[Aussiegav]

Monday -
Finger board
Usual warmup protocol felt good.

Tuesday
Virgin Gym.
Strength training
1min on 2min off. Auto belays. 10 laps on 6a

Wednesday
Rehab & rest day

Thursday
Rehab & physio. Discharged from service.
Finger Strength assessment on 18mm edge. Half crimp
Total weight 93.6kg.
Previous assessment was on 12 Feb pre surgery. Total weight achieved was 105kg.

Friday
Peloton ride. 40min


Saturday
Planned to climb at Stoney Garage, but pulled the pin due to the rain. Went to Virgin and 30mins of 1min on 2min off on the auto belays.
Walked out of the gym and then the sun came out.

Sunday
Strength training at virgin gym then broke down the collapsed backyard fence and cut into pieces and took to the tip. Hard work on the right forearm where the surgery was.

Hopefully getting out on some rock next weekend

[Duma]

Thanks Gav.

M - early start to move boats. Drive back to Bristol. 12 hr night shift.
T - eve, TCA, 60 min. Quick hit before work, first session for a week. New whites up downstairs (high 6's to low 7's). Tried 17, flashed 7, 5 second go (3 should have been flashes), 2 3rd go. Only a couple of goes one the other 3, ran out of time. 12 hr night shift.
W - eve, TCA, 60 min. Another curtailed session before work. More whites, repeated 1, tried the remaining 4 downstairs, did 2 quickly, other 2 are probably doable but one of them hurts my wrist. 12 hr night shift.
T - eve, TCA, 45 min. Squeezed a third mini session in a row in, as planning to get out Sat so want to rest Fri. Whites upstairs, managed to get all 12 done, but at the expense of a warm up. 12 hr night shift.
F - aft, run, 6k, hilly, trail, didn't time it. Terrible nights sleep...
S - Cheddar, Lion Rock. Back on Lion Sleeps Tonight (8a). Interested to see how it would feel after a winter of almost zero routes or endurance training. Good connies but < 3 hrs sleep probably negated that. 4 tie ins. 1st go just getting draws in, warming up, and remembering sequences. 2nd go tried some short links but mostly refining beta. 3rd go dropped middle crux from the ground (getting through this to the undercut rest on Shadow Walker is around 7c/+ I reckon), and then went from the rest below the middle crux to falling getting my foot up on the last hard move. Really pleased with this, linking the middle crux to pretty much all the hard climbing in the traverse and top arete is a big step I think. 4th go feeling a bit tired still and the pub was calling, but got to middle crux again, actually feeling a bit fresher than last go, but tried a slightly different foot sequence that felt good off the rope but turned out not to work from the ground. Fairly confident I'd have got to the undercuts with the normal sequence. Attempted link from undercuts to top but dropped it getting foot up again, probably just tiredness catching up.
Really good session, sequence pretty dialled now and think have a decent chance next time if I'm fresh.
S - feeling bit broken but at least slept better. Aft, TCA, 90 min. New comp wall set so bit more jumping around than usual. 10 problems 6A+ to 7B, flashed 7, 2 quick, one took about a million goes (sideways running across volumes). Fun session.

71 kg.

Psyched it's cheddar season again, keen to get back to LST while it's fresh in the memory.

[monkoffunk]

M - Recovering from bronchitis. Two sets of repeaters at body weight 7 on 13 off 10 reps. First set half crimp, second set crimp. Felt way easier than normal but weight hit 73.8kg post sickness. (Water retentiony 86kg post Christmas peak). I was expecting to feel weak despite the weight loss. Will be interesting to see how running feels though…. Night shift. Also ate some high calorie pie with potatoes and vegetables.  Yoga.

T - Post night shift. Few longer body weight hangs with long rests just to test. Half crimp, 24, 25, 25, 30, 11, 22 sec. Really start to struggle at 25 seconds. Yoga.

W - 6k run. Surprisingly ok, but did not push. Yoga.

T - Submax hangs. First time in a while adding weight so started well below previous max. 5x10 sec hangs +10kg, two mins rest between. HC, HC, C, HC, C. Half crimps felt fine, crimps actually felt pretty max! Some physio exercises. Yoga.

F - Pre night shift. Board at project. Repeated old warm up on main board from years ago that I can’t do when I’m super unfit. Then tried on some stuff on the 45 board up to 7Aish. Pulled some moves, felt good. Yoga.

S - Rest, but night shift so sleep poor. Yoga.

S - Last night shift. Fingers before. More experimentation with protocols, still building up, higher volume at lower weight seems steady.
Set of submax hangs, this time 10 on 50 off (+10kg) x3 for 3 sets, HC, C, HC. Then long rest.
Then repeaters 7 on 3 off (BW - 73kg) x6 for 2 sets, HC.
No time for more as had to run for work!
Felt reasonably steady reducing the rest time on the repeaters, I vaguely remember this feeling super hard before, but conditions, BW variation etc, who knows. Yoga.

Definitely recovered from sickness, feel pretty much 100%.

Optimistic forecast for Portland this coming Friday, so with any luck catch up on sleep and get a bit of rock climbing in!

[duncan]

Thanks Gav. Sounds like you're close to your pre-surgery strength. It can be difficult to get back the last few % after knee surgery, not sure if there is any data for elbows, but you've got a good measure to track progress.   

Encouraging on LST Duma. Conditions could be decent some of the time this week by the looks of things. 


M - The Reach, with csl. Some very easy juggy 5s and 5+s, elbow felt a bit better for this. Falls training.

T - Fingerboard pick-ups: all grips, heavy weights with the left hand; a few light ones with the right.

W - Hip flexibility: frog stretch, pancake stretch, sumo squats.

T - The Reach with Shirin and Billy, more juggy 5s-6a+s, more falls training. Shoulder/elbow conditioning: reverse curls, handstands, side planks. Hip flexibility.

F - Shoulder/elbow conditioning as Thursday. Fingerboard pick-ups as Monday. Hip flexibility.

S - Mile End wall for the Rock On shoes demo, looking for alternatives to/replacements for old-style Testarossas, my current squeeze for short sport routes. The near-ubiquitous Instinct VSR and somewhat less ubiquitous Boreal Lynx came top for fit. The Sportiva people didn't have the latest Testarossas but the Genius' (same last?) also fitted well. I wasn't convinced by the no-edge sole on small resin footholds, thought my current shoes (a more than 20 year old design) worked better. Demo shoes have had intensive stretching but it was interesting I could get into considerably smaller sizes than I currently climb in. At those sizes my heels fit. Also did some stretching (hips not shoes).

S - The concrete Font. A few easy (Ft3-5) repeats. A few left hand fingerboard pick-ups in the evening but was feeling tweaky so stopped.


Elbow a little better but still disappointing for April. Some long overdue falls training, ~50 this week.  A bit more stretching.

Enjoyed visiting a new-to-me wall and climbing with some new people. The Reach is an attractive space with a variety of wall angles. The staff I encountered were lovely. The setting is decent at the easy grades I was doing although some of the routes were a bit reachy (cough) and the grading a bit hit and miss. Centre ropes are in place for top-roping on some lead lines. I’ve not seen this before and it felt like a hazard: tangling with one if you fell leading is unlikely but could be nasty.

Left wrist feels tweaky this morning, need to see how this settles before making any plans. Weather finally seems to be getting better and other half back soon so hopefully can do more climbing on rock. Aiming to get up to Malham this weekend (autocorrect is trying to send me to Balham...I sincerely hope not) though I will be flailing on the warm-ups in my current state.

[Duma]

Hey Duncan, were there any of the new Sportiva Mandala at the demo? Interested to try these as I like the sound of a stiffer no edge (Futuras have been fave bouldering and indoor for past 10+ years) for sport, but concerned that they're apparently wider than futuras.

[duncan]

I'm the wrong person to ask about Sportiva shoes which I generally find too narrow, the exceptions I've found being Testarossas and Genius' which I believe share the same last along with Mandalas.

They had Mandalas which I tried briefly. They seemed the same shape as Genius', so likely a bit wider than Futura. The latter felt too narrow when I tried them (some time ago, so memory may be faulty...). Mandalas didn't make the short list because their lack of adjustability in the forefoot meant they didn't fit my duck feet quite as well as Genius' or Testarossas. They also felt a bit softer than these and I prefer medium or more stiffness in my shoes for limestone redpointing.

[shark]

M. Tried to do some foot on campusing but triceps were wrecked (not sure how - presumably from one arm undercut locks or bad form deadlifting on Saturday)

T

W Foundry wave. Managed to tick the pink I’d failed on before. Worked the other pink on the steep bit. Felt pretty good

T

F Tor with John and Graham. 3 tie ins on Tin Of. First go putting draws in, second go on redpoint muffing the crux and third redpointing it. Couple of my fingers felt sore so left it that

S

S Ergo edge BW hangs FC, HC and Drag 10,10 and 10 secs and 3 x pull-ups at each grip type.  3x Foot-on one arm undegrcut small pulls from 90 deg lock on small edge. 3x Foot off assisted deep one arm frontal locks on bar 3 x one arm 90 deg undercut locks on bar. 3 attempted front levers Ergo edge hangs +15kg  FC, HC and Drag 10,10 and 10 secs +22.5kg FC 7 and 8 secs HC 8 and 8 secs Drag 8 and 6 secs. Decent

Had hoped to do some trad at High Tor and if weather holds might do some tomorrow. Conscious my trad head is going to be weak going to Mingulay and Pabbay in May but should be fit after 9 days in Kalymnos.

[Fiend]

Next week STG: STRETCHING - yes. Take a rest day - two, but only because injured. Shoulder mobility - yes but it's still fucked. Indoor steady volume session - yes but wrong thing at wrong time.
The usual STG: Stay focused and don't make silly mistakes - climbing-wise, kinda yes. Do something challenging and inspiring on a rope, or above a pad - a couple of good tricky problems. Keep in regular contact with suitable friends and partners - slacked off on this, a couple of social times but not enough. Falling practise if I do routes indoors or out - n/a. Look after injuries - no, gym x 1 - yes but only rehab really, elbow rehab x 2 - yes but all it needed, shoulder rehab x 2 - yes, stretching x 3 - yes.


M - Indoor steady volume session @ Rock Over Shartson. Was going to rest, but got sucked into to going down to their 1st birthday thing. Was awful. Rammed full of students, hipsters, and other young things half my age/weight and twice my climbing grade. As bad as the Depot. And LingLing wasn't allowed down as it was too busy. Despite this I enjoyed the climbing as usual. 8 x V½ - V2½, 5 x V1½ - V3½, 8 x V2½ - V4½ (7 flash, 1 x 3rd go), 9 x  V3½ - V5½ (6 flash, 1 x 2nd go, 2 x 3rd go, attempted 2 more that were too weird). Fed up of the new soft grades but felt I climbed okay. New GE okay after warming up. Left shoulder confirmed as new impingement by the end. Shoulder rehab / mobility beforehand.

T -  Active rest. Gym. A little bit of core and leg stuff, TGUs, but mostly: Shoulder rehab - left shoulder impingment bad and prevented one exercise, elbow rehab - left shoulder impingment likely long head of bicep as felt weak on reverse bicep curls, full stretching session.

W - Rest. Shoulders still achey. Glutes sore from box squats. Full stretching session inc shoulder mobility.

T - 45 mins stiff walk. 6B+, 6C, 6C, 6C+/7A. Shoulder sore and impinged.

F - 30 mins walk. Approx 10 x V2 jugpulls. Shoulder sore and impinged.

S - Rest. Light shoulder rehab. Full stretching session. Shoulder sore and impinged.

S -

tried a 7A - did almost all the individual moves but no chance of a link. Do think it might be possible for me with good rest before, perfect leather skin, colder crisper conditions, and the whole day methodically focusing on it. 2:30 hours drive and 20 mins walk from home tho.

^^^ Did this Also a few other boulder problems. Shoulder sore and impinged. Highlight of the day was meeting an incredibly cute and friendly mouse and managing to gently boop it.


Hmmm. The new impingment and associated disordered shoulder confirms my suspicion that heavy, older people just aren't allowed to try hard or push their climbing, that's reserved for young and/or skinny climbers. It came out of the blue with some entirely reasonable compression moves (never previously a problem), when I was well warmed up and felt on good form (new GE aside) and generally functional - the only "issue" was daring to try hard a bit Of course since then I have been a dick and not rested nor reduced the intensity enough. Sunday was a tactical sacrifice to do a good challenging problem in anticipation of a lighter week which I now must take.


Next week STG: Gentle shoulder rehab x 3. Gentle shoulder mobility x 3. Reduce intensity. Easy trad if possible. Get back on the social wagon.
The usual STG: Stay focused and don't make silly mistakes. Do something challenging and inspiring on a rope, or above a pad. Keep in regular contact with suitable friends and partners. Falling practise if I do routes indoors or out. Look after injuries, gym x 1, elbow rehab x 1, shoulder rehab x 3, stretching x 3.

[Nibile]

Power Club

Mon - very tired. Light weights.
Tue - TBDL PB 155 kg*. One or two kgs to spare probably. Bliss. Alla via così. GM 5x5. Pull ups. Monumental session.
Wed - very tired, Lattice edge and weights.
Thu - board climbing, reclimbed last problem. Skin lasted five minutes. 2x AM session.
Fri - DL PB 150 kg*. Farmer's. Pull ups.
Sat - boxing bag, not bad, shoulders ok afterwards.
Sun - a few light snatches, clean singles up to 90% after ages, pull ups, Lattice Edge campusing.

* From half blocks so they don't really count, but it's a real improvement on recent similar lifts so it's all good.
** Memorandum: my plates are 3 cm shorter in radius than official ones.

[mr chaz]

Power Club:

Nothing previous week because 

M.
T. evening board session, added a bunch of holds from my brothers dismantled wall. He's got some decent stuff from the old Warwick Uni bouldering wall.
W.
T. Decent board session.
F.
S.
S. Light board session whilst trying not to land on a toddler.

I'm off to Lakes in a couple of weeks so focus is on trying to stay in shape and uninjured!

[Duncan Disorderly]

Lurgy Club....

M: AW with GF - Did two routes, came out in a cold sweat! Fucked it off...
T, W: Sick 
T: Works with a mate - No energy. Did a bit, felt shit 
F: Nowt
S: Walk in't Peak
S: AW with Energizer Bunny - Verdon in 6 weeks so need to get some stamina. Did a load up to F6b+, was enough as still felt shocking! 3 x 1min foot-on campus sets...

Begining to feel better but whatever I had floored me! Thought it was an extended hangover at first but just kept going! Glad to be feeling better this week but still wiped!

[Will Hunt]

Whomp whomp

Sorry, can't seem to embed that any smaller.

It's been 4 weeks now since I went a-tumblin' at Attermire. I had a consultant appointment a couple of weeks ago which wasn't very informative (the guy didn't really listen and just said "don't do this, don't do that, now off you go"). He said he'd see me again in 3 months and I later received a text saying I'd been booked in for two weeks time, which was yesterday.

The new guy was much more conversational and explained that the reason they wanted to see me again so soon was that they were still debating among themselves whether I would need surgery, which is a running debate they'd been having in the Leeds spinal/neurosurgery department since they were first sent the scans by Airedale 4 weeks ago. He explained that all the signs were positive. From looking at my scans you'd think that I ought to be much less mobile and in more pain than I am - he was please to see me walking into the room straight-backed and without crutches. The scan I'd had just prior showed things looking as good as they could be looking at this stage. He was pleased that I'd been able to go swimming twice last week (50 lengths in 40 mins last Wednesday; 70 lengths in an hour last night - that's my Power Club entry, I guess). I think the only thing that could result in surgery now is if during the healing the bone fragments start to push outwards, which would result in a great deal of pain and a bend in the back; but apparently the fact that I appear to be recovering very well is a positive indication that this is unlikely.

He said that I should be able to get back to "normal activity" after about 3 months. When I mentioned climbing he did what the other bloke did which was to tell me off for thinking I was going to get back to falling off things so soon. That's not really what I meant - these guys aren't climbers so don't know that there's such a things as, for instance, top-roping and traversing Henry Price.

So I'm probably looking at at least 6 months before I can do anything meaningful or maybe a year. Or maybe more, we just don't know yet because bone remodelling (where the body gets the bones to look less like a shattered mess and more like
it's original shape) is not entirely predictable. That's OK, which might sound odd coming from a lifer, but it is what it is and there's more in life than just climbing. But I'm wondering what I ought to do (climbing-wise) in the meantime, which is the point of this post.

The last thing I crimped was some damp limestone near the top of Barrel Buttress and that was 4 weeks ago. I definitely can't be lifting up anything heavy and I'm not even sure if/when I should use a fingerboard. So after the 3 month mark I wonder what sort of climbing activity I should do to maintain some sort of strength/form for my glorious return, whenever that may be. I'm not expecting to return to climbing and immediately start trying to RP an 8a again, but I don't want to have completely deconditioned and at risk of finger injuries from a sudden return to sport climbing. I don't like fingerboarding, so the idea of doing 6 months of it isn't appealing, but that might be the only thing available to keep things ticking over?

I'm not expecting any definite answers or a planned training programme, I just thought it would help to write down my thoughts and see if anybody else has been in a similar position of not wanting/expecting improvements during a hiatus, but also not wanting a complete loss of strength.

[ali k]

No advice to give, but hope the recovery goes well Will. And that it doesn’t cause any long term issues.

[Fiend]

Keep swimming.

Do fingerboarding - logic says it should be okay for that pesky vertebrae given it won't be increasing pressure on it.

Edit YMC Limestone

Or paint toy soldiers.

 

[Duma]

Fucking hell Will! Hope your healing goes well

[Aussiegav]

Wishing you all the best in recovery and wellbeing Will.

[cheque]

I did five months off climbing after my accident. Doomsday was the 29th of March, first visit to the climbing wall top ropes was the 26th of August and I climbed at least once a week after that. First lead was on the 29th of September. Hollybush Gully Right, VDiff. What a day!

Before I started climbing again I was just crutching and walking about (both of which felt like exhausting full-on training!) with exercise bike starting a few weeks before I first went to the wall. In November I started doing bodyweight strength stuff and weights as well.

I had a wrist injury that I had to wait to heal so that was a factor in how soon I could climb come to think of it. I may well have been on a top rope sooner if that hadn’t been the case. I was cleared by the spinal consultant to start lifting and carrying things again by the middle of June IIRC.

I was very lucky that my consultant and physio were both climbers so I didn’t have to argue my case about climbing again and they appreciated the benefits to my recovery that climbing would bring. They also knew I wasn’t just going to stop!

I was however (and I’ve said this before on here and to many people in person) told by my physio that I’d used up all of my shock absorbing ability in one go and that while he wasn’t going to tell me not to boulder if that was what I really wanted to do, I had to realise that it would hurt to land, it would hurt more the next day and it would hurt more each time. I made the decision not to boulder but I have tested his advice out and realised that the sensation of landing now takes the fun out of it anyway. If before I felt like a hard rubber dog toy landing on the floor- an impact but with some degree of recoil, now it’s more like I’m a spanner. Roped climbing, leader falls included, is physically the same experience as ever though so I’ve found my niche 

How much that will apply to you I’ve no idea. It’s the distance that I fell rather than the specific nature of my back injury that caused my situation as I understand it and our injuries were different vertebrae and by different methods, compression vs “distraction”.

In terms of what you’re actually asking about, it was December before I started fingerboarding but I could probably have started again sooner, probably as soon as the spinal guy had discharged me. Get on that ASAP for obvious reasons.

The fact that you can move around well and unassisted is great and you want to just be moving as often and as comprehensively as possible: medium- to long-term what I’m working against isn’t so much the direct results of my injuries it’s more the knock-on effects of how little I could move in the months immediately after the accident- the amount of strength, fitness and mobility I lost, how quickly it went and how long it’s taken/ taking to restore is absolutely staggering!

[Will Hunt]

Wow, Mike! Given how devastating your injury was the fact that you were back on rock after 6 months makes me more optimistic (notwithstanding that, as you say they were different types of injury). Thanks for the info.

[PeteHukb]

Yeesh, that is some x-ray, Will. Well done with the swimming etc, hopefully the fracture is well on its way towards healing with the good start you've given it.
I'm not a physio or a spinal surgeon but I'd have thought the absolute imperative in the first 3 months is avoiding excessive loading on L1 and its muscular /tendinous attachments in any direction - compression (falling), rotation, flexion/extension (careful with the yoga?) - but staying as active and mobile as possible within those constraints.

Fingerboarding is the obvious choice but it may have to be sub-limit to avoid any risk of slipping off suddenly (or rig up a harness to catch yourself if that happens?) Top-roping might be even safer, but you will need to take care to avoid hard twisting movements, bunched undercutting etc. Front-point crimping is probably the way to go.

After 3 months you'll hopefully be given more freedom to work on flexibility (you will have lost some) and it'll be important to get this back before/in tandem with building back up towards more normal climbing.

Listen to your body, prioritise safety over progress, the first opportunity for this to heal well is the one you want to take.

[duncan]

He said that I should be able to get back to "normal activity" after about 3 months. When I mentioned climbing he did what the other bloke did which was to tell me off for thinking I was going to get back to falling off things so soon. That's not really what I meant - these guys aren't climbers so don't know that there's such a things as, for instance, top-roping and traversing Henry Price.

So I'm probably looking at at least 6 months before I can do anything meaningful or maybe a year. Or maybe more, we just don't know yet because bone remodelling (where the body gets the bones to look less like a shattered mess and more like
it's original shape) is not entirely predictable. That's OK, which might sound odd coming from a lifer, but it is what it is and there's more in life than just climbing. But I'm wondering what I ought to do (climbing-wise) in the meantime, which is the point of this post.

The last thing I crimped was some damp limestone near the top of Barrel Buttress and that was 4 weeks ago. I definitely can't be lifting up anything heavy and I'm not even sure if/when I should use a fingerboard. So after the 3 month mark I wonder what sort of climbing activity I should do to maintain some sort of strength/form for my glorious return, whenever that may be. I'm not expecting to return to climbing and immediately start trying to RP an 8a again, but I don't want to have completely deconditioned and at risk of finger injuries from a sudden return to sport climbing. I don't like fingerboarding, so the idea of doing 6 months of it isn't appealing, but that might be the only thing available to keep things ticking over?

I'm not expecting any definite answers or a planned training programme, I just thought it would help to write down my thoughts and see if anybody else has been in a similar position of not wanting/expecting improvements during a hiatus, but also not wanting a complete loss of strength.

When you see the surgeon next, think of questions that will give an indication of how much you can load your spine in terms he'll understand. If you're clear to carry a heavy bag of shopping then you're probably fine to do single finger pick-ups with, say, 10kg that will be having some training effect. If you are clear to do a lats. pull-down and biceps curls in the gym then you're likely OK to top-rope easy stuff with a careful belayer.

You could probably do some tiny load, high repetition, long duration finger work right now, as endorsed by Dave Mason. The 'pinch thing' seems to be the gadget du jour but you could also do finger curls, with a bar or using a small edge in pick-up position, with a 1-2kg weight. 15 minutes at a time of this tries the patience but will give you a good base of forearm endurance.

Good luck and always be careful to load your spine symmetrically!.

[Yossarian]

Woah, bloody hell Will. That all sounds pretty full on...

Rejoining PC (again).

Post Font and the following week finishing off my board, plan was to ease back into training...

M - 20mm fingerboard pulls to 5x 85kg (this was a bit of a jump) then about an hour on the board. Everything feels quite hard, and it's not set quite right yet / holds still arriving. Main thing is that it feels very different (in a good way) to the 40deg one I use at the wall.
T - Wall. Mostly board, trying to remember all the things I was doing on it previously (had strained oblique in fortnight pre Font so it had been a while since I was on it.) Then wide weighted pull-ups and some curls, etc when I got home.
W
T - Board session with kids. Fingers felt worked pretty rapidly.
F
S - Wall. Aiming for some volume. Then home for a load of strength stuff - weighted pull-ups, locks, etc.
S - More strength stuff - mostly pressing. Bench press seems to be miles off where it was last time, but at least my shoulder isn't clicking.

Looking at booking Font again for early July, so around 11 weeks to lose weight / train hard.

[Will Hunt]

When you see the surgeon next, think of questions that will give an indication of how much you can load your spine in terms he'll understand

Good idea, I hadn't thought to translate it like this.