TUM expedition to the Wildspitze (3768 m)

The TUM module in mountain sports was running for the second time this year. In this module, students attend lectures on topics that range from evidence-based training methods and nutrition for mountain sports to genetic variants that have been naturally selected in Tibetans and people that live on the Andean altiplano. The module also has a practical component. Here, the highlight is an expedition to the Wildspitze led by Gudrun Weikert, the first German mountain guide, and Andreas Thomann, a mountain guide and member of our faculty. The expedition also included student experiments to study whether fat or carbohydrates are more oxygen efficient, how much exercise at Munich level or high altitude affects oxygen saturation and to estimate 24 hour energy expenditure during the summit day. In addition to that, students learned mountaineering skills including via ferrata scrambling, glacier walking plus ice technique. Below there are a few expedition photos.