Reality star Dylan Efron does everything he can to stay in good shape so that when nature calls—quite literally—he’s ready to go.
“I like to play games,” Efron told Efron Muscles and Fitness only. “There’s a tennis court outside my hotel right now, and I went out there and tried to hit balls. I play beach volleyball and soccer, and I try to play as many sports as I can to relax and exercise as much as I can. I want to be ready when those opportunities come because like that rock climbing adventure, it’s hard enough that if I don’t know it.”
After conquering his first climb in Utah between 2017 and 2018, the outdoor enthusiast was already a big hiker that gave him the itch to take things to the next level. And in May 2026, he set a goal to climb red rocks in Moab, UT, and thanks to his six-day-a-week schedule and protein-heavy diet, he was able to jump right in.
“My friends [said]’Hey, we’re going to do this,’” Efron explained, “I’m in a good mood. I think staying as healthy as possible, ready for anything is the goal.”
Growing up with their famous travel partner, Zac Efron, the brothers learned at an early age how much the world has to explore. The 34-year-old had to set his sights on conquering the nearly 90-degree Moab climb.
“I’ve been going to national parks since I was a kid and I see people there and I’m like, ‘Oh, I want to do that one day,’ and then I realize, ‘Oh, I can do that today if I want to,'” the first. Dancing with the stars the final one says. “I got to learn. And that led to lifting, I did the same thing. I’d go rock climbing and I’d see someone lift and I’d say, ‘Okay, I want to do that next.’
How Dylan Efron Climbed His Way to the Top
After being told by a mountain guide that he was “not fit” to face Moab, Efron began working to get better.
“I think it’s just exercise,” said Efron, who recently partnered with Garden of Life to launch its Clear Whey Protein. “Nothing comes suddenly, if you keep doing it it gets easier, like if I don’t ride for a while, my fingers are the first thing that starts to get tired.
But the more you do, the more calluses, so your fingers become stronger. For me, I have never been a crazy student. It is agreeable. Opened dancing with the stars, I wasn’t one of the best natural dancers, but I firmly believe that I practiced more than anyone there.”
Efron admits that for this climb, he didn’t change his usual routine and hit the indoor wall once to prepare himself. One thing he did, however, was make sure he targeted the right muscles on a journey that consisted of a one-hour climb, a three-hour climb and a one-hour climb back.
“Again, it’s about trying to balance,” Efron added. “So I do legs about twice a week and then upper body, I definitely do more back than like, chest and arms. I try to focus on big muscle groups and cardio because even going up, my heart was about 160 beats per second. That was a challenge. And then just strength and flexibility, those are very important to me.”
Efron admits that there is some fear and anxiety that comes out of being that high up holding nothing but a rope and was able to talk himself off the edge.
“The level is so high, I was so scared,” Efron said. “The rock climb, the first pitch was harder than I thought, so I was a little nervous because I started to feel cramped and needed electrolytes.
But after that I started to climb smarter.”
Nutrition is a big piece of the puzzle in Efron’s successful rise, which is why being “The Gartender” and helping Garden of Life drop its new kits felt like a perfect fit.
“It’s just healthy food,” Efron said of his diet. “For me, whey protein is the best because I need a lot of protein. I think that after I work out, I make sure that my body is nourished. I think that when I was younger I used to exercise without having protein and I did some blood work when I did triathlons and I realized that I needed more protein, especially whey protein, and I saw the power of just a normal healthy diet.
