EP 15: Katie Lambert — Improving Every Year, Balancing Multiple Disciplines, and Nutrition for Climbers

Katie Lambert is an elite rock climber in just about every discipline of the sport. She is also a contributing author for Climbing Magazine, owns a business, and has a master’s in nutrition. We talked about the film Pretty Strong, her training and how she balances the many disciplines of climbing, and nutrition recommendations for climbers.  

Support on Patreon:

patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing  

Show Notes:  

http://thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/katie-lambert  

Nuggets:  

2:15 – Pretty Strong  

4:19 – ‘Father Time’ breakdown, blood blister, dropping the tape, and deciding to go into support mode  

9:45 – “A big part of climbing is failing.”  

10:49 – What Katie learned from climbing with Nina, and vice versa   

13:16 – Deadlifting to fix low back pain, the Berto challenge, pulling 235 lbs, and how deadlifting has helped her climbing  

18:11 – Iron Dragons  

19:17 – Pinch training and hangboarding  

24:36 – Sunday Funday  

25:08 – Training power for a trip to the Red, and bouldering circuits (inside & outside)  

26:57 – Campusing exercises, the importance of focusing on speed when training power, and campusing endurance  

28:24 – The routes Katie was training for at the time  

29:26 – Being a multi-discipline athlete, and how Katie thinks about structuring her climbing/training year  

32:42 – Why Katie prefers the free-in-a-day style of big wall climbing  

34:25 – Linking up ’The Rostrum’ and ‘Astroman’, Katie’s “little suffer bunny”, and feeling fit from The Hulk  

36:39 – Goals for future linkups and quick ascents and plans to go back to ‘Father Time’  

39:52 – Katie’s go-to climbing shoes  

40:58 – “I know who I am and I know what I’m doing.”  

44:10 – Why Katie recommends that newer climbers (less than 5 years) just climb a lot in a variety of styles instead of focusing on training  

46:24 – How learning offwidth techniques has helped Katie with tufa climbing  

48:07 – The one kind of training Katie wishes she had started doing earlier and would recommend for climbers  

48:54 – Katie’s three go-to strength exercises, and fingerboarding for healthy fingers  

50:59 – Past ankle and finger injuries, why Katie avoids climbing in the cold, and being clammy and cold  

53:54 – Katie’s favorite Rhino Skin Solutions products and how she uses them  

54:51 – Rehab ideas for elbow tendonitis and finger injuries, and why just taking time off isn’t necessarily the best rehab strategy  

1:00:18 – What Katie wishes she knew when she was age 20  

1:01:47 – Same question for age 30, noticing a trend of tendon injuries climbing in the cold, my own experience with a finger injury  

1:03:38 – How dehydration plays a role in finger injuries, electrolytes, and Katie’s favorite hydration cocktail for cold days  

1:04:19 – Masters in nutrition, Bishop Cowork, writing, and nutrition coaching  

1:05:30 – Two key nutrition tips/takeaways for climbers, recommended intake of water per day (1/2 fluid ounce per lb of bodyweight minimum), and climbers as sugar burners  

1:07:51 – How Katie eats in a day  

1:10:10 – Eating red meat, why Katie is into local and sustainable food and why she feels so lucky being in Bishop, Polyphase Farm, and the challenges of feeding a growing population  

1:13:52 – Some of the side effects of a crappy diet, why diet is important (even if you look fit), and some of Katie’s recommendations  

1:17:29 – Katie’s recommendations for those that want to stick to a vegetarian or vegan diet  

1:18:12 – Nuts, and why Katie recommends eating them raw/soaked, and why she recommends avoiding peanuts and processed nuts and nut butters  

1:20:00 – Katie’s recommendation for daily protein intake (1 gram per lb of bodyweight—it’s ok to start with 75% of that)  

1:22:54 – Writing, why Katie is stopping her column at Climbing Magazine, and working on a cookbook  

1:24:24 – Founding and running Sacred Rok  

1:26:50 – Being sick for 24 days, gratitude for health, and “it’s a man thing” (being pathetic when we get sick)  

1:28:26 – Katie’s upcoming trip to the Red  

1:29:09 – Melt Down  

1:31:22 – Being a lifer, why Katie loves Bishop, and moving to France if Trump wins the election  

1:33:20 – V11 as a goal  

1:33:57 – “We’re really lucky to climb.”