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 fiendblog (Read 379451 times)

tomtom

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#1025 Re:  fiendblog
October 27, 2021, 11:10:32 am
Sorry to hear that Matt. That sounds shite :( You're welcome to give me a bell/message if you feel the need (long shot I know :D )

Theres infinity+1 'solutions' for golfers - but since I started doing basic TRX stuff (prone IYT's) 1-2 times a week (over the last 18 months - so the long haul..) mine has faded away and I now get no tweaks or even a tingle (still climbing the same steep board stuff that it didn't especially like before). Reverse wrist curls helped earlier - but I stopped them 6-9 months back.

mrjonathanr

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#1026 Re:  fiendblog
October 27, 2021, 01:04:26 pm
but since I started doing basic TRX stuff (prone IYT's)

You can do this pretty easily with a 1kg weight in each hand, face down on the floor with forehead resting on a cushion. Works well. I really believe strong shoulders are the way forward for healthy elbows.

Hope your elbow heals up soon (and don’t forget Dave Mac’s advice - whatever you do, keep climbing).

dunnyg

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#1027 Re:  fiendblog
October 27, 2021, 01:26:59 pm
Perhaps it is all karma for slagging off someone's stannage VS punter style trousers  :whistle:

Focussing on the rehab and doing every possible(ish) thing for it helped me stay positive during injuries. More recently I found keeping a training diary allowed me to see the progress I've made on the rehab front.
Is also spent some time exploring dales backwaters on the hope of finding some amazing new blocks. I didn't find any true king lines, but did manage to scout out some crags which I later went back to develop.


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#1028 Re:  fiendblog
October 27, 2021, 09:16:00 pm
Perhaps it is all karma for slagging off someone's stannage VS punter style trousers  :whistle:
Stanage MVS I thought, did you get them from Millets or the Aldi central aisle? And did Will make you agree to upgrade his board testpieces before he let you on in that attire?  ;) Anyway I was injured before he started tormenting me with videos of people cranking hard....

Thanks for the supportive words. It is sometimes quite weird writing these personal blogs knowing that they still get dragged from the ether and posted up on here (rather than just for people who actually follow links or choose to read them) to get dissected by innocent UKBers. I wish Blogbot dragged in more blogs if people still write them.... Just as weird when I seem to get away with it despite the moaning. It's actually inspired me to write something more productive.

My background health issues are not too problematic at the moment except a bit of queasiness, and I guess heaviness due to lack of CV makes me more injury prone but then again so does stupidity!! Although my elbow has been chronic, this re-injuring was definitely my own stupid fault.....the sort of mistake we all make I guess. Bad timing given my mindstate, but not that bad given it's coming into autumn and winter rather than before a trad season or big trip away or something...

(Scragrock that sounds grim, back stuff must be constantly infuriating...)

I am doing various things to cope with it, from the rehab that people have alluded to, to general conditioning and stretching, to going out exploring and cleaning things off and keeping in touch with the activity. All great advice. And yes keeping climbing regularly, easy stuff, controlled, non-explosive, keeping elbow stress in mind at all times.


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#1029 Re:  fiendblog
October 28, 2021, 10:45:13 am
Tough times dude...

I know I take the piss out of you mercilessly but I also know how much injuries suck and how big a part climbing plays in your life/mental health etc. so I'm really sorry to hear this!

As I said to you the other day, feel free to hit me up for some easy grit action. Can't be arsed trashing myself bouldering these days (I just break!) but I'm well keen to explore some mid grade, elbow friendly problems with ya on a cold crisp weekday afternoon...


dunnyg

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#1030 Re:  fiendblog
October 28, 2021, 07:00:36 pm
MVS, my bad, upgrading my punterlevel. The trous were free if that offers any redemption (though I did choose them...) I don't think I have any 2/3 stripe trackies, a la fiend fashion house, in stock, but I've got some chef trousers I could get will to stick some fingertape on. Will I make me climb harder? Or understand your music choices? I'll try anything...

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#1031 Re:  fiendblog
October 28, 2021, 09:07:05 pm
Seeing as you’re currently too broken to climb, can you drive to N.Wales, Western Ireland and the Antrim coast over winter and spend some time abseiling down potential projects cleaning off dirt and loose rock? I can then bolt them ready for *me* to climb in spring. I don’t see why this isn’t a perfectly good suggestion and a useful use of your time for the greater good of the scene.

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#1032 Re:  fiendblog
October 28, 2021, 09:55:39 pm
I could de-bolt the Rhoscolyn sport routes if that helps??

DunnyG - nothing will help with your last question. It's beyond comprehension and justification.

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#1033 Re:  fiendblog
October 29, 2021, 11:13:53 am
That was the dunny board, by the way. No such gangster rap in my garage.

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#1034 Re:  fiendblog
October 29, 2021, 11:45:29 am
now would be a very good time to explore Ashtanga yoga Fiend. I bet it would improve your climbing.
https://www.yoga-manchester.co.uk

Matt Ryan used to DJ at the Hacienda, if that helps? He's also completely unpretentious.  https://www.liambrowne.com/post/matt-ryan-hacienda-dj-to-ashtangi-yogi

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#1035 Re:  fiendblog
November 03, 2021, 09:48:43 am
Thanks for the kind words people. Something relevant and potentially useful dropping soon.

MJR it's on the list of things to do, yes.

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#1036 fiendblogStrategies
November 03, 2021, 01:00:05 pm
Strategies


I somehow got away with another moany, whiney, self-pitying and inanely negative AHEM I mean disarmingly honest which most climbers can identify with blog post. Not only that, I had some nice supportive words from people, which has nudged me towards doing something more productive with the topic. Thus, based on my own experiences: 


Some snappily-titled ideas of how to cope with physical and mental setbacks and disorders whilst trying to keep climbing...


Keep turning up / Get through each day
This is not as optimistic as "Keep turning up to some sort of climbing relevant activity", nor "Keep turning up to the crag", let alone "Keep turning up to your challenging project". It's more like keep turning up to life, get through each day, day by day. Unless you've got an illness more swiftly terminal than life itself, you can probably spare a few days, or weeks, or months, just to survive and cope with whatever issues you need to. The lost strength / fitness / confidence can be regained.....IF you're still alive, and have kept a basic amount of self-care (eating normally, sleeping, avoiding substance reliance, etc). 

A day where you can say "I'm still alive" at the end of it is good.
A day where you can say "I didn't do anything to worsen my physical / mental issues" is better.
A day where you can say "I did something, no matter how small, to alleviate / improve my issues" is better still.

It's pretty bleak being reduced to this level, but if you are, this is what you have to resort to. 


Just keep moving
We're motive beings attempting a motive activity / lifestyle. Even if we can't do anything specific or even supportive towards that activity, it is essential to keep moving, keep active, keep healthy. Both getting through the difficult periods will be easier if there's some form of exercise (endorphins / fresh air / less stiffness and aches and pains / easier rehab / better sleep / better appetite), and it will be better groundwork for recovery and regaining strength/fitness.

Yes, it's best if it's as close as possible to the desired activity, yes it's best if it's stimulating, enjoyable or progressive/training. But if it's not, just keep moving. Want to have a nice hard session cranking on plastic but your injury is so bad you can only go for a shitty road run?? That's moving, it's better than nothing. Want to go do some cool suntrap sea-cliff climbs but you're so cowed by depression you can't even message potential partners, and instead you book a fucking yoga class?? That's moving, it's better than nothing. Want to do 30 mins of beastmaking and you can only force yourself for a 10 min walk?? That's moving, it's - just about - better than nothing.


Beginner's mind
To try to retain some enjoyment in climbing, go back to basics. Go back to easy stuff. If all you can do is easy stuff, try to make the most out of that, and try to find what enjoyment and learning you can get from that. Yes easy moves suck and aren't nearly as stimulating as hard moves, but they can still be fun - it helps if you don't climb exclusively on limestone of course... Recapture what it was like before obsession progression and goal chasing, accept your new "reduced" state and work with that. Climb easy stuff well, climb it really well, focus on being in the moment and being in the movement. This might even be progressive for the future when you don't punt off the 5b slab on your s1ck pr0ject....


Diversify / Love the one you're with
In such dire circumstances it's highly unlikely that you'll be able to do the climbing you really desire (the same is governed by location and seasons too, of course). But if you can manage to do something, try to adapt your goals and your satisfactions to what is available to you. Climbing boils down to the act of moving over an impending surface and there are many ways to do that and hopefully many ways that some variant of that core motion can be enjoyable even if it's very distant from your specific aspirations. 

Try to focus down on aspects that can be pleasurable - the feel of the holds, the bite of an edge, the trusting of a smear, the changing of balance, the burning sensation in muscles, the flow of a sequence.

Or try to experiment with things you don't normally do. Jamming? Mantel practise? Coordination problems? Hands free problems? Falling practise? Beastmaker hang benchmarks?


See what else you can fix
If you're rehabbing from an injury, you're having to climb at a much gentler level, and you can't push your body as much, and certainly can't directly train as much. But no doubt there's other areas that you could progress with, to either fix other niggles and aches and pains, or to train supporting areas that could be beneficial in the future. Got a frustrating golfer's elbow tweak?? Maybe... look at that shoulder impingement at the same time, try to sort out that swollen PIP joint, do some work on the aching pelvic area, sore piriformis, and tweaky hip, do some stretching to ease up back mobility, and a lot more stretching to for general flexibility, keep working on core for body tension and legs for those rockovers (any correlation with what I'm personally trying to do is entirely coincidence....).


It's all in the mind
If you're rehabbing your mind, it can be a mighty fucking struggle. Sorry, I know it's bloody hard for anything to alleviate that. But I can reiterate just how much one's mindstate clouds judgement and perception and obscures the reality. In the midst of depression everything is viewed through a very bleak, very murky, very monochrome filter. But this IS just the filter. There's the reality, and there's how you perceive it. Knowing this logically won't help much when you don't feel it, but if it helps a tiny fraction, that's something. Trying to focus on objective realities of the situation, e.g. "It will take me 2 months to heal, and 2 months to regain strength, so in 4 months I will be physically back to normal" may help to cut through the bleakness, again a tiny fraction. Use any moments of alleviation in mood to check the reality and remind yourself what it's like without the filter.


Misery loves company
But it can also be diluted by it, and it can be important to stay social. Obviously this will vary from person to person but I think generally keeping involved with other people is regarded as a positive thing for most humans. Ideally the focus should be just about getting out (or in!) with people and sharing the activity, not about off-loading your woes (although almost everyone will be sympathetic to the usual climber injuries!!). Just hanging out (and doing some moves together) can alleviate issues a lot without even having to mention those issues. 

This does become a lot harder when it seems all of your friends / climbing partners are invariably busy, have their own groups / plans, don't receive messages, aren't in suitable locations, etc etc, and attempts at staying sociable fall on deaf ears. At these times it takes some persistence to keep banging your head against the wall - try to get something organised, get knocked back, pick yourself up, and do it all over again the next time. Obviously this is especially hard if you're already struggling, aside from simply being patient one possible idea is to try to habituate it and make it as much of a routine as rehab and some form of exercise.

An alternative is to keep part of the community even if it doesn't directly involve meeting other people. Route and boulder cleaning, guidebook work, exploring crags and taking photos, sharing experiences online, engaging with people in climbing forums / groups, getting back in touch with old mates etc etc. It can help you feel a bit more like a climber-on-sabbatical rather than a non-climber, and might be useful groundwork for the future.


It all adds up
This motto mostly sums up all of the above tactics: Every little bit of positive action you take will add up, whether it's adding up to rehabbing and healing, adding up to getting through the bleak shit miserable times, adding up to regaining strength / fitness, or adding up to progressing in the future. Celebrate and take heart with every small thing you do, because you've done in it, and doing that small thing is better than not doing that small thing, and "better" IS positive.


Whatever you do, don't paint toy soldiers
Yes alternative hobbies are good, yes distractions are good, yes creative endeavours are good, but seriously, painting fucking toy soldiers?? Get a grip. It's extremely time-consuming, phenomenally sedentary, completely introverted, and arguably the worst possible hobby to maintain any form of active functionality. It's a fucking terrible idea, just don't do it.



Source: Strategies

Johnny Brown

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#1037 Re:  fiendblog
November 03, 2021, 01:56:24 pm
Do you want to buy a microscope?




Seriously though, good post. Solid advice. Touch wood I haven't had any major downs for a couple of years, so I'm beginning to allow that the counselling might have been worthwhile. The weather/ clocks are never helpful around now.

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#1038 Re:  fiendblog
November 03, 2021, 02:12:16 pm
Do you want to buy a microscope?
For the world's smallest violin or to up my toy soldier painting game?? I already have reading glasses for the latter...

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#1039 Re:  fiendblog
November 04, 2021, 08:40:13 pm
Nice words Matt. This was way more inspiring than the standard 'just do pull-ups instead of watching TV you lazy shit' type blogs that I guess are supposed to get you hyped up but inevitably just leave you feeling more shit.

"Some snappily-titled ideas of how to cope with physical and mental setbacks and disorders whilst trying to keep climbing..."

I reckon you could have also added, 'how to cope with having young kids whilst trying to keep climbing'  to that title. Every point resonates well with me on that front. Although that being said the kids did leave me with a good few physical set backs and the whole shebang certainly caused some mental setbacks!

Like you said, it's about trying to keep your foot in the door, even in just the smallest way, and sometimes keeping your foot in the door looks like being alive and having fed yourself (and family), and sometimes it looks like managing to get out climbing on the reg or managing to hang out at the wall with friends. The 'foot in the door' varies wildly for me personally depending on what other life shit is currently happening.
 

Ping us a message if you're up our way again, Calum and I have a pretty erratic work/life schedule so there's a good chance that one of us might be free. Would be nice to climb with you again!


 

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#1040 Re:  fiendblog
November 04, 2021, 10:33:40 pm
Thanks a lot Bekah. Crikey yes the challenge of having kids, that's a massive one. Respect to you for what you've managed with that!

Someone else has appreciated my post coming from very different and very challenging circumstances (non-climbing) which was also interesting. I guess some stuff is generally applicable, but I did write it to capture (and remind myself of!) stuff I have personally and practically done or attempted recently.

I'm not sure I'll be back up any time soon but will be in touch if I am (I saw the recent post of the wee ones cuddles ;))

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#1041 fiendblogSolace Part 2
November 23, 2021, 01:02:21 am
Solace Part 2


Maybe a post about actually climbing for a change??

(Edit, and warning: there now are a lot of words about climbing in this post, I got carried away)

It's still a struggle. I want to push myself. I want to be climbing at over 50% capacity. I want to train. I want to bivvy beneath the 30' board in the new Depot training room. I want to feel the cranking. Sigh.

But there's a little bit of stuff I can do, apart from easy circuits indoors and trying to work out why the fuck my pelvis and left leg are constantly aching and tweaky despite exercise and stretching. Mostly easy grit, slabs, and easy grit slabs. Thankfully all of those things are rather good so there's some pleasure to be had in the usual luck-based scrittle malarkey of sliding off smears, pinging off pebbles, being unable to reach holds, and moaning about skin / conditions. So here's a little tale about most of those...


M20 and I went questing off to Standing Stones. He promised me a Bonjoy 6C slab, and the chance to heckle him on a downsloping lip traverse just above the pads and then a large drop-off so if the climber fell and the precariously bridged spotter fumbled, you'd both end up plunging headfirst into a likely bottomless pit in the boulders below. I promised myself to get a decent walk, fresh air, and not aggravate my elbow, which is sometimes all I aim for these days.

I'd actually been for a recce last autumn (previous golfer's elbow AND tweaked MCL rehab...) and spotted a few things including this slab that featured one of the two defining characteristics of the extensive SS boulderfield: boulders that either don't have a landing, or are so wedged and jumbled that they don't form problems at all. Since this only featured the former, I decided to investigate further whilst M20 was brushing scrittle or looking lustily at grouse or something. 

The slab was indeed attractive, the terrain beneath it less so, consisting of an artisanal blend of holey bits and jaggy bits and finely seasoned by a suitcase-sized block jutting right out over it. It turns out that the latter was in a fairly relaxed state about it's current position and decided it's ultimate destiny in life was to roll down into one of the afore-mentioned holes in a position which initially seemed equally jutting and inconvenient but actually provided a useful centerpiece around which other unstable blocks could migrate towards and cuddle up next to. An hour or so later there was, miraculously, a landing. And it seemed that no mosses, lichens, ferns nor rodent nests were disturbed in the transition, indeed scarcely a displaced woodlouse was spotted.

...

After some stones had partaken in downwards motion, it was incumbent for the climber to attempt upwards motion. A lone excellent sidepull provided both the solution and conundrum, and it quickly became apparently that it's more obvious orientation naturally led the climber off onto the left arete rather abruptly, albeit after a very pleasant smear-stepping start (Solexit 6A). A more direct line didn't seem to work and I started to lose interest, and, somewhat prematurely, left Gritstone Jesus to take over. He worked out an extended smearing sequence that used the Hold to gaston back right and up, leaving a final smear and stretch to a particularly enticing pebble, at which point the gritstone decided to take revenge for all the downwards motion earlier on, and the pebble and climber joined the downward motion...

At this point the Gritstone Gentleman, after a half-hearted attempt discovering the remaining hole was a pale shadow of the pebble it once embraced, confessed that he was feeling a bit reluctant to fully go for it, as I'd put all the effort into fixing the landing and really I should be giving it a fair go. Gulp. So I did, and the climbing started to feel pretty damn interesting - a different extended sequence of smears led back to the same position, and a worse, higher pebble showed potential to reach the top. After a few tentative dismounts, I pulled on the pebble, bridged a foot onto a ripple and reached.... ....the bloody left arete, albeit a lot higher. 

This was something I hadn't intended nor desired. The problem was already a bit eliminate in that you had to move back right to avoid easier ground, and I wanted it to be a logical eliminate with a simple "avoid the left arete" description. I checked if I could reach the top directly (not really), tried a few more times, skidded off a higher smear, ran out of time and shuffled away. 

But it kept nagging at me, and inspiring me, and it's been a while since I've been able to feel inspiration or anything that motivational. I didn't think there was much to improve to do that last move more directly, just having more time to persist with it and hope the luck part of the luck based scrittle appeared out of somewhere. I bade my time, cleaned off an excellent project to tempt M20 back, and thought about smears. 

...

Eventually M20, MG and I went back - the closest Standing Stones has got to an actual send train! We downgraded the Bonjoy 6B+, did a new one move wonder undercut arete I found - Careless Pork - and I got back on the slab. And exactly the same thing happened, the best position I got into, the way for me to progress was rolling onto the arete. Again I tested the stretch to the top, this time with more diligence, to discover I'd have to be on tip-toes on the crucial ankle-down smear to reach it. Again I passed the baton on, and M20 stretched the very top of the arete and slab apex to match. With the team's support, the assessment was that where you reach from the final position wasn't the main thrust of the problem, and effectively I'd already done it last time. This was quite weird for me, closure of the inspiration not by success but by changing the goalposts.

Post-match analysis however revealed some logic, in which I was inspired by writings of the ex-Newcastle now Cymru captain Pantontino. It's nice for new things to make clear-cut sense: Follow the line from the bottom to the top. But sometimes they don't. Bits of rock impinge, easier ground impinges, features lead away from the best climbing. Guidance from a well-written guide nudges the climber to make the best use out of the rock, even if it means guidelines on what to do. In this case, matching the Hold and rocking back right locks you into the sequence of smears and pebbles until you're bridged higher and either slap the upper arete or the top. Yes you go back to the arete if you can't reach the top, but only after 6 tricky and delicate moves away from the much easier start-sidepull-arete problem.

So it's a flawed result, but there's now a feasible problem with good climbing. It's about 6C/+-ish maybe.

And the name??

Solace.



Source: Solace Part 2

iain

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#1042 Re:  fiendblog
November 23, 2021, 12:56:48 pm
That almost makes me psyched to climb on grit, and that's saying something from this limestone lover. Good effort.

I do like your writing, can relate all too well to the mh and injury woes, and I've got a few new venues to check out I don't think I wouldn't come across otherwise.

It's winter(ish) though, where are your soldier painting posts? ;)

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#1043 Re:  fiendblog
November 23, 2021, 05:17:48 pm
Thanks Iain!! I did get a bit carried away with that post but sometimes I just like writing indepth about something so....narrowly climbing focused.

New venues are definitely a key to coping with relative downtime, aye.

And the soldier painting posts are here: https://teamshambler.blogspot.com/  :ninja:

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#1044 Re:  fiendblog
November 23, 2021, 08:09:41 pm
https://teamshambler.blogspot.com/  :ninja:

"Dangerous Webpage Blocked
You attempted to access:https://teamshambler.blogspot.com/
This is a known dangerous webpage. It is highly recommended that you do NOT visit this page.

Visit Norton to learn more about phishing and internet security."

 :lol:

iain

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#1045 Re:  fiendblog
November 24, 2021, 08:14:01 am
That's fitting  ;D

(No problems from my pc/phone)

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#1046 fiendblogA Very Secret Slab
November 25, 2021, 07:00:05 pm
A Very Secret Slab


Seek and ye shall find....maybe....or just get lost in the woods. 


Paul's Peach Slab, Honley Old Woods - update.

Main problems thoroughly cleaned November 2021


Approach:


The old parking at the end of Hassocks Lane is no longer viable as it's now a public bridleway and even if you park very discreetly and sensibly you'll likely get some self-important twat in the last house / building site blocking you in and waffling on about road traffic act blah blah whatever shut up already you tedious bellend.

Instead, park carefully on the verge next to a gate on the south side of Meltham Road, halfway between Honley Livery Stables and the edge of Honley Village, 50m west of the footpath / farm track leading to Hassocks Lane. Walk north down this track to the woodland, go into the woods and diagonally left for 30m until a carved block points a path leading rightwards, i.e. directly away from the main road. Follow this path for 200m until it reaches the valley edge, and drops down beneath Old Honley Wood Quarry. Turn left onto the path above the edge and follow this for 300m or so until it intertwines with a path on the left, next to the fence on the left. At this point you should be directly opposite a strange silo in a clearing to the left, turn right and the top of the slab should be 20m down the valley slope.


Problems:


The description on the Kirklees climbing site isn't very clear and the update on UKC doesn't help much either! So maybe this will show the potential.... Apart from miscellaneous pebbles and smears, the centre of the slab has few features, but the two main ones naturally lead to distinct and good quality variants. The main holds are a head-height diagonal edge left of centre (with a good starting smear low down), and a very shallow flaky scoop high up with a useful rail at it's bottom.

? - A possible one move wonder up the left edge.

PL - Peach Lefthand 6C?
Shorter but still tricky and good. Right hand gaston the diagonal edge, right foot low smear, and climb straight up on pebbles, with or without the scoop rail to finish.

PP - Paul's Peach 6B+
The original and best linking of the features. Left hand sidepull the diagonal edge, left foot low smear, and reach and rock up right to the scoop rail before finishing slightly leftwards.

PSD - Peach Superdirect 7A?
Fierce pebble pulling to get the most slab value. Just right climb direct on pebbles to the scoop rail, match it and finish slightly rightwards. 

TS - Tentative Steps 4+
Link the lower diagonal runnel and a good flat hold above to gain the right crest of the slab.

Low Traverse - It would also be possible to do a rather fun traverse from the good footholds on the left edge all the way into Tentative Steps to finish.



Source: A Very Secret Slab

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#1047 Re:  fiendblog
November 25, 2021, 09:46:41 pm
Looks brilliant, I'll get those checked out soon :)

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#1048 Re:  fiendblog
November 25, 2021, 10:03:06 pm
 :yes: cool. Grades could be fictious / overestimated but I was trying to match up what Kirklees gave (6B+) and what UKC gave (7A). There's nowt else clean nearby but Netherton Edge opposite would be a good combination.

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#1049 fiendblogWhat Went Wrong??
January 21, 2022, 01:00:51 am
What Went Wrong??


The path to recovery is long, slow, and winding. 
And not always as neatly paved as this one.

A month and a half ago I sprained my LCL (lateral cruciate ligament) in my left knee at the wall. I was near the end of a session and was trying a leg-intensive problem to avoid over-using my injured golfer's elbow. I was in a deep squat on my left leg on a hold, right leg and hands on pretty much nothing - this is usually a strong position for me, but this time I heard a crunch in my knee and fell off. I could walk / squat immediately after and had little pain. However seeing a physio the next day showed that I definitely had an LCL sprain and would need to go through the usual slow healing / care / rehab process, which I am doing.

Having just about managed to get my head above water coping with the golfer's elbow injury and partly-associated depression, mostly by relying on slabs and leg-focused stuff, this has been very hard to cope with and has lead to some pretty bleak moments. I've managed to get a bit more stable just recently, and regardless have been sticking to rehab and aggravation-avoidance diligently.

This is the latest in a series of injuries that has either wiped out training time, climbing time, or both, and has got me speculating if there's anything obvious I'm doing wrong. So I've done a retrospective of the last few years (lower down page) to see if there are any common threads (just below).

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Common issues and prevention ideas:

Always pushing to my limit:
Something which I think people often don't believe, because by the standards of many of my peers the end results are entirely unspectacular, and because I've heard that it doesn't look like I'm trying hard - when in fact I'm battling for dear life. The reality is that in any physically focused climbing genre (sport, bouldering, indoors, even gym), I'm always pushing really really fucking hard because that's why I enjoy. This isn't a problem in itself, BUT becomes a problem when that desire / habit overrides common sense in terms of (deep breath) recruitment, preparation, warm-ups, conditions, rest days, physiological imbalances etc etc. 
Prevention: 
WARNING FLAGS checklist (below) - go through this before any challenging climbing session and check that the risk of injury is acceptable / manageable.
IF there's any uncertainty about any of the factors on the checklist, TEST them if possible - probably as part of the warm-up - with something that mimics the risk factors.
Have a Plan B in terms of climbs or venues.
Be wary of the risks involved in a sudden change of situation or focus (climbing to training, outdoors to indoors, wall to gym, etc). A change of focus could be equivalent to restarting an activity after a lot of time off - warm into it as appropriate. 

Not warming up enough:
Related to above, I know that sometimes I don't need to warm-up much at all (good weather, well-recruited from previous climbing / training days), and sometimes I know I need to warm up well (low energy, low mood, too much time off, inactivity etc). But occasionally my judgement and self-discipline is very flawed and I'm too lazy / distracted to warm-up methodically, and definitely risk injury.
Prevention: 
Have a warming up checklist: Temperature & blood flow > conditioning & stabilising > recruitment > injury & sensitivity specific > climb specific.
Refine my warming up to include recruitment. 
Work on habitualising a good warm-up routine. 
Ask my friends and partners to remind me to warm-up properly. 
Think outside the box when it comes to warming up in situations without easy / obvious warm-ups. Play around on rock / wall for movement at least.
Remember that warming up applies after a long period of cooling down, as well as first starting.

Not adapting to weather conditions.
In the UK it weathers a lot. I've been out on a spring weekend when it's been too hot for lime one day and too cold for grit the next. And the calling of the lime is a good chance of blizzards and when I moved to Manc it was 20+ degrees at the end of February. Anyway I'm mostly good at picking a sensible crag for whatever ridiculous conditions have sprung out of nowhere, but not always, and sometimes I definitely have stuck to a plan or desire in adverse conditions that have caused a higher risk of injury for my intended climbing.
Prevention: 
Now part of the WARNING FLAGS checklist (below).
Have a Plan B in terms of climbs or venues.

Not heeding niggles in the earlier or manageable stages.
I often get minor, manageable niggles - from pushing hard, irrespective of whether I should be - which isn't a big problem in itself, BUT becomes a problem when I don't manage those. I'm okay with partly managing them with rehab exercises and some balancing out work, but much worse with using sensible judgement to avoid pushing too hard in extreme situations that are high risk to those niggles.
Prevention: 
Now part of the WARNING FLAGS checklist (below).
Remember that stepping back and taking it easy for a week or two will impact on training and progression much less than having to take it easy for a few months due to full injury. 
Rest from the niggle-stressing activity is crucial, not resting from other activity (but heed change of focus risks).

Impacting with the ground / rock (not pads).
I've always landed like an 80kg sack of spuds, and tend very readily to break rather than bounce, whether it's hitting the rock or more likely the ground. That's how I am physiologically, and recovering from an LCL is maybe not a time when I'm thinking about a "learning to land" course, yet. Incidentally so far I've never had an impact injury from falling on pads nor falling indoors, including some semi-highball stuff outdoors and bouncing off pads etc. 
Prevention: 
Do more varied falling practise indoors and outdoors to learn fall more safely in awkward situations. 
Seriously consider giving up the idea of never using pads before leading / soloing trad routes. 
Take the lower parts of routes seriously rather than casually, and plan for falling risks

Pushing knees to extremes in unusual movements.
It's only happened a couple of times, but with frustrating consequences. I'm not really sure why as I have reasonably strong legs from gym work, and no persistent niggles from running etc. Perhaps just bad luck??
Prevention: 
Warm-up legs better before leg-intensive climbs / problems. 
Have additional WARNING FLAGS for a set of leg movements / positions that might be risky and need extra care, e.g.: Deep squats / heel hooks / heel-toes / drop-knees.

Being heavy.
No shit. An extra 10% weight is an extra 10% stress through all the joints / tissues in question.
Prevention: Get a magic fairy to remove my DVTs and repair my digestion so I can do more CV exercise, get more energy from food, and manage my weight better.


WARNING FLAGS
These are checklists for me to print out (in a better format), stick in my rucksac, stick in my guidebooks, tattoo on my knob (might need a smaller font...), and check off before any challenging climbing sessions.

General risk checklist:
Niggles and injuries / Other physical issues (inc fatigue) / Weather and conditions / Type of climb / Risky holds / Risky moves or positions (including unfamiliar ones).

Previous injury and weakness risk checklist:
Golfer's elbow (both) / Tennis elbow (both) / Shoulder impingements (both, especially right) / Left hand main finger A2 / Left hand ring finger PIP / Left knee in general.


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4 year timeline of injuries:

2017:

November - January 2018: Widespread impact / muscle damage in right leg.
Cause: Falling off the "easy" bit of a challenging route and slamming into an overlap.
Effects: 2-3 months recovering to full fitness / leg use. Kept up with upper body training so no extra muscular detriments (but contracted norovirus in hospital with long term digestive / mood / energy level detriments).


2018:

[July onwards - maximum fitness due to mostly redpointing during summer]

December onwards: Tennis elbow in both elbows
Cause: 4 days bouldering / training, then niggles, then more cold bouldering instead of resting.
Effects: Restricted any harder climbing and any training for several months.


2019:

January to May: Tennis elbow in both elbows.
Cause: 4 days bouldering / training, then niggles, then more cold bouldering instead of resting.
Effects: Prevented any harder climbing nor any training for several months, still weak in April.

October to November: Injured / strained lower back.
Cause: Running 0.7 miles to local gym and deadlifting on exhausted / de-oxygenated legs.
Effects: A week off climbing / training and a couple of weeks gently getting back into it.

December to Feb 2020: Tendon sheath injury (?) in left forearm.
Cause: Unknown!
Effects: Some small restrictions on hold usage especially crimps and mixed/split grips.


2020:

[Early August - maximum fitness due to mostly redpointing during summer]

Mid-August to mid-November: MCL sprain in left knee.
Cause: Pushing far too deep in a maximum effort drop knee in poor conditions.
Effects: Prevented any harder climbing nor any leg-intensive training for 3 months.

Mid-August to mid-December: Full golfer's elbow in right elbow.
Cause: Deadhanging / pull-ups with little warming up, then steep traversing instead of resting.
Effects: Prevented any harder climbing nor any arm-intensive training for 3+ months.


2021:

May onwards: Bicep tendon insertion slight impingement in right shoulder.
Cause: Attempting to climb strenuous sport after freezing on a cold and prolonged redpoint belay.
Effects: Some small restrictions on strenuous climbing, especially pulling into sidepulls / underclings from below.

May: Bruised left heel.
Cause: Dropping a couple of metres off the start of a route.
Effects: Curtailed indoor/outdoor bouldering, heel-hooks, and running for a few weeks.

July to September: Golfer's elbow slight niggle in left elbow.
Cause: Deadhanging / pull-ups with little warming up.
Effects: Little effect at time, manageable with care.

August: Bruised right heel.
Cause: Falling a couple of metres off the start of a route.
Effects: Would have curtailed bouldering as before except it was too warm anyway.

October onwards: Full golfer's elbow in left elbow.
Cause: Attempting to boulder beyond my limit, in the freezing cold, without warming up and without taping up.
Effects: Prevented any harder climbing nor any arm-intensive training 4+ months.

November onwards: Sciatica / sore piriformis.
Cause: Unknown but likely change in routine from lots of climbing to more gym / stretching.
Effects: Mostly just annoyance but some confusion when assessing LCL pain.

December onwards: LCL sprain in left knee.
Cause: Single leg deep squat position on indoor problem whilst avoiding elbow-stressing problems.
Effects: Prevented any harder climbing nor any leg-intensive training for 3 months.

Mid-December onwards: Tennis elbow slight niggle in left elbow.
Cause: Weighted deadhanging (okay for golfer's) off the couch, to max limit.
Effects: Curtailed further "training" and some gym work and rehab for golfer's elbow.



P.S. For a blog post that is just about recording events and analysing them (which should be fairly simple!!), it's taken a long time for me to write it and try to get it right. Sorry for the length / dryness / anything that doesn't make sense / etc.


Source: What Went Wrong??

 

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