Training for Climbing, 2nd: The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Performance (How To Climb Series)

much of the route as possible. There are many benefits to this practice beyond the obvious one of doubling the pump. If you know you are going to downclimb a route, you become a more observant and focused climber on the way up. What’s more, since poor footwork is a leading handicap for many climbers, there’s a lot to be gained from this practice, which demands intense concentration on footwork!
    At first you will find downclimbing to be difficult, awkward, and very pumpy. But that’s the MO when first attempting anything new that’s worthwhile (read challenging ). As your hold recognition improves, however, and as you learn to relax and fluidly reverse the route, you’ll find that downclimbing a route often feels easier than sending it in the first place. This is because your eccentric (lowering) strength is greater than your concentric (pulling) strength, and due to the fact that by leading with the feet while downclimbing you learn to maximally weight them and conserve energy. All of the above make downclimbing a killer drill—one not to be overlooked by any serious climber!

     

Speed Training
     
    When the rock gets steep and the moves hard, there’s no more important weapon to have in your arsenal than being able to climb fast and precisely. Climbing quickly is primarily a function of skill, not strength or power (I’m not talking about lunging wildly up a route). In fact, the less strength and endurance you possess, the more important this skill becomes.
    To begin with, it’s important to note that there is no benefit to climbing faster if you begin to botch sequences or if your technique degrades. Therefore, you want to practice speed climbing on routes you have completely wired and, likely, at a number grade or two below your personal best. Climb several laps on the route (rest between attempts), each incrementally faster than the previous. Attempt to climb about 10 percent faster on each successive lap, but back off the accelerator at the first sign that your technique is suffering.
    Perform this drill a few times a week for several months, and you’ll find yourself naturally moving faster when climbing on-sight or redpoint at the crags. This new skill alone could push your redpoint ability a full grade higher over the course of a single season—a much greater gain than you’d achieve from strength training alone!

 
    Stephen Meinhold on Mango Tango (5.13d), New River Gorge, West Virginia. DAN BRAYACK
     

    CHAPTER FIVE
     
    Theory and Methodology of Strength Training
     
    Man is in a position to act because he has the ability to discover causal relations which determine change and becoming in the Universe.
    —Ludwig von Mises
     
     
    Perhaps no sport can match rock climbing for the dramatic increase in the mean level of performance of its participants in recent years. Today’s average climber is capable of a standard that few climbers dreamed of achieving when I began climbing in the mid-1970s. Furthermore, many weekend warriors are able to progress to the lofty levels of 5.12 and 5.13—grades that hardly existed three decades ago. The reasons for these incredible improvements include sticky-soled shoes, sport-climbing tactics, and, more than anything else, the advent of climbing gyms and a growing focus on sport-specific strength training.
    Still, there are many arguments among climbers about the best way to train, and people frequently tell me that they are confused by the often conflicting training information that has been published. Surely an article or book describing the training practices of some 5.14 climber is of little help for average climbers—it might even get them injured. Alternatively, joining a health club and performing the typical weight-lifting workout would be of little benefit for most climbers; in fact, it may even hurt their climbing performance!
    As a result of all the confusion, numerous climbers have quipped to me that they have decided to “just climb” as training for climbing. While this is an excellent strategy for novices, intermediate and advanced climbers definitely need to partake in some sport-specific strength training if they want to continue to improve and, hopefully, someday reach their genetic potential.
    The goal of this chapter (as with this whole book) is to help you avoid—or step out of—the muck and mire of confusion that surrounds so much information on training for climbing. Toward this end, I will arm you with a basic understanding