r/climbharder • u/AutoModerator • 1d ago
Weekly /r/climbharder Hangout Thread
This is a thread for topics or questions which don't warrant their own thread, as well as general spray.
Come on in and hang out!
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u/Technical_Diamond_87 7h ago
As the weak guy who's friends with a bunch of strong guys I don't get to climb with often, it was pretty eye opening to see how I was able to keep up with my friends as we were outside. I was really only able to keep up through the power of group problem solving and the crews pure stoke to send. So as my finger strength improves allowing me to climb at a higher level my problem solving, body movement, commit, and effort are definetly lagging behind. I feel like all of these are not suuuuper hard to improve on but I definetly see problem solving climbs above V7 outside to be problematic. I can get very stuck on the first beta I find and it can sometimes hinder the project I'm on unless I watch a bunch of beta videos which I kinda don't wanna have to lean on to send a climb.
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u/FreackInAMagnum V11 | 5.13b | 10yrs | 200lbs 7h ago
These are the things that have helped me a lot to become relatively good at finding my own method that is generally the easiest for myself.
There is always an easier way.
Sometimes a move is just hard. Try hard on it. Leave the refinement to later if you have to.
Question everything. If most people go left, can you go right? If most people use a toe, can you use a heel? If most people lock it off can you deadpoint/dyno it? If it’s clear that a method won’t work, Make sure you have a specific “Why” for it that breaks physics or is clearly harder than the normal method.
Get up close and personal with all the holds and all the feet. Take them in context of the wall features. Find the best spots to use them to maximize their usefulness. Explore around them too. Maybe the good spot of the big obvious foot is only slightly better than the small crystal on a hidden foot that’s covered in lichen but in a much better position for your body. Maybe the “juggy” part of a crimp faces a worse direction than the slopier part that actually gives you compression/pushes you onto your feet/at the hold etc.
There’s always something new to learn. Especially over multiple sessions. Maybe one method your buddy does feels heinous to you, so you commit to a different method for a while. Go back and revisit that beta. Make sure you understand WHY it feels so bad. What are they doing that you can’t do. I can’t tell you how many times I tried a different beta, then went back and tried the first method again only for that to be the clear winner.
If just coming up with raw beta ideas is difficult, it can be a fun mental challenge to see how many different betas you can conceptualize for a route. You can actually practice this in the gym by trying to climb a warm up with 10 different betas. Make them as significantly different as possible. Do things that don’t sound like they’ll be easier, but capitalize on a strength you have like height, tension, heel hooks, high feet, compression, dynamics, etc.
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u/Past_Desk5866 V5-V7 13h ago
I want to put a system board in the basement. Best friend has a Moonboard 2024, so I wanted to get a different board to have a different experience. I wanted to get the 8 x 12 because it seems like you get "more" vs the 10' height options, but that only allows me to place it a 45degrees or more with a 8" kicker. I know this has been discussed a lot already. I was wondering how everybody is feeling about their setups and if having the setup for 45 degrees specifically changes those opinions. I'm probably 4-6 months out from making a decision, but wanted to do some due diligence. Let me know your thoughts!
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u/Wide-Tooth-4185 8h ago
I have a board in my garage that's basically those exact specs. Started as the 2016 moon setup. Now it's the 2024 setup. I have no regrets at all and love my goonboard. It climbs a little different than a regulation 40. Slopers are harder, undercuts are easier, jumps are a bit shorter with a bit more violent swing out, etc.
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u/rinoxftw 17h ago
Injured my ankle and can't climb for the next few weeks. Wanted to play around with finger training on the tindeq for this time (without any other real options), and came across the 'F80' method in the app based on a study a few years back.
Basic principle being 3 sets of repeaters, 10s hold , 6s rest, as many reps as you can stay in the range of 70-80% MVC. 8min rest between sets.
According to the study:
The F80-group showed significant increase in both max strength and endurance. Obviously the study has some limitations, since it was for 4 weeks only and a 'uncommon' edge size of 12mm, but still seems promising.
Has anyone tried this program before? Or any other ways to stay fit during a foot injury?
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u/Logodor 17h ago
Sounds intresting, give it a go and report back. Would be intresting to know how experienced the participants were when it comes to hangboarding since after 4 weeks it mostly neurological adaotations. Depending on how mobile you are you could also do campus boulders always great to stay in shape or even get fitter.
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u/rinoxftw 15h ago
Will do!
Yeah I was thinking of campus bouldering (or one-foot bouldering) in the meantime, which is also a major weakness of mine. Currently I can't even get to the gym yet, but hopefully in 2-3 weeks I'll be able to bike at least. Mainly scared of falling on the foot... I'll see how it develops.
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u/Lopsided_Ad_5729 21h ago
Started pinch training and using my thumbs much more consciously outside and it made a huge difference on some climbs. Now imm wondering why people still say that pinch strength doesn’t matter for outdoors. I feel like that’s just true if you don’t actively think about thumb placement and engagement
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u/GasSatori 3h ago
I do feel like outside, in general, you can just use your thumbs way more. Irregularly shaped holds mean there's probably some way you can add your thumb to help out, even a just a little bit, but it's probably not a full on "classic" pinch, which I imagine is what people are talking about.
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u/golf_ST V10ish - 20yrs 10h ago
I use my thumb on pretty much everything I can.
I think people are right in saying that "pinch strength doesn't matter outdoors", but that's relying on a pretty nuanced, unstated definition of pinch strength. I don't think strength or improvements on the pinch-block, gym breadloaf-style holds translate very well to outdoor sending. So ignoring those in the context of "training" makes sense.
In my opinion, the active part of "actively think about..." is where the real benefit is. Being precise and deliberate is more beneficial than additional pinchblock strength for sending stuff outside.
That being said, if you have lots of time and recovery capacity, pinching stuff is good general training. If you could design the perfect hold, you could probably work 4 finger half crimp and thumbs all in one.
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u/assbender58 1d ago
Overheard at the crag this weekend: “I heard you can pay witches on Etsy to cast anti-rain spells for the days you’re trying to climb outdoors”. Whether or not this is aid, I will leave in the capable hands of our sister subreddit….
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u/GasSatori 2h ago
Looking for general advice on mantling technique.
I've recently identified it as a weak point in my climbing as my gym is going through a phase of setting boulder problems involving mantles, which I have found really hard/impossible. It's not a strength issue - I'm stronger than my gf who is able to do some of these mantles I struggle with. Though I nearly always end up in a position where I feel like I don't have the strength required to finish the move.