[ehmarra]

Now then!
I've been bouldering approx 4 years and I have plateaued around the v5 grade both indoor and out. I mainly climb out door when weather allows but I do love indoors when I go. Anyway I was wondering if specific training would help improve my grade, that you may have deemed useful. I guess I could look online but its a minefield as im just looking to pick up some good tips for me. I don't do a lot of core training or fingerboarding, I just climb 3-4 times a week, I always wear a tshirt or a vest and I don't power scream lol. So hopefully looking for a few extra training tips that you found helped you push through grades, ideally the v5-v6/7

cheers

[monkoffunk]

I always wear a tshirt or a vest and I don't power scream lol.

I think this might be the source of your problem.

[Dexter]

Maybe an additional beanie would help?

On a more serious note, some steep board climbing might help if you're not wanting to go down the more structured approach.

[ehmarra]

Haha

Extra Beanie, never thought of that...golddust. Im happy with a structured method just not sure what to incorporate?

[spidermonkey09]

I was exactly the same. Think for a lot of boulder problems F7A upwards finger strength starts to be a limiting factor. If you do a bit of fingerboarding and climb more on the steep board at the wall instead of the fun comp sets (I am terrible for this) you'll probably make pretty rapid improvements. That alongside making sure you try the harder things when outside!

[highrepute]

In my opinion, at the grades you are talking about more climbing is the best way to improve your climbing. Other training methods like finger boarding, core workouts, weighted pull-ups, campusing, etc may well help you improve your grade but at a detriment to your technique, which I would say you will still be developing and will not be developed by these extra-training methods and will ultimately be limited by the bad habits you pick up by being overly strong for your climbing.

I would begin by suggesting that you incorporate some structure to your climbing. There can be structure on many levels - the structure of each individual session, the structure of your climbing over the week, the structure of you climbing over a longer period (months, week and years). Each of these structures should be decided upon based on what your goals are in climbing, hence why many people have short, medium and long term goals.

Your goals might be
short-term (ST) - introduce structure to my climbing sessions
MT - climb Burning Lark Sunset (BLS) (7a/V6) and Congleton Knoll (who doesn't have this goal?)
LT - climb more V6 grade problems of varying climbing styles (slab, roof, wall, compression, etc, etc)

Now we have some goals we can start to structure our climbing around them. Long-term we just want to get better at climbing and we're going to do this by continuing to climb inside and outside but each session we will be climbing with our goals in mind. Thinking about the LT goal - I would incorporate some technique drills into my climbing. I do this during my warm-up/warm-down by climbing easy problems. I will think about standard climbing drills such as quiet feet, sticky-hands (not re-adjusting on holds), turning hips in and repeating problems multiple times perfecting my efficiency of movement. Doing this on very easy problems as you war-up means you can do many problems (10-15) going through these drills in a short space of time.

Medium-term - BLS is a soaring 30 degree overhanging on positive crimps, where drop-knees and heel-hooks are essential to success on the climb. I'd devote part of climbing session to concentrating on this type of climb, maybe even a whole session if I felt this would help. But I don't want to neglect my LT goal of being a good all round boulder so i'd still devote some climbing time to other terrains.

Short-term goal has just been achieved (in theory) by going through this process.

A couple of other useful bits.
1. Figure out what your weaknesses are and work them. A good way to do this is to ask the people you climb with (i remember doing this on a font trip and writing down all the attributes a climber might have and getting my friends to score me on them). In my case I was basically technically good but really weak (a rare thing these days with the modern climbing facilities that are on offer). I addressed this by climbing more on steeper terrain.
2. Try hard - try really hard.
3. Don't make excuses.
4. Despite not recommending core workouts earlier I do think general conditioning is useful for injury prevention but they must be done with good form.
5. Don't try to change everything in one go. It's very hard for an individual to suddenly go from pottering around the crag to focused dedicated training machine in one go. It's best to incorporate one thing, get used to that thing (over a few weeks) then add another thing in. So maybe begin with some climbing that specifically works the style of climbing on BLS. Then add in the technique drills to your warm-up. Then maybe start a little conditioning program once a week. As you slowly build this up you'll find some things don't work and some things do and some things will just be harder to incorporate than others (for example I always found fingerboarding really boring).
6. Actually try the hard stuff you want to climb - if you can't do it at least you can get an idea of why and work on that thing.

Good luck!

[cheque]

I can’t improve on Highrepute’s post but I think it’s definitely worth looking at the characteristics of the hardest problems you succeed on- assuming you’re not doing every single 6c+ you come across (if you are then you should be able to climb 7a already) there’s probably some corellation in the style/ length/ rocktype of the ones you fail on, which will give you an idea of where you need to direct your efforts in order to improve overall.

[bendavison]

In addition to highrepute's excellent post, can I please add that physical training is very worthwhile but at the grades quoted by the OP, all of this should be on the wall (IMO). Highrepute kind of made this point, but focused on drills/technique training. I'd suggest that adding structure also to the climbing part of the session would be very beneficial - as opposed to just going climbing...

At the wall you could have several sessions at your disposal, such as:
 - Doing reps on climbs you can already do but find hard.
 - Doing reps of long boulders/short circuits with timed rest.
 - Doing tricky boulders back to back.
 - Trying to flash 10 hard-for-you problems (made up or not).
 - 4 less tricky boulders back to back, or on the minute etc

I'd argue that all of these will also improve your technique: repeating things improves efficiency, especially as you get tired.

Don't worry about number of reps, rest duration or periodisation etc - they'll all make you stronger, a bit fitter and better. Just keep track of what you manage each session and deliberately make it harder next time.

[jwi]

my 20¢:

It is quite common to reach a training plateau after a few years in any sport. Indeed in my estimation more than half of all climbers never progress much beyond the level they have reached after 4 years of steady training, (maybe a letter, but not a full number grade).

This can usually be adequately explained by a plan that doesn't take the five fundamental principles of training into account. At least one, but probably two or three of the principles progression, variation, specificity, reversibility and individuality are violated.

1. Progression:  Are your training sessions getting harder over time? (Sounds like they don't). If you cannot boulder harder, can you increase volume, or add something that is physical hard, like fingerboarding or campusing. Btw, adding fingerboarding or not has 0, nothing, zilch and nada to do with your climbing grade, only with your training history (which I don't know).

2. Variation. Are you doing the same session over and over, expecting different results? That is not a good idea. A periodisation schedule would be better. Any periodisation schedule is much better than none.

3. Specificity. You are unlikely to violate this. Very few bouldering fanatics are. But you're not doing more than 30-60 min of very very easy running a week I hope. If so, you are not only wasting your time, you are actively trying to get worse at bouldering.

4. Reversibility. Use it or loose it. Are you taking 2 months off every year, loosing all your gains over the year and starting over again?

5. Individuality. Do you just copy whatever someone else is doing? Stop that.

[highrepute]

Good posts Ben and jwi. Both things that I know I should do But don't do enough!

[user deactivated]

At the risk of sounding like an hypocritical arse, which probably isn't far from the truth. How and when did climbing seemingly become all about training programs, termed goals and ticking off 'blocs' etc. The whole shebang seems to have slowly descended into this soulless search for 'progress' and individual gratification the expense of all else and all of us are in on it. A old friend once called it 'feeding the rat' and climbers rats seem to be pretty hungry. My advice would be forget about the pot of gold at the end of the training rainbow and about the easy v7 ticks. Get a nice pair of ronhill's and some Anasazi pinks and head up to Kinder or Grinah Stones etc etc phew rant over. Time to do some more reps.

[Mark Lloyd]

Not getting out much Dan ?
Do you frequent the Foundry or works these days ?

[T_B]

Get a nice pair of ronhill's and a pair of Walsh’s and head up to Kinder.

Fixed that for you.

[Luke Owens]

How and when did climbing seemingly become all about training programs...

...Time to do some more reps.

 

[GazM]

3. Specificity. You are unlikely to violate this. Very few bouldering fanatics are. But you're not doing more than 30-60 min of very very easy running a week I hope. If so, you are not only wasting your time, you are actively trying to get worse at bouldering.

Hi JWI, what's the physiology at play here? What is it about running that would make you worse at bouldering? 

[cowboyhat]

At the risk of sounding like an hypocritical arse, which probably isn't far from the truth. How and when did climbing seemingly become all about training programs, termed goals and ticking off 'blocs' etc. The whole shebang seems to have slowly descended into this soulless search for 'progress' and individual gratification the expense of all else and all of us are in on it. A old friend once called it 'feeding the rat' and climbers rats seem to be pretty hungry. My advice would be forget about the pot of gold at the end of the training rainbow and about the easy v7 ticks. Get a nice pair of ronhill's and some Anasazi pinks and head up to Kinder or Grinah Stones etc etc phew rant over. Time to do some more reps.

It’s not all about programs, but progress. The op just wants to progress, like everyone always has really. Exhibit A through Z being your films!

And everyone here is wisely advising that a tiny bit of structure to their climbing will go a long way.

No mention of any program anywhere?

Get cut up in traffic last night did you?

[T_B]

Just more volume would help. That's what they do in every other sport.

If you're climbing 3 - 4 times a week, I would simply add in another session that focusses on a weakness. Weak fingers = fingerboarding, lack of power = campussing, generally a bit crap/poor with your feet = core work.

Don't expect to see results right away. Do a 10-week block of the above.

Eat less. Sleep more.

[petejh]

How and when did climbing seemingly become all about training programs, termed goals and ticking off 'blocs' etc. The whole shebang seems to have slowly descended into this soulless search for 'progress' and individual gratification the expense of all else and all of us are in on it.

  Around the time the internet took off, allowing middle-class professionals to compare themselves with their peer group - and thus feel either secure or insecure - by using scorecards and ranking tables for successfully climbing routes and boulders?

[user deactivated]

At the risk of sounding like an hypocritical arse, which probably isn't far from the truth. How and when did climbing seemingly become all about training programs, termed goals and ticking off 'blocs' etc. The whole shebang seems to have slowly descended into this soulless search for 'progress' and individual gratification the expense of all else and all of us are in on it. A old friend once called it 'feeding the rat' and climbers rats seem to be pretty hungry. My advice would be forget about the pot of gold at the end of the training rainbow and about the easy v7 ticks. Get a nice pair of ronhill's and some Anasazi pinks and head up to Kinder or Grinah Stones etc etc phew rant over. Time to do some more reps.

It’s not all about programs, but progress. The op just wants to progress, like everyone always has really. Exhibit A through Z being your films!

And everyone here is wisely advising that a tiny bit of structure to their climbing will go a long way.

No mention of any program anywhere?

Get cut up in traffic last night did you?

Haha, you are of course completely right man, I always get cut up in traffic in Manchester so probably an accumulation. My post wasn't really aimed at the OP so was probably in the wrong place and I'm aware of the ridiculous contradiction. My point was more about the 'apparent' lack of dimension and commoditisation in climbing to the point where we can't move for a discussion about ancap vs aeropow etc. From experience of heading down this path and slowly having the mojo hoovered out of me (by me) I blurted it out here haha. Not that I think training is bad or the need for progression is wrong or that I think people should all be banging on about deep connections to the rock etc, and I could just be projecting my own disillusionment (likely) but it all just seems a bit vacuous and empty. Like we took one bit of the sport climbing philosophy and moved forward with nothing else and meaning is only applied in terms of success and failure at specific goals where we package and sell everything from fitness and strength to 'mind control' in the form of meditation amongst other things. I watched Dragons Den for five minutes on Sunday night. Someone was doing exactly the same thing to Parkour.

Ps some great advice from high repute, ben and Jwi. I'll definitely try some of that!

[tomtom]

I don't really follow any sort of training plan (I'm lazy and easily distracted) but do try and climb c.3 times a week - outdoors if possible and indoors if not. Fingerboard very much in 3rd place..

I steadily improve - and have done over the last 5-8 years or so..

When I climb (wall or outdoors) I rarely do mileage - I spend about 20% of the time warming up and/or doing problems I can do - then spend the rest of the time doing problems I can't do. Not ones that are impossible - but ones that are close to my limit (either just do-able or just not quite do-able). So even in a short session I am working really hard.

Its partly to try and improve strength - but to be honest, I think I enjoy repeated failure more than repeated success

I also vary my choice of problem from crimpy walls to overhanging bigger hold/tension type problems. Also spend a few summers working weaknesses on lime problems - gradually moving up the grades...

So OP - not sure what percentage of your sessions you spend doing miles (my term for stuff you can reasonably capably do) or trying hard stuff - but if its more miles than hard - maybe switch around the proportions... 

[Murph]

OP - did you know that V5 is 6C+ in real money?...and that is a very odd place to plateau - it was pretty much the least popular grade among UKBers last year. That knowledge alone must be enough to see you plateau one notch up the ladder.

Lots of strong posts on this thread I've really enjoyed reading it. Train consistently, work on your weaknesses, eat less if you are heavy, sleep more even if you're not, climbing is bollocks. All good stuff. Only thing i disagreed with is it's quite possible to run more than 60 minutes a week and climb harder than 6C+. It doesn't count as climbing training but neither does a lot of things.

[seankenny]

Thanks to everyone who's chipped in with ideas here, really useful. I also seem to plateau at around the same level as the OP. The usual cycle is: start bouldering, get stronger, get up to usual high-point, feel on verge of getting injured, then either dial it back and do some endurance training, or actually get injured (fingers or elbows the usual suspects). So two steps forward, and between one and three steps back. Clearly I could be doing better to maintain strength if I'm doing endurance training, but I find if I try to increase the volume of hard climbing, or its intensity, then my tendons don't play ball.

Any ideas to get over this? Is it a case of keeping going at a level slightly under my limit until I don't get tweaky any more, ie a much slower progression?