EP 14: Jonathan Siegrist
April 20, 2020
Jonathan Siegrist is a professional rock climber, and one of the most prolific sport climbers in the world. We talked about the evolution of his training, how he trained to climb 5.15b, current training methods, how he mixes in climbing with training, tactics for quick redpointing, a new direction for his climbing, and The Fins project. You can learn more about Jonathan at www.jonathansiegrist.com/p/about
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Google Podcasts
Check out other episodes with Jonathan:
EP 36: Climb Strong Team (Sept 21, 2020)
Follow-Up: Jonathan Siegrist (Nov 12, 2020)
Follow-Up: Jonathan Siegrist #2 (Aug 31, 2022)
Patreon:
Follow-Ups:
thenuggetclimbing.com/follow-ups
Jonathan’s Podcast Interviews: (training related)
Training Beta EP05 [Apr, 2014] (working with Mike and Mark Anderson and training for Biographie)
Training Beta EP61 [Sept, 2016] (his year break from structured training and trying Jumbo Love)
Training Beta EP125 [May, 2019] (training with Steve Bechtel and sending La Planta De Shiva)
Power Company Podcast EP30 [Mar, 2017] (overhauling his training to jump from 5.14d to 5.15a)
Products:
PhysiVantage - Endure X (Eric Hörst’s company)
Training References/Books:
Rock Climber’s Training Manual by Mike and Mark Anderson
Logical Progression - Second Edition by Steve Bechtel
Steve Bechtel - Hangboard Manual [e-book] (features 7:13 repeaters)
Jonathan’s Top 3 Exercises:
Tricep Pushdowns - Cable Machine (very similar to the exercise in this video, but Jonathan does them one handed keeping the hand in close, mimicking what your bottom hand does on a campus max ladder)
Routes Mentioned:
‘Lucifer’ 5.14c, Red River Gorge, KY
‘Southern Smoke’ 5.14c, Red River Gorge, KY
‘Jumbo Love’ 5.15b, Clark Mountain, CA
‘La Planta De Shiva’ 5.15b, Villanueva del Rosario, Spain
‘Biographie’ 5.15a, Céüse, France
‘Ghetto Booty’ 5.14d, Mt. Charleston, NV
‘One Hundred Proof 5.15a, Mt. Potosi, NV
‘Insurrection’ 5.14b/c, Independence Pass, CO
‘Disbelief’ 5.15b, Acephale, Canada
‘The Golden Ticket’ 5.14c, Red River Gorge, KY
‘Pure Imagination’ 5.14c, Red River Gorge, KY
‘Mala Leche’ 5.14d, The Fins, ID
‘Algorithm’ 5.14d, The Fins, ID
‘Son of Discovery’ 5.13a, The Fins, ID
‘Lapsus’ 5.15b, Andonno, Italy
Videos:
Michaela Kiersch - ‘Golden Ticket’ video
Jonathan ‘One Hundred Proof’ video
Photos:
Jan Novak photos of Adam Ondra on ‘Lapsus’
Jan Novak photo Margo Hayes on ‘Biographie’
Blog Posts and Articles:
http://www.jonathansiegrist.com/p/about.html
Jonathan’s Links:
Nuggets:
3:31 – Breakfast, how Jonathan eats on a climbing day, favorite bars, and eating the local cuisine when traveling
8:38 – Training for the Red by climbing on campus rungs on the treadwall (while wearing socks)
13:21 – Jonathan’s training evolution, and sending ‘Jumbo Love’
18:18 – Current training methodology (broad strokes), working with Steve Bechtel, and adding more rest between sets and training days
21:21 – Carving out more time for the same number of training sessions
22:35 – Jonathan’s three favorite strength exercises (not related to finger strength)
26:46 – More about weighted pull-ups and how Jonathan generally programs and advances his training
29:19 – Combining heavy sets with plyometrics, and taking 10-15 minute rest between sets
30:56 – Circuit style hangboarding vs. straight sets
32:48 – 7:13 repeaters, why Jonathan now prefers them over 7:3, trying new things, and thinking about trying max hangs in the future
37:19 – How Jonathan integrates outdoor climbing with training and the benefits of combining the two
42:00 – Sending ‘One Hundred Proof’, and shifting focus to prioritize redpoint days
44:09 – Why Jonathan doesn’t do any maintenance training, and the importance of trying hard
47:36 – Jonathan’s propensity toward endurance, and the one thing he would do different if he could go back in time
49:47 – How Jonathan thinks about strength and power training vs. bouldering
50:36 – Sending ’Trice’ back in 2009, learning to climb at flagstaff, and testing well at finger strength but not knowing how to move fast
55:09 – “The magic of climbing”, how Jonathan stacks up against other 9b climbers and prioritizing sending
57:58 – Climbing with Adam Ondra and inspiration to focus more on flash and onsight climbing
1:02:43 – Jonathan’s approach to second-go redpointing, his affinity for remembering beta, and removing hesitation
1:04:49 – Jonathan’s spray wall drill to practice memorizing sequences, and how he uses visualization
1:08:42 – How Jonathan thinks about deciding between second-go redpointing vs. flash or onsight
1:11:36 – Leveling up, hopes to return to old crags to finish old projects, and Jonathan’s desire to (eventually) move away from sport climbing
1:18:14 – Multipitch sport climbing, and “the single coolest thing” Jonathan hopes to do with his climbing
1:19:33 – Trying the Dawn Wall with Tommy, and why Yosemite big wall climbing isn’t at the top of his list
1:21:34 – The Fins project
1:28:51 – Experimenting with techniques to combat dry skin and dry conditions, wet chalk, and Rhino Spit
1:31:52 – “Do you think that thing will be 15b?”, the polarizing crux of Algorithm, and Jonathan’s best try
1:34:08 – Establishing 5.15b in America and what makes that so hard (aside from it being hard…)
1:36:00 – Plans to head back up to The Fins
1:36:27 – Jonathan’s upcoming trip to Italy, plans to try Lapsus, and the coronavirus
1:40:09 – Why Jonathan is so grateful for his sponsors and how they have really stepped up to support him, and the Metolius Light Rail
1:43:58 – Writing, how his blog got hijacked and moving from jstarinorbit to jonathansiegrist.com, plans to write new content, and writing blogs for his brands
1:46:54 – Jonathan on Instagram and Twitter, his new YouTube channel, and plans for upcoming videos with EpicTV
1:49:17 – The Fins project video (WIP)
1:50:35 – What Jonathan thinks holds back most climbers, and trying to spend 75% of your time climbing (on rock) and only 25% training (or climbing inside)
1:53:11 – “Try hard.”
1:53:58 – My poster of Jonathan, and being an inspiration as the best thing Jonathan feels like he can ask for