Training Beta Podcast 147 | Steve Bechtel, Kris Hampton, and Tom Randall on Best Practices for Training at Home

About Steve Bechtel, Kris Hampton, and Tom Randall

In this interview, I talked with trainers Steve Bechtel, Kris Hampton, and Tom Randall about how they’re guiding their clients to train at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Times are really weird right now! Most of us have been ordered to shelter in place, and our gyms and many climbing areas are closed, leaving us scrambling to even maintain our strength and skills.

The reason I asked these guys to all be on the podcast at the same time is that first of all, I like them all quite a bit. They give clear, concise answers in interviews, they’re funny, and very experienced in the art and science of training for climbing. They are three of the most well-known trainers in climbing, and having them all sit for the same interview and answer the same questions created a wealth of knowledge and wisdom for us all. I enjoyed each moment of this interview, and learned quite a bit. I hope you do, too.

Steve Bechtel

Steve is the owner of a gym called Elemental Performance and Fitness in Lander, Wyoming, as well as the training website, www.climbstrong.com. He also heads the Performance Climbing Coach seminars that teach climbers and coaches how to be and create better athletes. He’s been on the show numerous times before, and a lot of our personal philosophies at TrainingBeta stem from his teachings. Steve has written a prolific number of books on the topic of climbing training, even while running a gym and a website, raising a family, and climbing outside regularly at an elite level. Having spent a bit of time with him, I can confidently say that he makes efficient use of each of the 24 hours of all of his days.

Tom Randall

Tom found fame as one of the WideBoyz with Pete Whittaker (recently on the show) when they came to the United States and took down the hardest wide cracks in the world. He went on to co-create Lattice Training with Ollie Torr (who also has been on the show), where he and a team of coaches use data driven tools to help climbers around the world get stronger. He lives in Sheffield, England, and still regularly crushes hard rock climbs while raising a family and running a business.

Kris Hampton

Kris is the owner and head coach at Power Company Climbing, which is a climbing training company that offers online coaching and coaching clinics around the world. He also hosts the Power Company Podcast, and was behind the mic for different reasons as a rapper in a former life. Kris is an instructor at the Performance Climbing Coach seminars where he focuses on movement skills, coaching, and mindset, drawing on wisdom from his former sports of gymnastics and skateboarding. He’s become well-known for his ability to pick apart climbing movement and find ways to effectively improve those elusive skills. He recently finished his first book, The Hard Truth: Simple Ways to Become A Better Climber.

Interview Details

• How quarantine is affecting each of them
• What we should be doing while training at home
• How mcuh training to do right now vs how much we normally do
• How to deal with low motivation levels
• How much it takes to maintain strength
• How they’ve fit new homeschooling in with work and training
• What to do if you have minimal equipment
• Does it matter which finger protocol you do?
• Is it possible to still train skills or climbing movement?
• How much is too much in general
• How to be motivated without current performance goal

Relevant Links

Steve Bechtel

• Instagram: @climbstrong
• Website: www.climbstrong.com
• Performance Climbing Coach Seminars (next one rescheduled for late summer in Colorado Springs)

Kris Hampton

• Instagram: @powercompanyclimbing
• Website: www.powercompanyclimbing.com

Tom Randall

• Instagram: @latticetraining
• Website: www.latticetraining.com