Walking as Training for Climbing the Highest Mountain
In May 1970, Yuichro Miura in his 30s succeeded in skiing from 8,000 meter-high in Mt. Everest, which was recorded in the movie titled "The Man Who Skied Down Everest," since such an adventure had never been tried. But, he did not reach the summit of Mt. Everest on that occasion.
Then, 30 years later in 2003, Mr. Miura at the age of 70 climbed Mt. Everest again and reached the top. Subsequently in 2008, Mr. Miura stood on the top of Mt. Everest again. He became the only one who had reached the top of Mt. Everest twice at one's 70s. What's more, in 2013 at the age of 80, the Japanese adventurer Miura stood at the top of Mt. Everest as the third time. He became the oldest man that had ever reached the summit of Mt. Everest.
(https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-22644717/80-year-old-yuichiro-miura-claims-new-everest-record)
After the success in skiing in Mt. Everest in 1970, Mr. Miura somewhat lived a lifestyle of excess. But he was awoken from idle living as his son and father were active in hill climbing and skiing. So, Miura decided to come back to Mt. Everest again at his age of 65. After five years of preparation and training, he climbed Mt. Everest again and reached its summit at his age of 70. Afterward, he has also succeeded in standing at the top of Mt. Everest twice. It is said that Miura is planning the fourth time of reaching the summit of Mt. Everest, although he is now over 85.
The method of training for Miura is simply walking for hours, carrying weights attached to his body. Miura walks in various streets of Tokyo as his training, although he sometimes climbs mountains in Japan and take bicycle tours around Tokyo. Miura even wrote a book on how to walk as training.
When Miura first went to Mt. Everest for skiing, his father, who was one of pioneers in modern mountain climbing in Japan, thought that his son would succeed in the adventure at a probability of 30% but might die at 70%. Indeed, in the skiing from 8,000 meter high of Mt. Everest, Miura almost lost his life as he skied down at the speed of 200 km/h, although with a parachute, while being pulled back irregularly by the parachute, losing the right ski plate, and being forced to jump over a big rock covered by snow and land in and lay down on a plot before a big crevasse. He really put his life in danger.
Miura wrote that walking only for training is a kind of pain. But he enjoys walking around Tokyo with weights in a backpack or belts attached around ankles. Miura loves to see various people and situations in the city while walking for training. But, he wrote that he could endure such training as he had a purpose to climb up and reach the summit of Mt. Everest.
Anyway, since Mt. Everest is the highest mountain in the world, Miura's efforts and pain in training must be nothing to him.
Like Miura, followers of Christ Jesus must not feel any pain in studying His teaching, since Christ Jesus is the spiritually highest person in the history. And Christ Jesus might advise them to learn His words as if they were walking.
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Mark 7 King James Version (KJV)
7 Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem.
2 And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault.
3 For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders.
4 And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables.
5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?
6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.