Chin Up Club 770 9th - 15th Sept 2024

[Fiend]

Next week STG: Slightly less shit - No.
The usual STG: Stay focused and don't make silly mistakes - n/a. Do something challenging and inspiring on a rope (fuck above a pad) - no, nowhere near. Keep in regular contact with suitable friends and partners - touched base with people, and a couple of out-of-touch friends reappeared. Falling practise if I do routes indoors or out - no, missed opportunity. Look after injuries - No, GE flare-up, (gym x 1) - no, elbow rehab x 2 - yes x 2, but GE bad, shoulder rehab x 2 - No, stretching x 3 - x 2 proper sessions and a few little bits.


M - Rest. Light shoulder mobility. Felt surprisingly okay (like pretty fucked and immobile, but no worse than usual despite big wall session on Sun).

T - Demoralisation training @ Freeklime. Body felt good - massaging shoulders and elbow in car and both felt better than normal, no hint of fatigue from Sunday, felt positive and motivated for another session. 10 x V2-4, 5 x V3-5, 3 x V4-6, then gave up in disgust. Felt fat, weak, struggling to pull on anything, but also setting was often shit (lurchy, awkward, cack-handed, not enough footholds) and holds were often shit (weird, knobbly, chalk-caked). Worst indoor session this year. Used to enjoy sporadic visits to Freeklime but this was before RockOver Shartson / Bolton and Onyx opened.

W - Indoor bouldering @ Onyx. Body felt bad - tired, creaky, didn't really want to go but friends I hadn't seen for ages invited me so went for the social. Misc gentle warm-ups and soon felt fine. 6 x V4-6 (3 flash, 1 x retro-flash, 2 x 2nd go), 6 x V5-7 (1 flash, 2 x retro-flash, 1 x 2nd go, 1 x 3rd go, 1 x worked (first move only), plus attempted 4 I couldn't do last time and couldn't do this time, albeit a lot closer), 2 x V6-8 (1 x worked, 1 x worked (first move only)). Complete contrast to Tuesday. Everything fine apart from right arm golfer's elbow flare-up (combination of overuse and a bit cold). Stretching session.

T - Active rest. 2 x F6a/+, 2 x F6b+. No practise falls. Ideal situation for them but not motivated - I think I've basically given up on salvaging any confidence or trad capability this year so couldn't be arsed - a dire state of affairs. Forearm doms. Right arm golfer's elbow sore.

F - Active rest. Brief gritstone trad hit, 2 x HVS, 1 x E1. Basically hillwalking but felt I was hillwalking with vague competence. GE better in morning but a bit sore after. Forced myself to get back in touch with many out-of-touch people (including those who keep saying they will climb / contact me and never do). As frustrating as usual but I did it.

S - Active rest. Photoshoot at Round Barn Quarry. Very successful. Wolfhound cuddles at the parking. Soloed 2 x S, 2 x VS. Elbow rehab.

S - Indoor bouldering @ RockOver Shartson. 6 X V1-3. 6 x V2-4, 7 x V3-5 (all flash, plus tried 2 more), 5 x V4-6 (3 flash, 2 briefly worked, plus tried 4 more). No LingLing cuddles but somehow bravely coped. Elbow rehab, stretching session. GE sore in the morning and slightly worse after but only a few movements aggravated whilst climbing. Shorter session due to GE.


Trad still dire and scarcely bothered. Indoor training okay but aggravated GE quite a lot compared to previous manageable levels.


Next week STG: Slightly less shit (rollover)
The usual STG: Stay focused and don't make silly mistakes. Do something challenging and inspiring on a rope (fuck 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 2, shoulder rehab x 2, stretching x 3.

 

[Duma]

Your initial summary looked very red Fiend, but the day by day write up sounds like a good week!

M - sleep off nights. Eve, TCA, 120 min. 2 whites (1 flash, 1 lots of goes, although not too bad when I got shown the sequence) 4 blacks (1 flash, 1 quick, 1 ok when I was shown a better sequence, 1 all the moves but no link. Good session but skin sore by the end.
T -
W - aft, TCA, 90 min. 3 whites (1 flash, 1 2nd go, 1 4th go) 3 blacks (2 3rd go, 1 fairly quick) 2 blues (1 3rd go, 1 only a brief play). Also repeated a white from Monday and a slightly improved link on the black that got away on Monday.
T - eve, TCA, 90 min. 3 whites (2 repeats, 1 failure to repeat), 2 blacks (1 repeat, 1 multiple session project), 1 blue (decent attempts/progress on the 1 that got away on Wednesday.
F - 12 hr shift. Terrible sleep.
S - 12 hr shift.
S - 12 hr shift. Managed to find enough beans to get out for a run in the evening, 6k, hilly, trail, 33 min. Slow after nearly 6 weeks off, but felt ok and lovely to be out in the meadows as night fell.

71 kg.

 

[duncan]

Thanks Fiend. I’d class Thursday as more than active rest but there you go!

M - City Bouldering White City. A small newish wall in a retail unit next to Westfield Mall. It has a glass front, generic industrial-lite decor (OSB and scaffolding, you’ll know the style), pleasant staff, and a cafe-bar where you can have a cheeky IPA whilst the kids throw themselves at the separate children's area. Grades are ridiculously soft but internally consistent, which is all that really matters, and the setting was decent. There are no boards and the hardest set problems are ‘V8’ (V4/5 IRL?). Probably not for the ukb massive. It is one tube stop from the Westway but in a different galaxy.

I had fun and it was the first time I felt able to try remotely hard (‘V6’) in about 6 weeks.

T - Battered. Hip flexibility.

W - Still a bit tired. Swam in the murk (Hampstead mixed pond, 16C) for 20 mins.

T - Was planning to see András Schiff play Bach’s Art of the Fugue but he broke his leg so...

Lime Kiln Quarry with Fiend. Warmed-up on Diamond Geezer and Diamond Dogs (6a+s), neither feel easy. Tried Mystic Crystal (6b+), mucked-up the onsight but managed it second go. Had a rest, drank tea, and found a £20 note, none of which helped me on Amethyst Wall (6c?). Good effort from shark as an ‘E3’ in 1986. Finished the day with Nicotine Rush, which was greasy after a couple of showers and felt more E1 than 6a in that state. Nearly dozed-off whilst driving back, and needed a nap and mug of tea to get me more-or-less safely home.

F - Tired. Battered, especially forearms.

S - Still battered. Swam in the murk: 20 mins. of 15C was too long and I got very cold. Last Night of the Proms with the lad, my first time in decades. He enjoyed the party atmosphere, I waved my EU flag.

S - CanaryWall. Shoulder conditioning to warm up. V4 slabs/walls, V3 steeps, V2/5c+ on the woodie; a decent session.

Enjoyed climbing with Matt again for the first time in a couple of years. Lime Kiln is my 8th new crag of 2024, it’s been spruced-up recently thanks to BMC access people, the peak bolt fund, Marc and other developers, and the Lime Kiln pub. Worth a visit if you’re semi-local operating in the low 7s.

Have been sleeping badly for the last couple of weeks, which nearly caught up with me on the journey home on Thursday. Driving 3+ hours solo each way for a day of climbing is beginning to feel like a risky strategy and not great for recovery either.

Onwards and possibly upwards. Would ideally like to try some harder trad. before the season peters out, but usual story of balancing this with family and boosting fitness whilst keeping aches managable.

 

[cheque]

Your initial summary looked very red Fiend, but the day by day write up sounds like a good week!

I think this every week.

 

[oldfella]

Thanks for launching this week Fiend.
Good to hear you & Duncan had a good day out, plus £20 find. :clap2:

A light week for me. A return to feet on campus which I’m sadistically enjoying.

Cancelled my dépôt membership need a change. Considering awesome walls. But needing a regular Tuesday or Wednesday night partner. Any contacts appreciated.

Monday -

Fingerboard session at home
18mm edges
5 hangs BW + 7.5kg
Fingers felt tired this session. The warm up routine was harder than usual. Accumulation of Sunday’s feet on campus. Stopped after 4 hangs.

Tuesday
Feet on Campus 16,sets. 1 minute on & off.

Wednesday
Strength training at Virgin Gym

Thursday
Fingerboard session at home
18mm edges
3 hangs BW + 7.5kg
3 hangs total weight 91.1kg.
BW + 13.75kg
BW 77kg

12mm edges
total weight. 81.5kg.
Two hangs body weight plus 2.5kg
Four hangs body weight plus 5kg.

Friday
Rest

Saturday
Rope solo at Horseshoe.
Checked out a 7a called Dust Bunnies. Last move seems very morpho.


Came home for Feet on Campus
15 sets 1min off/1min off.

Sunday

Morning strength training at the gym

 

[Wellsy]

Deload week this week so no training just a few climbing sessions. Elbow feels a bit tweaky, think it is connected to ongoing left ring finger issue

Lots of things going on in life at the moment, lot of potential for good stuff but bit frustrating too, so just trying to keep on keeping on and stay positive. Font on second week of October though so excited for that

 

[Fiend]

Your initial summary looked very red Fiend, but the day by day write up sounds like a good week!

Despite staying semi-active, for Power Club it's about progression, or at least about trying to regain something. I've been trying to get my trad back on track for a while now without success, as well as regaining climbing capability in other ways, with limited success. This week had no success for my trad confidence. It would have had some success for general physical climbing, except that too much indoor climbing caused my GE to flare up, so the net result is probably setting me back a little bit. The social / climbing partner side was a bit better tho.

 

[SA Chris]

M - felt broken after scout camp and no sleep - 10km run in evening
T - some weights, I think
W - felt increasing crap as day went on, cancelled scouts and was asleep from 6 until 9, I think it all caught up with me.
T - felt a bit better - evening session on garage board - mid.
F - nothing, worked in evening
S - quick wall session before going to see Deadpool, hoovered up most of reset barrel probs, struggled to finish on 30 deg board. Footy traffic after film so nipped back in for half an hour and got one of the problems that eluded me earlier.
S - outdoor bouldering - weather not as good as forecast and bigger sea than expected, so even Plan C crag was salty, so doubled back to Upper Boltsheugh and had an average session with Stu before heading home.

 

[Duncan Disorderly]

Matt - I'm with Duma on this... You shouldn't be too hard on yourself, sounded like a pretty solid week... In my mind the whole purpose of PC (or any training log) is to give you an insight into what you are doing, what you can realistically do and how to make those micro adjustments to help you progress long term. In the words of Jacky Godoffe "Sometimes the body doesn't want to do ard moves", guess that axiom can be used for the mind too - good luck!

M: Autobelays @ AW - 3rd day on, supposed ARC, session - was actually more like AeroCap as I got bored and chucked a few F6b+'s into my 4 x 10min sets....
T: 5k Fell run - hard.
W: Routes @ AW - F6a+/F6b, F6b/F6c, F7a+ (lob), F7a+ (tr), F6b+, F7c (tr - dogged like I'm the biggest dogshit in dogtown! 7c my absolute arse, would probably be 8a+ anywhere but AW :-[)
T: Rest
F: Swimming w/GF
S: Sheaf bloc - worked traverse, did traverse! YYFY! Tried some variations - got spanked! Had recovery pint... Nice!
S: Stanage Struggle 9.9k Fell Race - Hard! Start was very fast (for me) so had to dial it back so as not to blow up in the middle 3rd, made up some places on the descent from High Neb but ran out of beans in the last km so just coasted home... Solid middle of the pack and 5k PB! (probably not actually but I've only had a Garmin the past few months so never tracked my runs before....) Really enjoyed it - surprised to not see more familiar faces... Big up nik at work for marshalling! :wave:

Good week - getting fitter. Nice to fulfil one of my annual goals to run at least one fell race! :2thumbsup: Was hoping to surf on Saturday (first good swell since I can remember!) but my van is off the road so local stuff only! Kalymnos on 27th so just gotta keep plugging away.....

 

[nik at work]

I’m in. The various resident kids range from keen to obsessive about climbing right now, so will see how this goes…

STG - route fitness
MTG - 7c (8a?!) route, same for bouldering (but with a capital letter obvs)
LTG - fuck it, 8c

Mon - nuffink
Tues - AW, routes to start couple of autobelays (6’s) a lead (6c+) and a failed lead (7b) where I went full on donkey mode on the head wall. Then snuck the under 18’s up to the training area to play on the kilter board. Probably did a dozen 6C+/7A problems. The kids get bored of routes too quickly, and time is generally too short to get a decent routes session in which is slightly frustrating.
Weds - nowt
Thurs - Climbing works, Sam has a group of mates to climb with so I managed to get a session on the circuit board. 1x murple (or is it pinkle??) 6a+, 1x black 7a, 3x green 7c+. Then floundering on a few of the new wasps before accepting I was tired…
Fri - nothing
Sat - Cheedale cornice with Sam. Put the clips in unleashing. Clipstick and a bit of toprope move trying, hard to do much more when your belayer is half your weight and 12…
Then Sam had a toprope go and then a bolt to bolt go before we had to leave, not much climbing for me but a bit of ropeworkery I suppose.
Sun - spent the morning cheer on the running machine that is Mr Disorderly, afternoon mini-golf.

Reasonable week, feel like I might have a smidge of route fitness developing, hopefully keep this going until the end of Oct and Kalymnos…

 

[Nibile]

Power Club

Mon - weights, pull ups.
Tue - DL 7x5 110 kg. Bentover rows.
Wed - push ups, back work.
Thu - shoulder static holds. High pulls.
Fri - first climbing related session in three months. BM pockets, tests, etc. Promising. Farmer's max load for 30".
Sat - regular weights.
Sun - thruster, track riding.