It took me some time to dig out these 2 really old sheets of 'worthless' papers which i compiled about 8 years ago. This is basically a condensation of what i thought would be useful for me having read Eric J. Horst's book "TRAINING FOR CLIMBING". At one point or another, i am sure any serious climber would have read or even bought his books in their own personal quest to evolve and grow as a climber.
When i first started competing long time ago, i knew i had to work on my mental aspect on top of training very hard physically. It was clear to me from the very start that being strong mentally is as important if not more than being physically strong itself. As such having read the book, i began to systematically identify and write down the things which can help me improve mentally. This resulted in these two 'worthless' papers which i pinned up on my board but have since taken down a long time ago.
The first paper basically identifies my step-by-step approach to climbing a route/boulder. Of course subtle changes should be made in accordance with what you are doing. eg competition, onsighting on rock, doing a hard redpoint etc. Do not underestimate the power of visualization. It helps to hardwire your motor skills (moves and sequences), increasing memory and fortify confidence. Studies have shown that the brain is not always capable of distinguishing between something that actually happened and something that was vividly imagined(Kubistant 1986). Therefore, repeated visualization can trick the mind into thinking that you have been there and done that before. It is important also to ensure that visualization should be as detailed and as accurate as possible (i even count the number of shakes i give each hand at a rest point during a hard redpoint) as uncertain sequences can result in failure during your climb.
The importance of visualization was highlighted once again to me during my recent climbing trip back to Krabi. I blew past my previous high point on Greed easily on my first redpoint attempt. I could never do the particular move no matter how hard i try during the 2 weeks i was there a couple of years back. This was a result of me constantly fiddling around with 2 sequences at that section as i was unsure what to do (both felt equally hard) and did not believe that i could link it from ground up. Thus i had subconciously ingrained the belief that i will fall everytime at that section. In climbing terms, rather than engramming the move, i was engramming the fall.
Looking back, i don't think i was a lot stronger physically this time round. It was simply a result of me being prepared to do the move even before i touched down in Thailand. Let me explain how this came about. I did a self analysis of why i kept falling at that section on Greed after my trip in 2006 and came up with a simple answer.
I did not visualise my success in doing that move from ground up which came about as a result of me not believing that it was possible for someone of my height. This was proven wrong during my last few days there when a HK friend of mine did that move easily and he is of the same height as me. The days leading up to this 2009/2010 krabi trip was occasionally spent visualizing my success in doing that move, so much so that i never fell of that section again on this trip in EVERY of my redpoint burn. Amazing ain't it?
The above answer i stated brings me to my second 'worthless' sheet of paper, in particular point number 4, "STOP NEGATIVE THOUGHTS. THE BODY WILL NOT GO WHERE THE MIND HAS NOT GONE FIRST". This point holds true for me and i believe for many people out there as well. This is evident in my encounter with other climbers in the gym. More often than not, i find that most will choose not to believe that a route is possible(they will usually whine that a move is too hard or too far) and within their capabilities until someone else of the same height or physical strength does it first.
These 2 documents work hand in hand and have done wonders for my progression in climbing. Here's a picture of me on Baa Baa black sheep 8c/+ at Ceuse, a route made famous by Dave Graham in 2001 when he did the FA. A route i felt i was capable of doing physically but not mentally last year, having fallen off the last hard move numerous times. I'll be back for it someday, thats for sure.
I'm all for everything you've said. It's all a mind game. I seriously doubt I'm any stronger than most blokes in Spore but I pretty much will my body into submission. Worked for climbing and worked for cold acclimatization during winter.
ReplyDeleteAnother interesting thing I've read in articles relate to memory retention before sleeping. Apparently we retain quite alot of learned information right before our body goes to sleep. That's way we still habitually run through sequences or visualize success when lying in bed. Put me to sleep right away at times though. Worth a shot since it doesn't really costs us anything.