Training Tips and Inspiration: Explore Our Blog

The last thing I want to think about again today is getting older. I don't really like to talk about it and I certainly don't like doing it. But for me, and probably for you, the worse alternative is getting old quickly. As I look at the people I grew up with, Many of them are frail, immobile, and unable to say "yes" to many activities. These are people in their forties and fifties, not in their 80s.

When it comes to performance, every single climber I have ever known has struggled with plateaus. In fact, when someone I talk to seems to just keep getting better, I'm more inclined to punch them in the face than to hear another word of how fun it all is and how they can't wait to go apply their fitness on some big wall somewhere. As coaches, the first time we get to meet most of our athletes is when they get stuck-and usually by the time they contact a professional about fixing the issue, they've already tried "everything". Everything, except discipline.

Anyone who has been in sports for very long has probably heard of the energy systems, or the ways in which our bodies supply energy. When we run down a road for an hour, we are producing energy from a different source than when we pick up a heavy barbell. And when we climb our way into a searing pump, it's another animal altogether.

What I got in return is way too much to list. When you are in charge of 46 climbers ranging from just starting out to being able to send three double digit boulders in a session, you learn and you learn quickly. I also acquired the skill to take what these kids taught me and apply it to the climber who has been in the game for twice as long as these kids have been alive. Below is a list of things that really stand out to me and I want you to consider how each of them play a role in your own climbing.

My good friend and longtime climbing partner Kirk Billings used to spend his winters bouldering in Hueco Tanks and cooking at Todd Skinner's training compound. He got to climb with many of the top climbers of the era and witness all manner of novel approaches to climbing and training. One of Kirk's stories from his Hueco days serves as a vivid example of the challenge of applying too much specificity in climbing training.

It might be semantics, but it might also be a trap. When we throw around the terms we use in training for climbing, the word "power" gets used a lot. The problem is that although power is a performance metric, we struggle to build training that directly addresses it. Thus, when we build a program for power, go in and do "power" on the campus board, or do "power" exercises in the weight room, we might not be increasing our power at all. Let's look at this a little more closely.

Ido Portal describes an approach where one continues to explore, work, and grow despite changing circumstances. Engaging, or I should say "experiencing" one's practice from this place of stable commitment is powerful. Certainly easier said than done! As climbers, many of us are seeking something. It might be a peak experience, a deeper sense of connection, or maybe some better understanding of ourselves? We will encounter bumps in the road, likely more often than we would choose, but if we want to really reach our potential, it's essential that we cultivate a mindset where we can thrive despite changing circumstances.

As a climber transitions into more challenging sport or trad climbs, the need for better habits and tactics around optimal resting on routes arises. These thoughts and ideas can be applied to longer boulders (not to exclude the pebble wrestlers among us), as well as onsighting or flashing climbs. However, we will be focused on better resting while attempting to send a project that has already been attempted in this article. In the words of Adam Ondra, "It's easy: I'm either climbing or relaxing." If we take these words to heart, we can really focus on becoming more effective at both our resting, as well as our climbing while working on any project. Here are three thoughts and associated tips to consider while working to improve how you rest on the wall.

Training sessions have a way of being sneaky when we look at them on paper. We look at something like "5x5 at 80%" and it doesn't seem all that hard. Nor does "4 pitches at 2nd tier." Nor does "Do five pull-ups. Add two per day for 30 days." Much like the ancient grains on a chessboard problem, we don't know what we're getting into until we're into it deep. I've never felt this more than when I tried to follow through on a complete season of endurance training. I love bouldering. I don't mind getting pumped on a route at the crag. But day after day of training in that sickening zone of fatigue, well…

The use of visualization or imagery practice in sport and performance has been long regarded as one of those tools that seems like magic. For a long time most of the research centered around using imagery practices to improve skill sets and to help performance anxieties-say shooting a basketball or swinging a golf club. There are some studies that show a scattering of evidence pointing to the fact that imagery can improve strength in single joint movements; like a biceps curl.

Endurance is the ability to display power or strength over time. It can be of continuous, high intensity, or it can be intermittent in nature. There are many different ways that endurance shows up in our sport, and there are a few key lessons to take home before we start equating simply working up a sweat with being able to beat the pump.