Balancing climbing and training

There’s a direct correlation between energy expenditure and performance. Therefore, there’s a fine line between knowing how and when to train and how and when to rest. Now start factoring climbing sessions into the mix and training seems to take a back seat.

When can I schedule my workouts so they don’t take away from my climbing sessions?

Does climbing count as training?

How can I find the time to workout AND climb? …without sacrificing energy during sessions?

How can I program my workouts to reap the most benefits without “overdoing it?”

My first rule of thumb for developing a training program is to determine your goals…ALWAYS. Why are you training? Name your focus and your ‘why’ right off the bat. After you’ve done that, it’s time to start writing out some more specific goals that have to do with your focus. For example, your focus can be to work on getting better at dynos or more dynamic movements on the wall. Once you’ve established that focus, your training goals might consist of increasing power and explosiveness.

Now that we have a starting point, knowing your focus is on climbing itself, training sessions will be adapted around your climbing sessions. Similarly, if you are an athlete training for strength, the lifting portion of your program will come first, followed by any sort of conditioning you might do.

*this will also help determine sets and reps of exercise and order within your program

The focus always comes first in a program!

The next step would be to take a look at your week, choose the days you’ll be climbing. On the days you won’t be climbing, start to find the time you have available to dedicate to training. How long will your training sessions be? How many days a week? What does your equipment/access to equipment look like? Not sure how many days a week you should be training?

Blocking out time for training outside of climbing is key!

Now that you’ve determined your focus, set up your goals, and dedicated time to training sessions, it’s time to talk volume…right alongside rest and recovery. The two go hand in hand.

Training volume is usually where that fine line of balance comes into play. How much (or little) time does your training consist of? How much are you loading your body and how close to a climbing session are you loading it? Are you expending too much energy, leaving your tank empty and climbing performance low?

Determining your training volume will depend on many factors specific to YOU. One large contributing factor to volume is training age (experience). How long have you been training, how often do you train, what adaptations has your body made, what type of load is your body used to being under?

Answering these questions will help determine your set and rep ranges, how frequently you train, how quickly you progress, and insight into breaking past a plateau.

Be honest with yourself about your training age!

Wouldn’t it be nice if it were all just one cookie cutter answer? If balancing climbing and training looked the same for everyone…

Here are a few components that DO run true across the board:

1. RECOVERY IS KEY - try and give your body ~24 hrs to recover between a higher intensity training session and a climbing session. After a particularly hard training session, your muscles might take 2-3 days to fully recover so keep that in mind when heading into a climbing session - sometimes it’s easy to have unrealistic expectations for our body (guilty as charged).

   Make sure you are getting enough sleep!! Sleep is so important for our body’s recovery process…you’d be surprised the difference good, consistent sleep can make in both training and climbing.

   Make sure you are fueling your body.

   BUT most importantly, listen to your body…it will tell you when it needs more rest!!

2. Climbing and training are two completely different things! - Will climbing make you a strong climber? One hundred percent! But just climbing on its own will not make you stronger. Training outside of climbing is the surest way to level up, especially in those areas you feel stuck.

3. You have to want it! - I know this one might sound simple and obvious, but I’ve been in the field long enough to know that only those who REALLY REALLY want it, will carve out the time to make it happen!

4. It’s ok to ask for help - sometimes having someone to create a program for you or even just hold you accountable is all the motivation you need to take your training to the next level. Sometimes there are small tweaks and details you never knew you needed to help you level up ;)