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Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

 Page 1 of 2. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 35
Author
How to turn back the clock?.....
jdb
26-Apr-2017
10:20:23 AM
Morning All,

After trying to repeat (on top rope) a climb (In Lemon Butter, 22) I had led (not clean) 10 years ago, I am a bit depressed on how weak I am.
Now I'm no Spring Chicken (57), but I am not ready to give up on hard leads just yet.
I am currently climbing in the gym once a week (and sometimes twice) but I have completely lost the ability of pulling through hard moves. What should I do, as old father time seems to have grabbed hold of me?!

Whether it is push ups, hang board, bouldering - I am open to any ideas or training programs - all feedback (apart from my so-called mates) will be gratefully received.

Woe is me

JDB

Eduardo Slabofvic
26-Apr-2017
11:08:03 AM
Drugs

davetheyounger
26-Apr-2017
11:15:33 AM
Try Yoga
Wendy
26-Apr-2017
12:43:15 PM
Drugs probably are the easiest solution ...

You could try all sorts of hard core training programs, but I reckon you don't need them to climb low 20s. I think the main answers to keeping up some sort of level with aging are climb lots, maintain a healthy weight, don't get injured (and hard core training programs are a great way to get injured) and pick routes that suite your style. There's world of difference between In lemon butter, Hidden secrets, Glory rodent, Tyrant's Grasp, Auto de Fe. If powerful moves or small holds were never your forte, they probably aren't going to become so now. So take every advantage you can get from earlier strengths. If you like slabs, cracks or techy faces, just stick to those. No shame in being a specialist! Work on technique, core strength, flexibility and endurance if you want to train, as these are the least likely things to injury yourself working on and make a huge difference to most people's climbing. Fingerboards, campusing, hard bouldering are all much higher risk, and honestly, unless you are trying to climb a lot harder than 22, you don't need that sort of power or finger strength.

In Lemon Butter is one of those routes I often have a difficult experience on - I struggle up the start and cruise the top or cruise the bottom and die of terror on the top ... There are many 22s at the Mt I would lead again before that one! You could try leading Crooked Mile to TR Hidden Secrets or Brick Dust to TR Squeakeasy. When you find something challenging enough that doesn't feel risky on pesky fingers, elbows and shoulders, do a few laps on it for training.
jrc
26-Apr-2017
1:41:35 PM
wow JDB YPB!! I was thinking the same as i staggered up Elijah on Bluff Mountain last friday with my 15 y.o. son bouncily doing the bulk of the leading. Somehow i got sandbagged into leading the cruxy bits which was not as per plan. Just me getting odd and even pitches confused which highlights a different problem.Drugs do help i'm sure but it looks like i might need aricept in addition to voltaren.

In my case it's keep climbing try not to eat too much and have ardent offspring to urge you out as much as possible. Squeekeasy is on his hit list for the next Araps trip (thanks Wendy)! I think he'll find it easier than yellow butter (as lemon went for me)...

Sabu
26-Apr-2017
3:36:39 PM
Perhaps a good place to start would be reading through something like Eric Horst's book training for climbing. It'll give a good overview of what programs to include and what to target. There are some recommendations in particular of when to just increase climbing frequency and when to start adding in extra stuff like hangboarding etc. Whatever you do start slowly injury prevention is a must!
One Day Hero
26-Apr-2017
4:00:51 PM
I'm sure you'll get all manner of hangboard formulas and permutations from training geeks, but how about the broader question?

22 isn't considered super hard now, but in the early '70s it was cutting edge. Take a look at that black and white photo of Mike Law when he was 17 and ripped. Mike was one of the best climbers in the country, living full-time at the crag, fit as a fiddle, no injuries, and probably climbing no harder than 22!

Now a 57yr old, probably with career, family, busted bits, and climbing in the gym one night a week is asking about 'the easy way' to climb 22........

You probably need to manage expectations a bit. Do you want a one-off, last hurrah, glorious tick of a soft 12m 22? Maybe there's one or two dream routes you always wanted to do? Or do you want to get into serious "old dude form" for the next decade and be able to rip through 10 pitches a day of 22-25 (like Fantini did through his entire 60's)? Then what? Sooner or later nature will take its course and you'll have to accept a slow decline.

Not trying to be a total arsehole (any more than usual), but I really think it helps to think about your priorities and motivations rather than a vague "I wish I was stronger".

I'll be facing the same dilemma soon enough.
simey
26-Apr-2017
10:36:57 PM
If you were on lead when you first did In Lemon Butter, you were probably too scared to fall off.

Nowadays I simply can't be bothered fighting the good fight when things get hard. It's much easier to yell 'Take!'. If only I could tap into that naive, youthful exuberance where climbing meant the world to me. It got me up a lot of routes.
One Day Hero
26-Apr-2017
11:35:41 PM
On 26/04/2017 simey wrote:
>It's much easier to yell 'Take!'. If only
>I could tap into that naive, youthful exuberance where climbing meant the
>world to me. It got me up a lot of routes.

You have to be fit as well. The best fighting spirit in the world doesn't help for shit when your arms go from fresh to toast in 15 seconds.
Wendy
27-Apr-2017
6:37:16 AM
I forgot two other points - don't take up other sports, you'll only get injured doing them and unable to climb, besides they take away from important climbing time and don't become a grumpy old fart like Simey.

Also, I think stubbornness goes a long way in climbing. And aren't we all noted for becoming increasingly stubborn and set in our ways as we age? Surely that must help ....
gfdonc
27-Apr-2017
9:08:19 AM
John, you really know what the answer is. It's about the Shoes! The Shoes!

Hard climbers know they only tick hard when wearing tight shoes. That nagging pain is the incentive to jump on, climb quickly and then tick it so they can sit down, rip the shoes off and rub those sore tootsies asap! The extra adrenaline from a bit of compression agony will make all the difference!

Your tactical mistake was getting those 'comfy' size 44 TC pros a couple of years ago. Ya may as well be climbing in your lounge slippers. (I'm sure you have at least one pair). And who is that Tommy Caldwell anyway? Some washed-up has-been designing flat shoes for aging climbers who are only three day's growth away from being a beard stroker.

You now know what your path forward is. Straight to General James at Bogong Command. La Sportiva Solutions SAH! Size forty-two-point-five SAH!

capt_planit
27-Apr-2017
11:15:16 AM
+1 for painful shoes! Parabolic painful shoes...

Eduardo Slabofvic
27-Apr-2017
11:30:55 AM
My way is not very sportsman like
kieranl
27-Apr-2017
12:00:01 PM
On 27/04/2017 Eduardo Slabofvic wrote:
>My way is not very sportsman like
Could Lance Armstrong, Maria Sharapova and the Essendon Football Team all be wrong?

jezza
27-Apr-2017
2:58:37 PM
Well you're going to need lots of spare time for training, a friend who is a better climber, you'll need to live somewhere near reasonable climbing, no shame (to troll chocky for beta on any climb greater > grade 20) and BODY TENSION. Do some side bends, and sit ups, you're all set mate.
gfdonc
27-Apr-2017
4:28:17 PM
On 27/04/2017 jezza wrote:
>Well you're going to need lots of spare time for training,
Hm he's only working part-time, so tick.

> a friend who is a better climber,
Hm some would say over-endowed.

> you'll need to live somewhere near reasonable climbing,
Eww Woodend so struck out there.

>no shame (to troll chocky for beta on any climb greater > grade 20)
I think his credentials have been well established

>BODY TENSION.
Maybe that's it. Working part time with comfy shoes, John is just too damn relaxed. He needs to drink more coffee and fret more (about climbing).
simey
27-Apr-2017
6:44:08 PM
On 26/04/2017 One Day Hero wrote:
>On 26/04/2017 simey wrote:
>>It's much easier to yell 'Take!'. If only
>>I could tap into that naive, youthful exuberance where climbing meant
>the
>>world to me. It got me up a lot of routes.
>
>You have to be fit as well. The best fighting spirit in the world doesn't
>help for shit when your arms go from fresh to toast in 15 seconds.

Yeah, but when you have that fighting spirit you learn to hang in there when everything is turning to shit. How many fit climbers do you see who yell 'Take' when they still have gas in the tank but are simply being wussy?
simey
27-Apr-2017
7:05:11 PM
On 27/04/2017 Wendy wrote:
>I forgot two other points - don't take up other sports, you'll only get
>injured doing them and unable to climb, besides they take away from important
>climbing time and don't become a grumpy old fart like Simey.

Even carrying most of the injuries I have sustained from other sports, I would still be able to climb the shitty pox that you keep recommending to Chockstone readers. I am not really sure how your game plan of climbing all that mank is going to help you climb harder?

And who said I was grumpy? Or old?

Wendy
27-Apr-2017
7:22:15 PM
On 27/04/2017 simey wrote:
>On 27/04/2017 Wendy wrote:
>>I forgot two other points - don't take up other sports, you'll only get
>>injured doing them and unable to climb, besides they take away from important
>>climbing time and don't become a grumpy old fart like Simey.
>
>Even carrying most of the injuries I have sustained from other sports,
>I would still be able to climb the shitty pox that you keep recommending
>to Chockstone readers. I am not really sure how your game plan of climbing
>all that mank is going to help you climb harder?
>
>And who said I was grumpy? Or old?
>
>
Hey, you publish books recommending shitty pox like Pixie's Delight - it because i've climbed all this stuff that I can actually verify they are shitty pox! Anyway, climbing all this mank still seem to have me climbing close to as well as I ever have. Maybe I should list that as a training strategy too.
One Day Hero
27-Apr-2017
7:55:49 PM
On 27/04/2017 simey wrote:
>How many fit climbers do you see......?

I thought we were talking about you.

 Page 1 of 2. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 35
There are 35 messages in this topic.

 

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