Progression #3 Bouldering
Read previous installments here… Progression #1 First Time Climber and Progression #2 Top Roping
Started bouldering and got hooked? Do you want to get better so you can try even more boulders? Or maybe you are a rope climber looking to expand your skill set and build some power to unlock harder grades. Whatever the case, improving your bouldering ability will open up new routes and boulders and make you stronger.
Bouldering is hard. Instead of 30 to 60 feet of movement, you condense everything into 8 to 16 feet. This means the routes can start difficult, stay difficult, and finish difficult. Trying hard is key in bouldering. So, if it feels uncomfortable or hard at first, stick with it. The gains are coming.
So you’ve just begun or very recently started your bouldering journey. It can take a little time getting used to trying hard above a pad without a rope. Drop the difficulty and get some mileage getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. When you start to get scared or uncomfortable, take a moment to pause & breathe, and find control in the situation. If you are too uncomfortable to continue up the wall, pause, stay in your position for a little while longer, and then work your way back down to the mats. Our goal is to build confidence so we can commit and work through being scared. If we are always scared of the fall and can’t try hard, it’s going to be hard to improve. We want our mental ability to more closely match our physical abilities. We have to train our mental skills as much as we train our physical ones. That means finding comfort in the uncomfortable.
Mental and physical aren’t the only ability gaps we want to work on. We all have different strengths and weaknesses. To progress, we want to make sure we are working on both our strengths and weaknesses across the board. That means doing the more outdoor-style climbs and the indoor competition-style climbs. Work on different grip types and holds; don’t crimp everything and neglect your open hand strength. Super dynamic? Seek out techy static slow climbs. Don’t only climb the pinch routes; climb the slopers, pockets, and crimps as well. Climb all the walls, from the steepest roof to the lowest angle slab, the tall walls, and the short walls! As you start to build a foundation of climbs, you might notice a disparity in grades you send between these styles. You might be a V8 crimp climber but struggle on V4 slopers. Try to bridge these gaps. Crush on one style but struggle on another style climb? Do the things you love and excel in, but also give attention to your weaknesses in each session.
If you are a rope climber and have a specific goal in mind, try to find angles and hold types that mimic what you want to succeed on. A route at one of the Vertical Endeavors or a route outside, find holds and sequences that are similar, similar in move count and difficulty. If you just want to generally improve so you can pull harder on ropes, just keep challenging yourself.
Once you’ve progressed to the V4-5 range, consider board climbing! Climb on the spray wall, Tension Board, or Moon Board. Boards offer an entirely different climbing experience but can be a great way to introduce a new stimulus to your progression. Shorter than most commercial walls, these boards pack a punch. Jamming climbs into 4-6 strenuous moves. They offer a simple but intense climb, which can do wonders for increasing power and finger strength. A great and fun way to switch things up!
Make your own rules. Starting on a piece of plastic and ending on a piece of plastic is arbitrary. Climb sequences that excite and challenge you. Make your own routes up. Not enough VX in your style? Start a VX+1 or 2 several moves in. Find single moves that challenge you. Single moves are important and boulders in their own right. While they might not have a piece of plastic designating a difficulty, each individual move and sequence of moves has its own V-Grade. Single moves and 2-3 move sequences are good for your climbing and open up a lot more climbs to you! Single move projects are a great way to tap into your max effort.
Learn to project smarter! Most people project in a high-point fashion, climbing from the designated start, and trying to make it as far as possible. This is great when we are in send mode, but projecting using a low-point tactic can greatly improve our odds at sending. Instead of starting at the beginning, find the lowest point on the route that you can send from, slowly start working lower and lower. Combining these two tactics will let you understand the full route better. Keep pushing your high and low point until they overlap! Then go for the send!
Think long-term and short-term. If you want to improve your skills and abilities, don’t just come and flash as many climbs as possible and leave. Add in longer-term projects as well, things that take you multiple tries, things that take you multiple days, and dream big with something that might take weeks or months! Focus on finding the correct positions, and doing the move in the easiest way possible. The goal is to climb harder. If we want to achieve this, we have to try harder climbs! Failure is necessary for growth. Through failure, we become better climbers and ultimately succeed!
So, get out there and boulder and try hard! Reap the rewards of bouldering and have fun!
Climbing is dangerous, it involves inherent and other risks and cannot be eliminated. The information presented here does not describe all of the risks associated with climbing and is not intended to replace or supersede expert instruction and training.
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