nu går det ju att prata över nätet så att säga.

Nu kör vi fullt ut! Igen!

Yesterday I did my first run in over a year and a half.I took Hannah to see the beechforest in Torup and did a 7 km run....
12/01/2023

Yesterday I did my first run in over a year and a half.

I took Hannah to see the beechforest in Torup and did a 7 km run. My main object was to see if my knee injury was gone. And start on a new running schedule. Goal is to get back on the ultra running scheme and some kind of winter adventure this autumn. And, yes, it was...a challenge!

My watch and Ouraring tells me my VO2max is good. According to my age. It should be extremely good. So this shows I am still in recovery. And have a long way to go. A uge challenge. Which I like. I have started upon a new one.

It is great to be back with the girls again. It is almost a moth since I last saw them. Yesterday school and football training started again. In this month I have been in Lima skiing and with Hannah in teneriffe. An extraordinary time!

Hannah will be leaving tomorrow, heading back to her life on the other side of the pond. Being without here will be a huge challenge, but it is what it is. She has become extremely important to me and she has sorted out an important missing piece of my life. Love, closeness and my bad sleeping patterns.

Many ask me who is Hannah and how did we meet. She has best described this herself in these two pieces of writing. She is a mom, a photographer, writer, traveller, cyclist and a wonderful human being. Read this to learn more.

1. https://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2022/11/27/hannah-pierce-carlson/
2. https://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2023/01/10/hannah-pierce-carlsson/

She is active on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/gofeetgo_tv/ and has her own homepage https://hannahpiercecarlson.wordpress.com/

Now, I have to take Eva on her monthly visit to the eye doctor.

Yesterday Hannah and me met with a very good and old friend of mine, Olly Steeds. We met back in 2002 when I was plannin...
08/01/2023

Yesterday Hannah and me met with a very good and old friend of mine, Olly Steeds. We met back in 2002 when I was planning my Kolyma journey. He had ideas to travel through Siberia with reindeers. That did not happen. For Olly. I did it back in 2015 with the Frozen Frontier team. Olly's fantastic wife is from Teneriffe and we met his lovely daughters yesterday! He has two like me. Olly runs Nekton Mission, and incredibly important mission. See https://nektonmission.org/

Hannah and me did our last hike before leaving Teneriffe. It was a wonderful, but also emotional journey. Very much due to the fact that Hannah wrote a very honest and wonderful piece about our situation. Do read here https://hannahpiercecarlson.wordpress.com/2023/01/08/universe-figure-this-one-out/

This has been an extraordinary time on all levels. We are very priviliged. But ww never forget who we are and where we come from.

Now back home!

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