In reply to swifty:
> This is mainly single pitch sport climbs at my local gym.
OK. Sorry I assumed it was bouldering. I generally rest for as long as it takes my partner to do a route. Sometimes I'll take some extra rest if I got particularly pumped on the previous route or if I'm trying to get up something right at my limit. But mostly I prefer to keep going and only rest for a fairly brief period.
> I just don't get how people seem to go climbing for pretty much all day, when I seem to be completely pumped out after 2/3 hours of climbing.
So firstly how many days per week to do you climb? Stamina and fitness improve most with doing a fair amount - say 4 - 5 days per week.
A key thing for me is not to get too pumped on any one route. If you push yourself really hard - to the point where you just cannot hang on any longer - the pump from that can take a while to subside. If you can stop just a little bit before that point it can make a big difference in terms of faster recovery.
This means I need less rest and results in allowing me to do more routes per session or in training terms a higher volume. For training endurance I think higher volume and lower intensity is the way to go. I generally do routes at or just below my onsight level. I certainly don't onsight everything though. If I get too pumped I'll take a rest and try the route again when I've got the moves a bit more dialled, often I'll wait for the next session if I think I need to be a bit fresher.
Another strategy is to mix up styles of climbing. So one route might be a fingery wall the next route might be a juggy roof climb. The first taxes your forearms more, the second is more on the larger muscle groups like shoulders, lats etc.
For routes above my onsight level I try to get as far as I can first try (while avoiding a critical forearm pump) and then continue resting on as many bolts as I need to.
A second factor is your climbing partner. I have one partner who tends to only do easy (for them) routes. They tend to be very eager, climb really fast and never fall off. This gives me considerably less rest than a slower partner. With a slower partner my sessions last longer because I'm both resting longer and more recovered for each route.
> I have been climbing for around a year now, and even though my overall climbing ability has improved my stamina seems to still be the same.
Hard to say why that would be without seeing you climb. A few things spring to mind:
1. Not trying hard enough routes or not just pushing yourself hard enough when you climb (this can come from a fear of falling or simply not realizing how hard you can push yourself).
2. Not doing enough routes each session
3. Not enough sessions per week.
4. Someone for whom endurance is a struggle - might mean you're naturally a better boulder.
5. The route-setting at the wall is shoddy. Routes with stopper moves aren't good for endurance training.
Could be a combination of several of these factors or something else.
You might try doing 2 - 3 routes in succession (with no rest other than lowering down), particularly if your wall is not that high. Also trying harder routes, doing them initially with rests and building up to redpointing them over several sessions. This is a great way to learn what we're really capable of.
The key thing is if you're not improving any more and you've been doing the same thing for a year you almost certainly need to change what you're doing in some way.
Post edited at 23:11
