UKC

i am thirteen years old and i am climbing 6c+, but i don't think i am getting better. i was wondering if anyone had any ideas how i could push my grade. i have a chin up bar (but don't use it) and i have some weights. i climb twice a week indoors and they have a circuit board.

PLEASE HELP !!!!!!!!!!

In reply to SoftwareMaster123:

Just keep climbing as much as you can. Try and mix it up doing different styles of routes/problems and always try and work your weaknesses, ie if you're terrible at sloper, do more of them to try and improve.

In reply to SoftwareMaster123:

get yourself a hot girl/boyfriend who climbs, drink lots of coffee, climb as much as you can, particularly outdoors and enjoy the best climbing days of your life.

take your time and be safe (keep soloing shit till youre at least 15), eat properly, stay off the beer and dope and go see as many good climbers talk as you can. the odd day off school in order to climb will be forgiven.

i aint old, but i take it all far too seriously and if it changes as fast for you as it did for me then just chilling out and enjoying will keep it good for as long as possible.

its worth noting that when you hit uni, you will get more quality climbing time being relaxed and fun to climb with than being some hardened over-focussed knob who take it too seriously.

In reply to SoftwareMaster123: Might be worth booking a couple of coaching sessions at your wall. If you can't afford them, maybe ask for them for your birthday/xmas etc. That will highlight if it's technique or strength/flexibility that is holding you back. If you have some poor form then getting stronger will only make that worse.

Be wary of injury with training boards, what I mean is don't suddenly start adding circuits between your climbing for three days a week.

In reply to SoftwareMaster123:

Patience

In reply to SoftwareMaster123: I'd seek out a coach, probably your local wall will point you in the right direction or have somebody themselves who can help.

The internet will tell you a lot of adult training plans that may, but also may not, be realistic for you. Tell the coach exactly what you want... I've seen some people book a coach session and they dont actually tell them where you're weak or tell them how to get better specifically. You need a coach who will asses your weaknesses and give you a plan to work to improve. A follow up session in a couple of months would be good with the same person.

+1 for patience but also I'd suggest another wall session would be good each week. Generally the advice is to climb 3 or 4 times a week.

And others have said, chill dont stress, get outside if you can and enjoy the sport.

In reply to SoftwareMaster123:

Have a look on the BMC website for the Youth Climbing Series and any courses they run for people your age. If you get into the competition scene you'll meet other strong climbers your own age and you'll start getting invites to events for young climbers.

In reply to SoftwareMaster123:

Wish I'd got into climbing at 13 instead of 30! You've got some great times ahead but don't stress if you've plateaued slightly. The harder grades you climb the longer it will take to get to the next level (in my experience anyway).

At 13 your body is still growing and changing and too much weight training, pull-ups, etc. can actually harm your development rather than improve it (a good article in a recent edition of Climb or Climber magazine highlights just this point). Just keep healthy, climb regularly and don't be afraid to rest for a week on occasion. A fresh outlook often helps!