Mina Leslie-Wujastyk is a professional climber from the UK. She is also a writer, speaker, and co-host of the Curious Climber Podcast along with Hazel Findlay. We talked about her early life, impermanence, flow state, learning to try really hard, how she made the switch from hard boulders to hard sport routes, what sets high-level climbers apart, and the decision to become a mom.
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Show Notes:
thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/mina-leslie-wujastyk
Nuggets:
0:05:52 – Baby life
0:09:40 – How Mina and I met, and her road trip to the US in 2012
0:14:18 – Mina at age 25, and competing on the World Cup circuit
0:18:10 – Project mentality, quick sends, and unfinished business
0:21:02 – Patron question from Konstantinos, and Mina’s first gym and early climbing mentors
0:24:27 – Living in India as a kid and how that shaped Mina’s worldview
0:30:28 – Impermanence, and the lesson Mina learned from her dad as an early teenager
0:33:09 – Being exposed to both indoor and outdoor climbing as a kid
0:35:22 – Doing both route climbing and bouldering as a teenager, bouldering as social-climbing, and making the British team
0:38:03 – Mina’s first trip to Rocklands South Africa and more about her road trip around the US
0:40:14 – Bouldering in the South East (US) and climbing in the Red River Gorge
0:42:01 – Loving climbing, pushing too hard, and crashing
0:47:52 – The challenge makes the experience
0:51:55 – Flow and highballing
0:58:16 – How climbing ethics shape our experience
1:00:43 – Why do we seek flow?
1:03:12 – Tapping into our most primal selves
1:04:46 – An excerpt from Mina’s article: ‘Pushing It’, and British ascents
1:08:11 – Learning to try really hard, and the yin and the yang
1:12:52 – Unfinished business
1:16:28 – ‘Just Do It’
1:19:27 – What lead Mina to shift her focus to sport climbing
1:22:44 – Climbing the 70m ‘Totally Free 2’ in one pitch, and stashing candy in her sports bra
1:28:48 – How aerobic capacity training (Aero Cap) helped her transition to sport climbing
1:35:19 – What sets high-level boulders apart, and how good tactics make the difference
1:40:25 – What specific tactics Mina learned from her partner David, and a funny story
1:45:35 – What sets high-level sport climbers apart, and Mina’s experience on ‘Nordic Plumber’
1:49:20 – “Climbing isn’t just about being fit and strong, it’s about being clever and creative”
1:50:54 – Mina’s thoughts on returning to ‘Rainshadow’, and two bad accidents
1:57:52 – The decision to have a kid
2:03:52 – RED-S, and how her recovery led to the decision to have Isaac
2:07:26 – The best surprises with becoming a mom, and the miracle of pregnancy
2:11:13 – Question from Anna about training during pregnancy
2:15:58 – Studying nutrition, and thoughts on nutrition during pregnancy
2:18:22 – What led to starting The Curious Climber Podcast, and recommended episodes (linked in show notes)
2:23:54 – Wrap up
Follow-Up: Natasha Barnes — Climbing Harder in a Stronger Body (Teaser)
EP 92: Tom Herbert (Part 1) — Eating More to Train Harder, Protein Synthesis, and Carbohydrate Timing
EP 91: Craig DeMartino — Amputating His Leg to Climb Again, El Cap Stories, and Embracing a New Normal
EP 90: Josh Wharton — Onsight Tips and Tricks, Training to Flash El Capitan, and Risk Assessment as a Parent
EP 89: Q&A 3 — How My Training Has Evolved, How to Stay Strong on a Road Trip, and Life Mottos
Follow-Up: Allison Vest — ‘Throwin’ the Houlian’, Mono Training, and the Periodic Table of Elements (Teaser)
EP 88: Ben Ditto — Early Climbing and Photography, Dynafit Dangling, and Adventures With the ‘Wild Bunch’
EP 87: Alita Contreras — Learning Languages, Coaching Women to Climb Powerfully, and Translating Training Books
EP 86: Dylan Barks — Spray Wall Sessions, RMNP Rampaging, and Recovering From an Eating Disorder
Follow-Up: Steve Maisch — My Summer Training Plan, Listener Q&A, and Steve’s Go-To Training Exercises (Teaser)
EP 85: Emil Abrahamsson — Trying Hard Projects, Hangboarding Two Times Per Day, and a Career on YouTube
EP 84: Boone Speed — Training in the Hell Cave, the Grasshopper Board, and the Future of Artificial Climbing
Follow-Up: Nathan Hadley — Two Routes on The Diamond (Teaser)
EP 83: Neely Quinn — Lessons from the TrainingBeta Podcast, Nutrition Advice for Climbers, and Kids vs. Houses
EP 82: Christine Deyo — Learning Creativity, Fontainebleau Circuits, and the Role of Diversity in Route Setting
Follow-Up: Dru Mack — Play Hard. Rest Hard. (Teaser)
EP 81: Hazel Findlay — The Ego, Fear of Falling, and Mental Training for ‘Magic Line’
EP 80: Robb Wolf — Prioritizing Protein, the Importance of Sleep, and a Case for a Meat Inclusive Diet
Follow-Up: Ron Kauk — Listener Q&A, Who Punched John Bachar, and a Plane Full of Weed (Teaser)
EP 79: Tyler Nelson — A Deep Dive Into Blood Flow Restriction (BFR), Finger Training, and Doughnut Eating
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