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Maintaining peak performance (Read 2214 times)

2 Tru

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Maintaining peak performance
October 12, 2015, 10:51:53 am
I had a highly beneficial coaching session with Robin O'Leary earlier this year. He identified my relative weakness in finger strength along with technique issues and injuries I should get seen to.

Two months on and addressing these concerns has paid dividends; I have manage to climb two 7a's in the UK in 3-4 attempts where previously I had failed on 6b+. The only 'training' I have done is to stick to fingerboarding twice a week and seek out routes and problems indoors with smaller holds(also climbing twice a week.)

I am heading to Geyikbayiri for two weeks in November and my worry is that I am peaking in performance right now but it will fall off a cliff by the time I get out to Turkey. What should I do to maintain/improve my current level?

Thanks for your help.

mctrials23

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#1 Re: Maintaining peak performance
October 12, 2015, 11:34:31 am
I'm no expert but unless you are following a plan that is tailored to see you peak at a specific time you probably won't see any real noticeable decreases in performance. I always understood it as a kind of trade off with certain training plans that you will perhaps see a greater peak but also suffer a bit of a trough afterwards.

If you have suddenly gone up a few grades after doing some finger training the chances are good that you simply didn't have strong fingers and were starting from quite a low starting point so that sudden stimulus has really paid off. I would be surprised if you find it falls away at any point. You are certainly not overtraining with the volume you are doing from what you have said.

I have never really experienced a serious trough in performance when climbing. I have the odd week/session where I am not at the races but I don't think thats unexpected and I'm sure its not related to a peak in performance in the preceding weeks.

petejh

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#2 Re: Maintaining peak performance
October 12, 2015, 11:42:35 am
A peak results from combining training different aspects of strength and different aspects of fitness in a structured way that, hopefully, creates a relatively short window of time following a longer period of training when all the differing strengths and fitnesses are at a relatively high level, or at least the ones that are most demanded by your goal routes (which wouldn't be possible by you, without training) are.
 
At the level you're at really it sounds like you're 'just climbing' - the mileage you get from climbing in Turkey will make you better whatever you do. You're not at risk of massive performance losses.

To best prepare (and perhaps enjoy a tiny little peak) for a sport trip like that in 4 weeks time - try to up volume and difficulty of routes climbed week-on-week then take a full rest week before you go. To maintain your level just climb twice per week at the same level as now and continue fb'ing at the same level.

Like you say the best course to improvement is not being injured, consciously working to improve technique/efficiency of effort, and climbing lots.

2 Tru

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#3 Re: Maintaining peak performance
October 12, 2015, 12:17:19 pm
Thank you for your help that has cleared things up.

I guess my confusion has come about from trying to relate what I am doing to climbers following a more structured plan.

Thanks again for your input. 

mctrials23

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#4 Re: Maintaining peak performance
October 12, 2015, 01:25:06 pm
I might be wrong but from what you have said it doesn't sound like you have much of a structured long term plan. As Pete says, a proper periodised plan with encapsulate various periods of training targeting different aspects of your climbing such as  strength, power, endurance and performance. The complex interaction of all these things done properly should lead to a performance peak where all aspects are at the optimum level for you to perform in a specific type of climbing be it sport, bouldering etc and the plan will differ depending on that.

Enjoy the gains that you are getting from targeting your fingers and don't worry about losing them!

shark

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#5 Re: Maintaining peak performance
October 29, 2015, 08:01:36 pm
If you have been training max finger strength on a fingerboard then the gains are more or less likely to be semi-permanent and less subject to the ups and downs of periodisation than for example endurance as there is always stimulus to keep the finger strength gains if you keep climbing. IMO, DYOR etc

 

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