Summer is fully underway. While we hope you are getting outside and climbing as much as possible, fall is just around the corner and it’s time to start thinking about training for it if you want to be ready for the good temps. With all the training information out there, it can be hard to know exactly what exercises you should be doing to help reach your goals and what is just a waste of time and energy.
With this idea of effectively planning ahead in mind, here’s a PSA from coach and trainer Steve Bechtel of Climb Strong reminding us not just to train hard but to train smart.
“I swear every time I hear people talk about how great a workout was based on how the felt afterward, I want to puke. Which of course is an indicator of a good workout itself, which means that all a great trainer would have to do to to get me in shape is to talk about how good his workout yesterday was. For the uninitiated, let me remind you what training is and is not. Training is directed and regular overloading of the body, completed with a mind toward improving a specific facet of performance. To perform better at a sport, or any task really, you need to both train the body to work more efficiently and to practice the movements of the activity.” – Steve Bechtel
Climb Strong – Don’t Try to Get Tired…
The underlying point that Steve is making here is that we need to be deliberate with our training. Otherwise, there’s no way to ensure it’s actually going to help us improve our rock climbing. Unfortunately, tiredness isn’t a good measure. As Steve points out, lots of things can make you tired, but that doesn’t mean they are making you a stronger climber.
Instead of relying on tiredness as a measure, Steve argues we need to think critically about exactly what we are trying to improve on, target it systematically with the appropriate stimuli, and gradually increase the load over time. This is the ONLY way to ensure your training is going to work
Before your next gym session and definitely before you jump into a training plan, do yourself a favor and click through to read Steve’s whole article. Let’s be honest with ourselves. Training can be fun at times, but I only want to be disciplined and put in the hard work if I know it’s going to help my climbing!
Full Article: Climb Strong – Don’t Try to Get Tired…
(photo courtesy of Matt Pincus | @mpincus87)
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