95: Adrian Ballinger - World Class Mountaineer with 7 Mt. Everest Summits

endurance Junkie Podcast

Adrian Ballinger is a big-mountain climbing rockstar who has thirteen 8000m+ (26,000 feet+) summits to his name, including 7 times Mt Everest. In 2017, Adrian summited Everest without the use of supplemental oxygen; a feat that less than 200 people in the world have ever achieved. As founder and head guide of Alpenglow Expeditions, Adrian has been guiding full-time for fifteen years and has led over 100 international climbing expeditions on 5 continents. Adrian is the only American who has skied two 8,000 meter peaks, was the first person to ski Manaslu, the 8th tallest mountain in the world, and in 2011 became the first person to summit three 8,000 meter peaks in only 3 weeks (Everest twice and Lhotse once). You can follow Adrian on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

In this interview we talk about:

– Adrian's sporting background and how he got into big-mountain climbing – How to train (technically, physically and mentally) for big-mountain climbing – Differences between summiting Mt Everest with or without supplemental oxygen – How to maintain composure & clarity during adverse moments – Future goals and ambitions