Porta-Hang on the Nitty Gritty Training Podcast

This week, Porta-Hang founder Kevin Line joined Faye Stenning & Jess O’Connell of Grit Coaching, with guest, professional rock climbing photographer Philip Quade, to talk cross-training and grip strength for OCR athletes on this week’s episode of the Nitty Gritty Training Podcast!

What’s the Nitty Gritty Training Podcast you ask?

Obstacle Course Racing champion, Faye Stenning, and Olympic running star, Jess O’Connell,  of Grit Coaching discuss training, recovery, endurance, all things OCR, and more. The Nitty Gritty Training podcast is a must-listen for any athlete looking to step outside of their normal routine and get a leg up on their performance (sometimes quite literally! Check out their mobility,  flexibility and stretching episode).

In this week's podcast they look at the challenges of grip strength in OCR athletes, what can be gleaned from the rock climbing community, and how Porta-Hang is changing the way athletes train outside of the gym.

Kevin Line

Founder and CEO of Porta-Hang. Kevin is an engineer, entrepreneur and athlete living in Nashville, Tennessee.  He started rock climbing 6 years ago after a friend took him to Climb Nashville. Previously an endurance athlete, the thrill and adventure of climbing was a new challenge and high that he really needed.

After a lot of business travel that took him away from the gym and outdoor crags, Kevin used his engineering experience to create a solution to keep him “climber strong” on the road. This became Porta-Hang.

Website: PortaHang.com

Instagram: @portahang

Faye Stenning

Faye was heavily involved in running through high school and university and competed on the University of Calgary’s track and cross country teams. Her career highlights include achieving “All Canadian” cross country status and running in the 2008 Olympic trials in the 5000m. After graduating with a Bachelors of Kinesiology she began a career as a personal trainer, sharing her love of fitness with a diverse clientele while inspiring anyone she encountered to live healthier and fitter lives.

It wasn’t long after Faye retired from competitive running that she began her next athletic endeavor, obstacle course racing! Faye's strong running background and skills in strength training led to nearly instant success on the OCR circuit. In 2016 she was signed on the Spartan Pro Team and has been a prominent figure in the sport. Faye still competes with the best of the best and has maintained a top 5 finish at the US National Series every year as well as two 4th places finishes at Spartan North Americans and two 4th place finishes at the Spartan World Championship. No female athlete has had as many Spartan podium finishes over the past decade as Faye - a testament to her longevity in OCR.

In 2017, Faye recognized that there was a desperate need for good quality, science-backed training plans in the OCR community. She started a coaching business (Grit Coaching) with her good friend Jessica O’Connell and has been busy coaching clients ever since!

Aside from being totally addicted to pushing her body to the limit, what keeps Faye coming back year after year is the OCR community. Nothing makes her happier than getting to travel and share her love of fitness and adventure with so many positive and inspiring people.  She truly lives the “work hard play hard” mantra to the fullest.

Website: GritCoaching.net

 Instagram: @fayestenning_ocr

Jess O’Connell

Jess is an accomplished runner, specializing in the 5000m with a blazing personal best time of 15:06.66. She is a 2016 Rio Olympian in the 5000m and Canadian national record holder in the indoor 3000m. Jess's additional career highlights include: 17x Canadian national team member in track and field, cross country, and road running, 4x National Champion, Pan Am Games silver medalist,  NCAA Division I All-American, and a 10km road race personal best of 32:22.

Website: GritCoaching.net

 Instagram: @jessmoconnell

Philip Quade

Professional climbing photographer, co-founder of Rock Digital Marketing and seasoned climber. Philip has made a career out of climbing and adventure. Having traveled extensively across Canada, across the United States, to Australia and parts of Africa seeking adventure, Philip is no stranger to the trials of training on the move. Specializing in bouldering photography and competitive climbing photography, he can be found traveling with Canada’s national circuit in the winters, and on the road chasing rock and water in the summers.

Website: PhilipQuade.com         RockDigitalMarketing.com

Instagram: @philip_quade

We highly recommend you subscribe to Nitty Gritting Training, and follow them on Instagram for more great training and athletic wellness content.

Ready to listen? 

Catch Kevin, Faye, Jess and Phil now!