I sent the first 5.12 I ever tried. Looking back, that was silly of me. Because there’s one super important thing that you should be doing if you want to progress your climbing: trying things that are too hard for you. And I mean actually too hard – like so hard that there are numerous moves you can’t do and the possibility of sending is zero. Why? Read on.
Expose yourself to the hard hard
The point of trying really hard things is to expose yourself to the intensity of it. When you try things that are really hard, your experience will be kind of nails. You will suffer. You will flail. You will get crux-blocked. But then, when you get back on something that’s a suitable level for you, it will feel much more doable. If the hardest thing you’ve ever sent is the hardest thing you’ve ever tried, you’re doing yourself a disservice.
It’s all relative
How we perceive everything in life is relative. Weather, money, relationships, stress: it’s measured in relation to our previous experiences. And by capping one end of climbing with “things you know you can do”, you’re making all of your climbing experiences relatively harder.
We’re all human. We’re all stuck within the confines of a central nervous system. You know when you haven’t bouldered for a while, and then you go to the gym and everything is super intense? It feels like you’ve had too much caffeine (but you haven’t), and you might even get the shakes. But the next session is much less intense – and soon, bouldering becomes downright normal. That’s what you want to do with climbing overall.
Be like Adam Ondra
Adam Ondra built a climbing wall in a sauna to train for the Olympics. A climbing wall in a sauna. He wanted to get used to climbing in the heat so that when he competed, it wouldn’t be so intense. You can do that, except you’re not competing in the heat – you’re just trying to climb hard things. So climb some extra hard things sometimes and be done with it.
Why this is so difficult to do
Knowing you should climb really hard stuff and actually doing it are two different things, and there’s one big reason why: failure. Getting on something that is too hard for you means you will fail. That’s the whole point. And nobody likes failing, but it’s an integral part of climbing.
Everybody fails. It’s how you learn. You don’t have to like it, but you should do it anyway. And remember, there’s no level you need to be at to “deserve” to climb something. Nobody deserves anything, and you don’t have to climb 5.11b to try 5.11d. And nobody cares anyway, because everybody is way too caught up in their own stuff to keep tabs on what grades you should or shouldn’t be climbing.
How to not get injured (or, what not to do)
Do not climb extra hard things when you are tired. Do not do it when you are injured. Do not throw yourself at crux moves over and over again. Do not ignore tweaky feelings. The goal is to experience the intensity and get shut down – not to destroy your body. If you aren’t sure, stop and do it on a different day.
Reap the rewards
Next time you’re at the crux on your project, you won’t be in the middle of the most intense experience you’ve ever had, and it will be much more manageable. This was a game changer for me, and I hope it will be for you too.
Photo credit: Ryman Wiemann