Overcoming fear....just as important as a maximum strength squat.

This blog for me is essentially about understanding limits; both physical and mental limits. It is my passion. For me, the enjoyment comes from the learning process associated with putting myself through discomfort. I hate to say it but I would probably do all these things behind closed doors with nobody watching. I'm certainly not devoid of ego but doing something for a sense of curiosity creates a very different sense of fulfilment.

Climbing is one such skill that I have been learning....slowly (a work in progress) that by far pushes those mental limits because it forces you to face fear! and I have oodles of this. In fact it makes me re-write the whole book of "self" as I have discovered things about myself, which only come out when you are truly "gripped"! One thing is for sure, you can't predict how you will react in an"epic" until you are in it.

You can climb with strength up to a certain grade, but beyond that it is very difficult to advance without a whole new arsenal of techniques and mental reserves to battle against the inevitable fear of heights and falling.
The skills learnt from embracing and facing fear are so valuable it makes me question the whole ideal of limiting Strength and Conditioning practices to just weight room stuff.
When you are writing Strength and Conditioning programs for Sport, the idea is to optimise transference of strength into the chosen Sport. It requires careful consideration and justification of why you are incorporating certain exercises. For example: How well do the strength gains from doing deep overhead squats translate into Sprinting? Is it necessary or relevant for that particular athlete? and why?
The skills learnt from climbing and facing fears for me have been monumental and transfer to a multitude of disciplines. The book "The Rock Warriors Way: Mental Training for Climbers" by Arno Ilgner elaborates on this.

Climbing helps you understand movement

To climb well (I definitely do not), a good understanding of the basic principles of physics and movement need to be understood. Centre of mass (COM) placement, gravity, etc. Pretty much all good climbers understand these principles of movement. Keeping your COM over your toes is going to give you stability and balance. A subtle shift of hip position can make all the difference to the success or ease of a move. I talk about this is my earlier post "subtlety of movement".
Creating "tension" in the body and co-ordinating body parts helps create a powerful move, like how power lifters use "pre-tension" to facilitate lifting.


Commitment

I also learnt about Commitment - Commitment to a move. This is quite different from a "sort of" ambivalent affair. What I'm talking about is 100%, absolute commitment and intention to making a move. I understood the difference between 80% commitment and 100%, half way up a route in North Wales where all my choices had run out. I was leading a route, it was only a bolt clipping Sport climb route and relatively safe, but to me that was enough fear. The next bolt upwards was closer than the one below. Down climbing wasn't an option and falling off wasn't a great option either as the run out was about 10m, because I had gone off route and missed a bolt. My modus operandi is normally to cling, scream, swear, shout, cry and then repeat all of the above until I have exhausted myself of angst and I can just about summon enough strength through fight or flight to move. Unfortunately that strategy has worked remarkably well because I'm strong, but there comes a point where you move up in grades and pure muscle ups just don't work. You need more than just brute force and testicles - a place I'm very unfamiliar and very uncomfortable in.

So.....forced to try something new, I decided to re-focus, pay attention and work out how I was going to make this "crux" move possible. Recalling my GCSE physics, I knew I had to get my COM over my foot  in a move called a "rock over" and I had to do it quick and do it with intent. What I experienced in this particular moment was peace in the face of adversity! When all the adrenaline and tears had run out, focus remained which I used to really work out what I had to do in that moment. I made the move. I haven't climbed since (JOKE!).

Happy and smiling in the comfort zone, being "hauled" up granite

Sulking and feeling "gripped"

Not good for morale, seeing this before a climb!
A true test of peace in the face of adversity!

There was a sincere lesson learnt here. In an ideal world, you can't always get the "appropriate" level of fear delivered to you. Fear in climbing  and fear of heights is very normal, so all you can do is change your approach to that challenge. Be responsible for controlling anxiety levels so you can function calmly through the chaos. It is a lesson that I have found absolutely invaluable to life. When you need to and you pay attention to calming down and focusing on the task at hand and how you are going to do it, it is truly incredible what you can do.

It does make me wonder whether addressing the "fear" factor through climbing or whatever skill you choose maybe just as valuable as any S&C weight room session. Clarence Callender, Head Coach to the young Sprinters I work with always talks about them having "fear". Powerful block acceleration starts if done correctly elicit the "stumble" reflex in running, but it produces a very strong feeling you are going to fall flat on your face. Most don't like it. Fear of lactate is another, for strength endurance track sessions. One of the sprinters has by no means optimal sprint mechanics, by that I mean poor, yet he is fearless in mind and runs times just as good as the others.

This is where I believe "numbers"  and "statistics" in training are important. It creates belief. I am the last person to be number crunching anything but numbers are facts and therefore proof of ability. The body likes proof. It can get this through timed results if that is your sport or the execution of a "move" etc. Once that proof has been provided, the belief system gets strengthened and ability to commit becomes easier.
You also see it when other people carry out seemingly impossible physical feats that previously had not been done, like Roger Bannisters breaking of the 4 min mile in 1954. Actually that is a bad example because the commonly believed myth that hundreds broke that record within the same year is not true. Within 2 years, only 4 people had broken that record; Landy, Tabori, Chataway and Hewson. (This statistic is still argued). Not quite the explosion of records but still, the point stands!

Can I justify packing off seven adolescent boys to the climbing wall so they can sprint better? Possibly not in terms of strength gains transferring to sprinting, but understanding movement and facing fear to me are a hugely important part of succeeding in life and Sport and part of the process of being "consciously competent". It doesn't need to be climbing, but thinking outside the box in terms of activities that can transfer fundamental skills like these is not to be underestimated.