EP 283: Adrian Ballinger — The Mental and Physical Grind of High-Altitude Climbing, and Lessons for Every Climber

EP 283: Adrian Ballinger — The Mental and Physical Grind of High-Altitude Climbing, and Lessons for Every Climber

Adrian Ballinger is a renowned alpinist and mountain guide, and has summited Mt. Everest and K2 without supplemental oxygen. We talked about his childhood, misconceptions about what he does, what climbing Everest is actually like, skiing above 8,000 meters, risking his life to send K2, sending Fall of Man 5.13b, how mountaineering compares to projecting 5.13, meeting his wife Emily Harrington, how performance changes with age, lessons everyone should know, and much more. You can learn more about Adrian at adrianballinger.com

Mad Rock (Shoes & Crash Pads)

madrock.com

Use code “NUGGET10” at checkout for 10% off your next order.

Rúngne (Chalk & Apparel)

rungne.info/nugget

Use code “NUGGET” for 10% off storewide, and use code “SHIPPINGNUGGETS” for free shipping.

Chilipad (Don’t Lose Sleep this Summer)

Get 20% off any Chilipad sleep system

NADS (Organic Cotton Underwear)

Use code STEVEN for 15% off

Become a Patron:

patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing

Show Notes:

thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/adrian-ballinger

Nuggets:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:03:06) – Growing up

(00:06:08) – Connecting with adventure as a kid

(00:16:08) – Misconceptions about what Adrian does

(00:22:04) – Tech breakthroughs in mountaineering

(00:26:04) – Client pressure around summits

(00:30:04) – Alpenglow Expeditions

(00:33:09) – Regulations on Everest

(00:35:08) – What climbing Everest is really like

(00:41:04) – Climbing Everest without oxygen

(00:49:57) – Preparing for Everest without oxygen

(00:58:56) – Skiing accolades

(01:01:59) – Skiing above 8,000 meters

(01:05:00) – Skiing down vs. rappelling massive peaks

(01:08:58) – Fall of Man

(01:11:01) – Physically hardest climb

(01:12:56) – Mental hardest climb

(01:14:57) – Most dangerous climb

(01:18:01) – Why Adrian took a risk on K2

(01:21:01) – Meeting Emily

(01:32:45) – What’s left for Adrian in alpinism

(01:34:43) – Switching to hard sport climbing

(01:46:43) – Bouldering in Rocklands

(01:54:42) – Performance changes with age

(01:59:42) – Athletes Adrian looks up to

(02:02:40) – Lessons everyone should know

(02:05:40) – Adrian’s podcast

Jaksot(381)

EP 279: Andy Raether — Bringing Routes to Life, How to Be Stronger at 40 than 20, & the Woods Board

EP 279: Andy Raether — Bringing Routes to Life, How to Be Stronger at 40 than 20, & the Woods Board

Andy Raether is a prolific sport climber, boulderer, and developer based in Las Vegas, NV. He also owns a climbing hold company and created the Woods Board. We talked about his intro to climbing and m...

21 Heinä 20253h 11min

EP 278: Jeremy Kiner (Patron Spotlight) — The GRINDS Program, Embracing Double Rest Days, & Regenerative Farming

EP 278: Jeremy Kiner (Patron Spotlight) — The GRINDS Program, Embracing Double Rest Days, & Regenerative Farming

Jeremy Kiner is a Kentucky-based boulderer and sport climber. We talked about his journey to V10 and 5.13b, how he uses a board circuit as a training benchmark, his experience with the GRINDS finger t...

16 Heinä 20252h 23min

EP 277: Michelle LeBlanc — Project Pride 2025, the Political Pendulum Swing, and Meeting in the Middle

EP 277: Michelle LeBlanc — Project Pride 2025, the Political Pendulum Swing, and Meeting in the Middle

Michelle LeBlanc returns to the podcast to talk about her annual Project Pride event in Squamish, B.C. (August 29-30, 2025). She shared her personal story and why she started Project Pride, and we tal...

10 Heinä 20251h 15min

EP 276: Alex Bridgewater — Sports Psychology Tools to Elevate Your Climbing Performance

EP 276: Alex Bridgewater — Sports Psychology Tools to Elevate Your Climbing Performance

Alex Bridgewater (M.S. in Sports Psychology) returns to the podcast to discuss tools that can help elevate your climbing performance. We talked about finding your values, the dark side of expectations...

7 Heinä 20252h 47min

Something Different | Jake Muise (CEO & Founder of Maui Nui Venison) — Sustainable Food for Peak Performance

Something Different | Jake Muise (CEO & Founder of Maui Nui Venison) — Sustainable Food for Peak Performance

What if you could eat the healthiest meat on the planet while helping the environment? Jake Muise is the CEO and founder of Maui Nui Venison, and joins me to talk about sustainable food and the future...

1 Heinä 20251h 15min

EP 275: Yuji Hirayama — Japanese Focus, Improving Every Day, and the Secret to Staying Young

EP 275: Yuji Hirayama — Japanese Focus, Improving Every Day, and the Secret to Staying Young

Yuji Hirayama is a Japanese professional climber and a living legend. We talked about visualizing his onsight attempt on The Salathe, channeling support into power, Daniel Woods, Mount Kinabalu, Japan...

23 Kesä 20251h 57min

Something Different | Eric Edmeades — Unlocking Resilience Through Ancestral Living

Something Different | Eric Edmeades — Unlocking Resilience Through Ancestral Living

Eric Edmeades is often referred to as the “Indiana Jones” of the professional speaking world. He has been traveling to Africa to visit the Hadza, one of the last remaining hunter-gatherer groups, sinc...

16 Kesä 20252h 23min

EP 274: Seneida Biendarra — Onsighting Without Sight, Designing Better Gear, and Wielding the Empathy Gun

EP 274: Seneida Biendarra — Onsighting Without Sight, Designing Better Gear, and Wielding the Empathy Gun

Seneida Biendarra is the 2023 US National Champion in the women’s B2 (severely blind) category. We talked about losing her vision as a teenager, her current visual experience, creating mental maps of ...

9 Kesä 20252h 31min

Suosittua kategoriassa Koulutus

rss-murhan-anatomia
voi-hyvin-meditaatiot-2
psykopodiaa-podcast
adhd-podi
rss-narsisti
psykologia
kesken
rahapuhetta
rss-niinku-asia-on
rss-vapaudu-voimaasi
rss-liian-kuuma-peruna
rss-duodecim-lehti
rss-luonnollinen-synnytys-podcast
rss-tietoinen-yhteys-podcast-2
aamukahvilla
rss-uskonto-on-tylsaa
rss-valo-minussa-2
rss-honest-talk-with-laurrenna
rss-opeklubi
rss-psykalab