Claudia Schroegel

This place just fills my soul ⛰️❤️
Every time. Four decades.
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First you notice what’s happening,
then you restore what’s missing,
then you return to the life you want to live.
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A bit more breathing space means
a bit more solo playtime for Mama.

This is by far my favourite
type of weighted training ❤️⛰️
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Finally taking L on my beloved trails. In awe of trees and birds. Pulling funny faces together and one of us falling asleep towards the end. Must be the fresh air. Heading to the peak next.
📍Heimat.

📍All I had to give – 10 hours of climbing to cheese 😆
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That was a hard hard stint to 40k. The amount of vert packed into a relative ‘short’ distance was just insane. Never have I climbed so much for so long in any race before… cont 👉

The morning spent in fog / rain / mist / cloud. Messy muddy climbs, congestion. Stunning nonetheless 🍃

Into the cloud. Just a few 40% climbs incoming.
😩📈☠️

Why I run ⛰️😍
Getting onto the ridge, out of the clouds. I actually shed a tear, it’s been a long two years without those big mountain feels!

We keep going 📈😶‍🌫️
Rolling at altitude.
In and out of the clouds.

Thankfully managed the constant temps change with just my arm warmers and buffs instead of faffing about with base layers or waterproofs.

Rocks. On the up on 40%. Still going.
The summit must surely be popping up soon 😆😅

worshippers
📍⛰️ Tuc dera Escaleta 2,468 m

On TV. Maybe 👋

Views for days (if you can visualise through the clouds). A bit of down before up. AGAIN.

The fun dance. Slates and rocks.
Monkey business 🧗‍♀️🐒

Snow fields.

The couloir down. It’s not just all steep. It’s also technical. 40% down equally charming 😆📉

Humpty Dumpty to cheese. Reicht jetzt auch 🫠

And that’ll do 🙅‍♀️📍I pulled the plug at 40k.

Racking the vert (3500m) of the 55k (PDA) in a mere 38k brought all the perspective. My body said no more. Beyond the expected muscular fatigue, aches and pains that come with long mountain races, the mechanical toll taken was already beyond what I consider ok to absorb at this time in fitness. The race doesn’t flatten from here 🤣 And then there is Little L waiting, wanting to play and stamp on my quads (he’s trying to stand / run atm 😅)

Speaking of… no matter how far the trail takes me, I always want to arrive to this.

What kept me going when I so desperately wanted to quit (5k in ha):
☑️ make it above the clouds
☑️ catch some sunshine
☑️ run on the ridge
☑️ get higher than the surrounding rocks / peaks
☑️ see the snow capped ones
☑️ stand on the summit
With almost close to 3000m through 20k I could have happily stopped here. Alas I did a bit more on pure grit and grace.
☑️ do epic things on your own

Two years on. Back in Val D ❤️⛰️
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The mountain stoke is higher than ever, as is the under preparedness for what’s to come tomorrow 😬
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HOKA Val d’Aran by UTMB Val d’Aran by UTMB 📍 TDL* 75k / 5100m+- is a rather chunky vertical adventure. Only hoping I have packed enough daring spirit and grit to scale it. Knowing from the past six years (ex 2025) how demanding, technical, exposed and unforgiving the Pyrenees are around here… it’s the first time that the finish feels a little too far out of reach for me. To keep it real and myself honest. With all that throws [inserts tales of life], I might have to get over those mountains with my eyes shut ha. Alas. Got to juggle jog this differently then. Mind.
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Letting go of all the sessions I haven’t done. Celebrating everything I’ve managed to do and every minute I could train… Counts as a minute built towards that start line. Not sure the version of myself I’ll find out there but I’m excited to move on up. I’ll figure on the way down.
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High hopes to find a joyful long day out in a place I cherish so deeply. As far as the trail takes me, I will always be moving towards the wildest, heart melting smiles of my little boy. Thanks for letting me play.
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There are no finish lines. Only moments in time.
Let’s scale up!
❤️⛰️💪
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* ‘TDL – Termières dera Libertat (Borders of Freedom), a new 75k race with 5,100m of elevation gain, discover the wildest and most moving essence of the Val d’Aran. Inspired by the hidden paths that served as escape routes, the TDL pays tribute to all who crossed these mountains in search of freedom.’

This one was so special ❤️🦁😭🏁
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TDC / 50k.
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Definitely not had the legs or engine.
Forever rolling. Climbing. Descending.
But I had the guts and the heart to find my very own finish line in the midst of the Vogesen.
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Trailrunning… I love you.

This year’s podium performance:
Taking the little lion in a teddy costume
outside ❤️🍃
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A lot to be said about the lack of running focus and consistency. A lot more about endurance and the love for life. As coach I always foster a mindset of: you are a sum of all the hats you wear. It can’t all be glorious time on feet but all your collective efforts can bring you glory in time.
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Grateful to lace up for two 5k races (road / trail) in the last five days. The performance was … well ‘ausbaufähig’ 😅😂 … but the love for run is still there. Excited to claw my way back through the distances and elevation next year.
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Thank you 2025. You showed me a million lifetimes outside my comfort zone and changed my life forever. There is no comeback. Just living life forwards with all I got ❤️🏔️

Time to go home ❤️😭🏡🦁
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01.06. – 12.12.2025
194 days in NICU
unit
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I will never forget the yellow corridor and the countless times we walked through these doors in over six months. I have shed so many tears of sorrow and now I shed so many more of joy.

Here’s to life outside with Little L 🌿❤️🏔️