EP 21 Lyra Pierotti
Keep Moving with Momentum

01:40:08

Lyra has been guiding and instructing for over half of her life. She is an AMGA Rock Guide and Alpine Guide, and has just one more exam in May of 2024 to achieve full international certification.
 
Being a woman guide has had its challenges over the years, so Lyra has managed those additional gendered risks with additional work, developing an overlapping and supportive career as a personal trainer. She passed a similarly coveted certification from the NSCA in 2017, to become a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Lyra is a senior guide with Alpine Ascents International, a staff Instructor Trainer with AIARE, and has her own small business coaching mountain athletes, called MOVEmentum.

Show Notes:

Lyra’s links:

Episode Intro:

Dear listeners of the Female Guides Requested Podcast, happy Wednesday. I’m your host Ting Ting from sunny Las Vegas. Today our guest is Lyra Pierotti.

Lyra has been guiding and instructing for over half of her life. She is an AMGA Rock Guide and Alpine Guide, and has just one more exam in May of 2024 to achieve full international certification.

Being a woman guide has had its challenges over the years, so Lyra has managed those additional gendered risks with additional work, developing an overlapping and supportive career as a personal trainer. She passed a similarly coveted certification from the NSCA in 2017, to become a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Lyra is a senior guide with Alpine Ascents International, a staff Instructor Trainer with AIARE, and has her own small business coaching mountain athletes, called MOVEmentum.

In this episode we talked about how Lyra “stumbled” into guiding after college, how her love of science and art of movement served as a compass for her to navigate through different phases of her guiding career. After an injury almost ended her guiding career and athletic life, she persevered and regained her footings and used her knowledge to help other mountain athletes. She also shared her experience serving as a board member of the AMGA, and offered some insights for newer guides.

I really enjoyed this conversation with Lyra and wished I could talk with her for another hour or two. And I know you’ll feel the same way too.   

Things We Talked about:

  • How Lyra “stumbled” into guiding
  • From a marine biologist to a mountain guide
  • Study abroad led to French Alps
  • Found a perfect job description from school’s mailing list which combined scientific research and playing outside
  • Realized that she didn’t have to go far to find great alpine environment – Eastern Sierras
  • Bishop days
  • Climate changed wiped guiding work out
  • Started writing for a local paper
  • Always in back of her mind, thinking of something to augment guiding or potentially replace guiding
  • Entering the next phase: moving from CA to WA
  • Her single mom was a huge inspiration to Lyra
  • The love of art flows in the family
  • The next phase: bringing coaching and personal training into guiding
  • Talking about career longevity for guiding: self care, connection with clients … etc
  • A ill-fitted backpack on Denali almost ended her guiding life
  • After years of rehab and self study Lyra finally gained back her footings
  • Used the knowledge she gained from years of self-discovery and recovery to help other mountain athletes
  • Talking about mental health
  • What happened when the pandemic hit?
  • Different mentorship structures
  • On the board of the AMGA
  • Her talk at Mountaineers Leadership conference
  • And more …