PUSH YOUR LIMITS, MIND YOUR ANKLE
In a vague attempt to create a kind of basic online reference I am going to start trying to write a (small) series of articles on here, explaining different aspects of climbing and how you can use them to improve. Hopefully. I mean, that’s the plan. Bear with me if it’s just drivel. I’m not a professional, and there’s a reason I didn’t do an English A-level…
Anyway, I thought we’d start off with how you move when climbing.
Who’s psyched for the second installment of ‘Alex does a bad job of explaining things he doesn’t understand: The Climbing Edition’? (No, me neither…)
I never thought I’d see the day when a joke article would get fewer up votes than a real one, especially in this club. So, back to actual advice it is…
In the previous articles, I’ve used terms to discuss holds and moves, but didn’t explain them, so this time I thought I’d go through them, and hopefully get people using them more efficiently.
I hope you’ve all enjoyed the break from my inexpert ‘teaching’, because I’ve now returned to finish the second half of the last article I started (Types of holds and how to use them), where I promised to go through moves and body positions when climbing. However, this topic is something that really needs some form of demonstration (I seem to say that every time, don’t I?), so even though I’ll do my best, check other sources and/or bother someone with enough experience at the wall.
To the overly confusing descriptions!
This article is going to take things in a bit of a different direction: setting. First of all, I’m not going to be covering any of the mechanics of setting; they’re better off done at the wall, where we can demonstrate the systems and issues involved. This will be purely about improving the quality of your setting. Secondly, I really must stress that everything I say here will be my own personal opinions and theories, occasionally backed up by anecdotal evidence, conversations with other setters and general consensus.
So, in addition to the numerous more specific articles I’ve written, I thought I’d try and do a more general one that’s more widely applicable. First of all, I feel I need to point out that I’m in no way a climbing coach, and have never done any sort of focused climbing training; everything I write here is based on patterns I’ve noticed in my own climbing, things I’ve read, and discussions with other climbers, so no blaming me if none of it works for you.