Start here
Begin with How to set climbing goals and plan training: it turns “I want to climb harder” into a plan. Then read Mental training for climbing, five habits for focus and stress on the wall. Fear of falling and how to practise falls come next. If you are starting to lead on gear, finish with How to start trad without a ground fall.
How do you set climbing goals?
Write down everything that appeals to you over at least 6 months, ideally a year, and check that these are your own dreams, not other people’s. Then:
- Sort them by priority, and drop what would demand too many concessions right now.
- Define what you expect from each goal, qualitatively and in numbers. Each expectation becomes a sub-goal.
- Measure the gap between each sub-goal and where you are now, with valid tests repeated under identical conditions. How to test finger strength covers the finger tests.
- Plan from the gap. Work on your weaknesses first and maintain your strengths with much less time. Choose exercises only after the plan.
- Review the season: what you reached, what you over- or underestimated, and whether the plan was followed.
Félicien Roy, a kinesiologist and climber, walks through the method with his own season in How to set climbing goals and plan training. Plan your training turns the plan into weeks.
How do you train your head?
With habits you practise like moves. Sabrina Thayer-Head devoted a competition season to her head and kept five:
- Keep your ultimate goal in view, so outside factors such as other people’s opinions weigh less.
- Climb for yourself. Set objectives on movements, grips and behaviour, not on grades or rankings, and picture yourself on the wall, not seen from the crowd.
- Focus on the task, not the result. You have almost no control over the result; put your energy into preparation, then let go.
- Understand your stress. Ask what the worst that can happen is, then practise the stressful situation in a controlled setting.
- Change your thinking in the moment. Catch the point where your attitude turns negative, and take a breath.
Mental training for climbing tells how she did it.
How do you deal with fear of falling?
Practise small, safe falls on steep, clean terrain with an experienced belayer, and make them bigger only when the last step feels calm. Start on top rope, then let go with the bolt at your waist, your knees, your feet, and finally above it. Not every fear is wrong, though: on doubtful trad gear, above a ledge or with a distracted belayer, it may be telling you something true.
How do you start trad without a ground fall?
Learn on easy-to-protect routes where a fall is safe, place more gear than you think you need near the ground, check every placement, and carry a double rack so you never finish a run-out with nothing left. “When in doubt, run it out” is stupid even if it rhymes. Climbing well below your limit gives you the margin to downclimb and stay calm. How to start trad without a ground fall gives the American Alpine Club’s spacing numbers and how to check a placement. Learn with experienced partners or a recognised course.
Note A meta-analysis of randomised trials found that psychological interventions improve sport performance by a moderate amount, and specific goals help performance in general. Climbing-specific evidence is thin: most of this topic is coaching practice and first-hand experience, and each article says where.
Sources
- Brown DJ, Fletcher D (2017). Effects of psychological and psychosocial interventions on sport performance: a meta-analysis. Sports Medicine.
- Locke EA, Latham GP (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: a 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9).
