The False Ceiling: Has Your Skill Set Limited Your Training Gains?

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Written By Kris Hampton
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Several years ago I came off of a hiatus to rediscover rock climbing, in the form of clipping bolts.  After embarrassingly realizing complete failure on an 11a (and an incredibly painful pump that lasted about six hours) it was obvious that I lacked endurance, specifically when the rock was even slightly steeper than vertical.  Like any good climber, I got my ass into the gym asap, and ran laps like a madman.  Up, down, up, down, up, down again.  Soon I was an endurance machine.  5.12 went down without a fight.  12d seemed tough, so I spent a week in the gym working on anaerobic endurance on pockets, and I went back out and did 12d,twice, back to back.  My first 5.13 took four tries.  I was cruising along, thinking that 5.14 must be just around the corner.  But right about the time I hit 13b, I hit something else as well - a false ceiling.  I trained harder than ever.  No improvement.  Still harder.  No improvement.  Harder again.  Burnout.  

Why couldn't I get stronger?

WANT MORE? Find the complete essay in: The Hard Truth: Simple Ways to Become a Better Climber or listen to the episode below!

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Kris Hampton

A climber since 1994, Kris was a traddie for 12 years before he discovered the gymnastic movement inherent in sport climbing and bouldering.  Through dedicated training and practice, he eventually built to ascents of 5.14 and V11. 

Kris started Power Company Climbing in 2006 as a place to share training info with his friends, and still specializes in working with full time "regular" folks.  He's always available for coaching sessions and training workshops.

http://www.powercompanyclimbing.com
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