UKC

I was first introduced to this awesome sport at the age of 20 and was instantly addicted, I Climbed for 4 years, mostly on indoor walls as my location is at least 4 hour drive form any rock in England, but as the addiction really set in i spent more and more of my time in Derbyshire. Then unfortunately due to personal reasons i had to quit the sport now at 30 i have recently dusted off my climbing kit and returned to the indoor walls mainly to introduce a friend who showed some interest in the sport (after i forced him to watch hard grit!) i soon realized that the extra 3.5 stone that i have gained in weight really has affected my climbing to such a degree that i feel really depressed when im climbing steep stuff, i know i have the techniques to do the moves just don't have the strength to hold my weight anymore and i don't see any improvements in my physical strength :S

At my "peak" i was climbing upto E1 onsight and headpointing E3/4 upto English 6a technical and indoors i was climbing at a rough guess of F7a+(maybe easier maybe harder not entirely sure as my wall has never graded its routes) at my very best. Now though im struggling at F6a ish lvl's and i know i can pull that off easily after a few tries but now i cant and in many ways im loosing my enjoyment of the sport as im climbing on indoor walls at a much lower grade and sometime allot less challenging climbing...

I cant figure out if its just the pure fact im an outdoor climber as i enjoy climbing rock whatever the grade since i haven't been able to touch any rock and that wont be until April atleast next year i cant help thinking im not going to enjoy it as much as i used to, indoor walls to me have always been a place for socializing and training for the outdoors, and to enjoy it the most i need to be climbing at my physical peak.

Maybe its the wall i climb at as its not the best wall in the world and most of the routes have been set very poorly and ungraded, there is big jumps in difficulties rather than a gradual increase in difficulties to cater for all abilities, maybe my "peak" level at the moment is right in between what is set and im just stuck in that "zone" am i just being too impatient on my return?

Im very frustrated at this, I wonder if anyone has experienced what im going through or has any advice what i can do to "remedy" my situation?

In reply to koopa:

I seem to manage to get frustrated and a bit down if ive only climbed indoors for a little while. Despite what the general concensus might be on indoor stuff being easier than outdoor, i have always been able to perform better out on real rock. (this isnt to say i havn't cranked my fair share of harder routes indoors, but as long as your fresh this is no great feat !)

So at this time of year climbing can get a touch frustrating in general if indoor walls suck your soul a little. my advice ? use it as an excuse to get yourself in a bit better shape for when the sun starts coming out ! get yourself out bouldering somewhere if you can, do some pull ups around the house, and if you cant resist it, go to your wall and work on whatever takes your fancy...and by the time the weather is nice, you might just be thankful for a bit of extra effort over the winter !

In reply to koopa:

*Yawn*

In reply to koopa:

So take it off again! (And, in case anyone thinks that's not helpful, I've been there and done that...)

In reply to petestack:

i was going to reply along these lines

In reply to koopa:

Well all i can say, that may or may not help, is that in the first year i was climbing, having been an overweight computer programmer who came home and spent his evenings playing computer games, i found i lost a stone and a half very quickly ( a mater of months) and have continued to get fitter and improve over time since then. So i would just say just keep at it any you'll get back to your former abilities eventually.

I read, thought i can't remember who it was by, that the best training for climbing was more climbing. So just get as many sessions in as you can and don't expect to much too quickly, seems your being a bit hard on yourself

In reply to 2pints:

Curious as to why you replied if you found it so boring?

In reply to 2pints: I know its the festive period and i should be nice but... How many times have you said on here that you were going to be somewhere to meet up in the real world and never turned up? Four more than enyone else.

In reply to Koopa: I know where your at, but i only need to loose 1 1/2 stone, and put some muscle back on. I'm starting a calorie deficit diet in 5 days, As well as 3 days a week in the Gym.

It's going to do my head in. But i know its going to be worth it by the summer..

In reply to koopa: the general answer would be to climb more...

*fades into drunken haze*

Climb more = improvement of existing technique + reduction of bodyweight + an increase in muscle mass = improved climbing related (and overall) stregnth + ability to climb more (stamina) + an overall increase in general climbing skill/technique = increase in grade.... ish?

makes sense to me...

In reply to koopa:

Exercise (climb).

Eat less food.

Make sure the food you eat is healthy and high in carbs.

http://onlineclimbingcoach.blogspot.com/search/label/Body%20composition

In reply to koopa: well, you think you have problems?
last october i was pushing E2s -3s and attempting 7s indoors.
took a year out and now indoors i struggle on 6bs and today (although i could not feel my hands) i was dogging on F5+ and retreated one!!
the more you climb, the better you become, and being a fat tw&t does not help (i am trying to loose 1 stone myself)
k

In reply to tanssop: I believe 2 pints is an overweight non-climber...

In reply to koopa: i'm in a less serious situation being i reckon maybe a stone and a half above my fighting weight (assuming a thinishXmas)i live near superb walls and good climbing so can get out when the weather allows, which if your really keen is probably 2 out of 3 winter weekends.

i seem to have become injury prone since getting heavier which sucks, to be honest i suspect losing a chunk of weight will have a BIG impact. I'm planning long walks in the cold, some scottish climbing and some skiing over the winter to try and be maybe half a stone lighter by my birthday.

bear in mind that it takes months to really get stronger with a nasty lag between your muscles and your tendons....

LOL @ 2pints if your really that tired go get some sleep...

thanks for the replies, i think as simon geering said maybe im being too harsh on myself and expecting too much too soon, after all it did take me 4 years to get to the level i was at in the first place!

I will certainly be climbing as much as i can between now and the summer i just need to focus on getting myself in as good a shape as time will allow by then, even if im in good or poor shape just enjoy the climbing, after all that's what i love about the sport is simply the movement, touch, feel, look of a stunning line even the smell!

That's what i will aspire too i think

In reply to 2pints:


please enlighten us with your vast experience instead of being a complete prick.

Seems like a genuine question to me, but of course if you're pushing the envelope and are way beyond us all to give advice, then I apologise.

Dick

PS, that's not my name

In reply to koopa:

Cut down your calories..exercise in other ways other than climbing and , with a little determination..ye'll get there? No easy road to fitness i'm afraid

In reply to leaf1741:

Me too, its because outdoor climbs depend mainly on skill and technique and indoor climbs depend mostly on strength. This is proven when good 6b indoor climbers move outdoors and start wondering if they can lead V Diff. Good outdoor E2 climbers move indoors and are often struggling on 6a.

In reply to Al Evans:

Interesting observation, Al. Dunno if it's as cut and dried as that (some of our indoor routes are certainly more technical than thuggish), but climbing nicely indoors is still a comparative struggle to me!

In reply to koopa:

Maybe you need focus? Personally, I find it really useful to have goals I'm training for. Something to motivate on those days when you'd rather be somewhere else than the wall or gym. As an example, for me these are two particular routes I'm trying to rp - one inside and one outside.

I agree with the people who are saying try and get the weight off.... If I was 3.5 stone heavier, I'm sure everything would feel a hell of a lot harder... Maybe work on getting the weight off and other than that, I'm sure lots of climbers have said to focus on your finger strength any how... good luck, its nearly the new year so a great time to get re-focused.

In reply to petejh:

I'm sure there must be a good reason for you saying this, but I always ate carbs to increase body weight and have just shed 20lbs by cutting carbs completely (and yes, it does make a difference to climbing)

In reply to koopa:

If you cannot get up the next grade at the wall don't fret, just build stamina. Do laps on a route you can just do comfortably, you will be surprised how hard it is the third and fourth time. That way you still build up strength without damaging tendons and setting you back, and suddenly you will find you CAN do that next grade up route at the wall. You will also be converting the fat into muscle and burning off some calories.

In reply to koopa:

What you need is a dog, get very attached to it over say over three years, watch it take a nose dive health wise, come to realise that you will have to have it put down, take it for a walk and watch its back end give way, come to realise that you have to have it put down again and stop kidding yourself, (for added effect enter the room to find "babe" on telly - the bit where the pig is dying on the rug in front of the fire and the farmer starts singing), take it to the vets and have it put down, come home to have your missus have a go at you for not having it put down, throw the still warm dog collar at her whilst putting all emotion to the back of your mind to fester and no doubt turn into a mental illness.

Start walking about 8 - 12 miles a day and do about 50 pull ups a day (in reps of 10).

Start divorce proceedings a couple of weeks later (for unrelated matters but basically due to realising that the woman that you've loved for the last 14 years is nothing more than a moaning, winging, chubby fat f*ck git that justs lies on the sofa stuffing crips into her f*cking fat face), get told you've got to move out of the house (the one that you've worked your tits off paying for and doing up for years)the week before Christmas and continue with the walking, increasing it to 16 miles a day in order to retain any ounce of sanity that hasn't already been sucked out of you.

You should loose about 15Kg and start looking like the bloke you were before being immancipated by incessive nagging.

Have fun.

In reply to evs1066:

So is that with or without carbs?





F*cking brilliant mate. Sorry about the dog.

In reply to evs1066: *hug*

In reply to evs1066:

Ouch. Hope things start to improve.

Just hoping that 2pints doesn't come along and reply to that one.

In reply to evs1066:

FFS, that is the worst tale this Christmas I have heard apart from someones loved wife dying on Christmas eve, look after yourself and go for what is yours.

big hugs

In reply to petejh:

With carbs mate, - but get your carbs from vegatables not pasta - and before anyone starts on about that, that comes from a body builder and from my chiropractor mate who's well into nutrition.

In reply to evs1066:
You don't write the lyrics for Glasvegas do you? Hope 2009 is a lot better for you mate.

In reply to koopa:
Koopa,
All is not lost! although 3.5 stone is a stack load of extra chubs to have put on, it can all come off again...

I am in a very similar position to yourself witha stop start climbing experience. Climbed for circa 4 yrs till i got to about 8a then had to give up completely for about 2 years. Took it up again and found it very difficult to get back in as had to start at the bottom again and was a bit of a beefcake (flab hanging over the harness style).

Managed to get back up to 7c+ after a year of real effort and then gave it up again about a year ago. Am just looking to start again now. i found You just have to try and enjoy moving through the lower grades like you did the first time. Getting in with some mates who are also crap and trying to improve also helps motivate.
Manage your expectations, to a large extent its like starting again strength wise when you come off a long layoff.

good luck and youll find it alot easier the second time

In reply to drmarten:

No, but I have been "rocking out" to Matallica with my 7 year old girl recently. 2009 is going to be brill. Thanks.

In reply to evs1066:

*Big Hug!!*