Gowri Varanashi became the first Indian woman to execute the climbing route ‘French Indian Masala’, a popular rock climbing route in Badami. She climbed at a grade of 5.12c (Yosemite Decimal System, US) or 7B+ (a French rock climbing rating).
She has practiced climbing on the hills of Ramanagaram with rock climbers from Bengaluru. Gowri is also an avid wildlife conservationist, nature educator and works along with local communities in the Amazon Rainforest to help provide sustainable employment and habitat protection.
In the US, Gowri works with schoolchildren by taking them for outdoor nature education.
She is a true athlete from a non-competitive background paving a way for herself after climbing a much harder grade 8a in 2020.
Check out Gowri Varanashi in conversation with WF President, Ms. Namita Nayyar on her passion for rock climbing, being a wildlife conservationist, health & fitness routine and future goals
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Being an adventure enthusiast since her childhood, you hit the headlines in January 2018 by becoming the first Indian woman to execute the climbing route ‘French Indian Masala’. What excites you most about rock-climbing as
a sport?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
Rock climbing for me is all about body movement and solving problems. It poses moments where I have to pause and think “how am I going to get to that next hold” which involves my mind for problem-solving and it is a full-body workout to actually execute that move on a vertical rock face. Climbing allows me to be outdoors and close to nature and it feels scary enough at times to make it really exciting and thrilling. More than anything it teaches me about myself, it helps me build confidence in myself and I realize I can do things I would have never imagined I could do. It is a full-body workout without having to do an atypical gym workout, so working out and being fit becomes fun and playful!
FULL INTERVIEW ON NEXT PAGE!
This interview is exclusive and taken by Namita Nayyar, President womenfitness.org and should not be reproduced, copied or hosted in part or full anywhere without an express permission.
All Written Content Copyright © 2021 Women Fitness Org
Ms. Namita Nayyar
You climbed at a grade of 5.12c (Yosemite Decimal System, US) or 7B+ (a French rock climbing rating). Please elaborate on this? The first thing that struck you when you reached the final anchor.
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
This the grading system followed in climbing to know what difficulty level we are climbing at and even though climbing is not only about climbing hard, it helps to compare and measure my personal progress. This was the first hard route I attempted and the joy I felt was immeasurable when I clipped the final anchors on the climb. When I had first started figuring out the moves on this climb, I felt it was going to very hard for me to climb it and clip the final anchor but after practicing the sequences and moves, I experienced a transformation in my confidence and knew I could do it.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
You are also an avid wildlife conservationist and works along with local communities in the Amazon Rainforest to help provide sustainable employment and habitat protection. Please elaborate on the same
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I used to guide people on eco-tours into the Amazon rainforest in Peru from 2010-2017 with Tamandua Expeditions. The primary goal was to give people a much closer hands-on experience of the jungle and the animals that live in it but to also educate people about the rainforest, the wildlife, threats that the forest faces from illegal logging, clear cutting, burning and gold mining.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
6 Key essentials for amateur planning to take up this adventure sport? How to go about from a beginner to a winner?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
- Find an indoor climbing gym near you.
- Become part of the climbing community and find climbing partners/friends who can mentor you.
- Consistency: climbing 1-2 days a week regularly will help strengthen climbing muscles and get you going on your climbing journey.
- Then go outdoors and learn the risks involved, how to be safe, and climbing on rocks from people who are more experienced.
- Become self-sufficient: buy climbing gear and become more knowledgeable about the sport and figure out what the sport means to you.
- Most importantly, quoting Alex Lowe “The best climber in the world is the one who is having the most fun”.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Your daily fitness routine includes which exercises? Days/week you train, types of exercises to focus on to gain flexibility and prevent or minimize injury?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I do pretty much some form of workout or stretching every day.
I climb at least 3-4 times a week in an indoor gym and 2-3 times a week minimum outdoors on rocks, which maintains my finger strength and overall fitness. Along with this, I do strength and conditioning, an important aspect when climbing harder or more regularly, by doing shoulder workouts twice a week, pull-ups/push-ups 2 or 3 times a week, core workouts 3-4 times a week, and stretching and leg workouts twice a week as well.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Diet pattern you follow? Any specific diet you would like to share? 3 Foods you love to eat & cook?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
Diet is something I wish to work on and it is a continuous learning journey for me since I am terrible at planning my nutrition and diet. My main goal is to eat as healthy as I can but ensure that it is nutritious food. I love to cook foraged foods (edible plants and mushrooms) from the wild, baking cakes or anything with chocolate and also simple south Indian food as well. To keep up with my protein intake, I do take a plant-based pea protein supplement after my workouts.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Meals/day also?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I love every meal! I don’t ever skip meals and I love eating healthy meals that have lots of veggies, lentils, beans, and grains. I love having millets instead of rice too.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
How do you prepare against the unpredictable weather while rock-climbing?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
There is best way to prepare for such thing because weather is unpredictable. Being informed of the seasons, checking the forecast before going to a climb are often ways to prepare a bit but at the end of the day, smart decision making while observing the weather is the best strategy to hand le bad weather while being safe. So if we have to climb back down and not attempt a climb that day due to bad weather, then it better to be smart and not climb at all for the day.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Share input on mountains you have climbed? The most memorable expedition that has stayed with you?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I have mostly climbed rocks and not mountains but a few of the most memorable long multi-pitch climbs I have to done to get up on top of a rock mountain is when my friend took me climbing to the top of Devils tower in Wyoming in the US and when we climbed to the top of Half Dome in Yosemite, also in the US.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Fitness quote you live by? Message for upcoming International Yoga Day 2021.
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I don’t really have a specific quote I live by but I guess something I believe in is that persistence is key to being to healthy and fit.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
Your present projects?
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I have a climb route I would like to try in Badami, India this year but I also have many long-term projects to teach climbing to women and young girls through Climb Like A Woman, which I initiated in 2018.
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
Message for your fans & WF followers especially teenage girls on rock climbing & how to overcome inhibitions & fear.
Ms. Gowri Varanashi:
My message to all young women is, don’t ever stop yourself from trying something new, even if it scares you because you will learn a new found sense of confidence in yourself and in your body.
I live by trying everything at least once in my life, I hope you do too because the happiness reward of successfully doing something challenging is way more than not trying it at all.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
You climbed the hardest grade in rock climbing called Samsara (5.13b or 8a in French grading). How & when did you decide on the adventure. Share your experience on the same.
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
After climbing French Indian Masala in 2017, I had my mind on climbing Samara for a couple of years but my training had become inconsistent so I couldn’t gather up my confidence in 2018 or 2019. Last year though as covid became a big issue, I ask Shiva who is a climbing coach in Bangalore, if he would train me and he agreed. So began my training for second half of 2021 and in December of last year I climbed Samsara (8a, 5.13b), my hardest climb to date.
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
As of today you work in India and have a private organization called Wilderness Ways, to teach nature connection programs and about wildlife. Tell us more about your mission and how the organization operates.
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I started Wilderness Ways to teach nature connection to adults and kids. We have been disconnected from nature for far too long now, we have lost so much ancient skills and knowledge of how to live with nature and why nature is so valuable, resourceful to us so it is time to reconnect. Our mission is to get more adults and children outdoors and reconnect them to the power of nature. This is done through a unique experience of interacting with nature very closely through activities and games using our senses of hearing, touch, seeing and so some activities will involve being blindfolded and having to really listen or feel the land while some will teach you how to truly observe and see things.
We also teach survival skills along with these to teach people why nature is resourceful and valuable. At the end of the day of course the idea is to have a fun day out I nature while learning, which hopefully connects everyone personally to the land, nature and animals.
Ms. Namita Nayyar
You studied in an unconventional school where children were encouraged to spend time outdoors. Every year you focused on an animal, one year even focused on snakes. Sounds exciting, what is your advice for youth or children studying in cities and lacking close interaction with nature and wildlife.
Ms. Gowri Varanashi
I was very lucky and privileged to be able to attend a school that taught us the importance of learning about the other living beings we share this planet with. My advice to parents of children in cities is try to take your children to outdoor places in nature over weekends or whenever you can or sign them up for unique outdoor programs where they meet other children and learn about nature and wildlife. Sometimes, even going to parks and paying attention to the smaller living beings can change children’s perspectives, let them get dirty, let them play, let them hold insects and animals and their love for nature will grow.
My advice to children is to go out and play in parks or nearby small green patches because even in these small urban green spaces there is so much life and activity of animals such as birds, spiders, insects, squirrels and plants. There is so much to learn about them and while learning, get dirty, play and have fun!
Know More About Gowri Varanashi
This interview is exclusive and taken by Namita Nayyar, President womenfitness.org and should not be reproduced, copied or hosted in part or full anywhere without an express permission.
All Written Content Copyright © 2021 Women Fitness Org