Love Lessons From 4000 Metres
Men's Health South Africa|October 2018

How a little adventure this summer can lift your relationship to new heights.

Jerilyn Covert
Love Lessons From 4000 Metres

Taylor Rees clung to the ice, one slip from the abyss. It was dark – Arctic winters mostly are – and fierce winds and sleet whipped in all directions. She and her team, including her boyfriend, Renan Ozturk, had been climbing out of a steep snow-and-rock gully in Iceland when Taylor veered from the group and found herself in a steeper section. Disoriented, she froze.

Renan called down to Taylor, assuring her that she could do this. He manoeuvred close enough to take her 32kg backpack and hand her an ice tool. Her foot slipped, and she pressed hard against the rock, eyes shut. “You have to trust me,” said Renan. “Open your eyes and find your verticality; and then you gotta climb out.”

And Taylor did trust him. They’d been in dire situations before – like the time they nearly ran out of food in the Burmese jungle. If she’d been alone or with anyone else, she wonders if she’d have crumbled. But she was with Renan. “I trusted him, took a minute, and climbed out,” she says.

Taylor, 32, and Renan, 38, are exceptional – filmmakers and adventurers who climbed Wyoming’s Grand Teton on their first date, and returned there for their wedding ceremony five years later in 2016, several months after the Arctic expedition. And they’re proof of what psychologists and countless couples know: adventure is a romantic accelerant, the way it exposes your vulnerabilities and brings you closer. (Death risk not required; a roller-coaster ride can work too.) The outdoors is a great way to get to know somebody – and yourself. Try it this summer.

Climbers quickly develop the attributes of tight couples: trust, support, patience, communication, and teamwork, along with forgiveness, humour, and other pieces of emotional gear to grind through tough spots. All of it can help you forge a happier, hotter relationship, wherever your base camp is.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة October 2018 من Men's Health South Africa.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة October 2018 من Men's Health South Africa.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من MEN'S HEALTH SOUTH AFRICA مشاهدة الكل
CAN YOU REMIX YOUR MINDSET?
Men's Health South Africa

CAN YOU REMIX YOUR MINDSET?

YOU KNOW MUSIC ALTERS MOOD. NOW A NEW APP PROMISES THE RIGHT TRACKS CAN SOOTHE STRESS, BOOST PRODUCTIVITY AND LEVEL UP YOUR GYM GAINS.

time-read
2 mins  |
November-December 2024
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DIET REALLY SO ?
Men's Health South Africa

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DIET REALLY SO ?

AND DOES IT REALLY FIGHT OFF DISEASE? WE LOOK AT THE DATA.

time-read
1 min  |
November-December 2024
THE SEMI-COMPLETE USER'S GUIDE TO...YOUR LUNGS
Men's Health South Africa

THE SEMI-COMPLETE USER'S GUIDE TO...YOUR LUNGS

THEY POWER A WORKOUT, FILTER OUT INVADERS AND WORK FOR US 24/7-UNLESS GERMS, POLLUTANTS, BAD LUCK OR OUR OWN NEGLECT GETS IN THE WAY. TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND DISCOVER HOW TO HELP THEM OUT.

time-read
3 mins  |
November-December 2024
ACTION MAN
Men's Health South Africa

ACTION MAN

THERE WAS NO MIRACLE FIX FOR TIMOTHY FAIRWEATHER'S HEAVIER PROBLEMS. THE SECRET: TAKING SMALL ACTIONS EVERY DAY TO BUILD UP TO MASSIVE RESULTS.

time-read
2 mins  |
November-December 2024
THE MUSCLE SPRINT
Men's Health South Africa

THE MUSCLE SPRINT

CRUSH ALL MAJOR MUSCLE GROUPS, BLAST CALORIES AND SUPERCHARGE YOUR CARDIO WITH THIS DUMBBELL WORKOUT, WHICH HAS AN INTENSE 55-REP LADDER SCHEME THAT MINIMISES REST AND MAXIMISES FUN.

time-read
1 min  |
November-December 2024
THE ULTIMATE SUMMER BODYWEIGHT BURNER
Men's Health South Africa

THE ULTIMATE SUMMER BODYWEIGHT BURNER

BUILD MUSCLE AND STRENGTH AND CHALLENGE YOUR COORDINATION AND ATHLETICISM WITH THIS NO-EQUIPMENT WORKOUT.

time-read
2 mins  |
November-December 2024
RISE OF THE BEASTS
Men's Health South Africa

RISE OF THE BEASTS

THIS YEAR'S MILESTONE TENTH EDITION OF OUR COVER GUY SEARCH DREW 413 GUYS WHO EMBODY SELFLESSNESS, GRIT AND PERSEVERANCE. THEIR ANIMALISTIC DEVOTION TO FITNESS AND TALES OF TRIUMPH WILL INSPIRE YOU TO GREATNESS.

time-read
5 mins  |
November-December 2024
...I LOSE MY COOL?
Men's Health South Africa

...I LOSE MY COOL?

DON'T WHITE-KNUCKLE IT. LEARN TO UNDERSTAND, OWN AND ULTIMATELY TAME YOUR OUTRAGE WITH OUR EXPERT POINTERS. DEEP BREATH, NOW...

time-read
2 mins  |
November-December 2024
MOVING MOUNTAINS
Men's Health South Africa

MOVING MOUNTAINS

LONG HAULS, STEEP CLIMBS, EXTREME COLD AND OTHERWORLDLY LANDSCAPES IN THE CEDERBERG-OUR WRITER TAKES ON THE ELEMENTS AND UNEARTHS A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON A FIVEDAY TREK ALONG PHANTOM PATHS CUT THROUGH BEWITCHING SCENERY.

time-read
9 mins  |
November-December 2024
THE NEW PLYO POWER-UP
Men's Health South Africa

THE NEW PLYO POWER-UP

HOW MODERN TAKES ON AN OLD FITNESS FAVOURITE CAN CALIBRATE YOUR TRAINING FOR AN INSTA-BOOST OF ATHLETICISM AND STRENGTH.

time-read
2 mins  |
November-December 2024