Climb A Grade Harder Program: The Final Weeks

Soooooo I didn't post for a few weeks because I had a lot going on. I didn't officially finish the program because we had Lead Climbing Class right in the middle of the 9th week and training has been focused more on learning how to properly do that without dying, but I have still made progress climbing. By the end of the program, or where the program should have ended, I am climbing routes at 5.10c and working on 5.10d for projects and I'm bouldering at V4/V5 and projecting V5/V6.

In the end, had I followed the program to a T, I feel like I may be a little further along, but life throws curve balls and speed bumps in your way and you just have to roll with the punches. What the program did for me that I really like, is it opened my eyes to how you need to train for rock climbing in order to work through plateaus and continue to make progress as you climb. I definitely feel like I took a lot of training knowledge away from the program and that alone to me was worth the cost! Did they reinvent the push up? Of course not. It's all exercises you've done before but in a different pattern and intensity. In short, I'd give the program 2 thumbs up and I may even do it again when I'm ready for another hard conditioning phase. Next for me is adding power and strength back into the program while still maintaining the base climbing conditioning.

Much more climbing to come. Lead certification test is next week and then the whole climbing world is open! Can't wait!!!!

Climb A Grade Harder Program: Week 7 - You're Gonna Die!!!!

Week 7 was the start of the last 2 weeks of the program which I will lovingly refer to as Hell Weeks! They delivered as promised to be the hardest of the program mixing fitness intervals with climbing and tiring me out about twice as fast as normal. I'm a big fan of getting my ass kicked occasionally with a good workout and Tuesday did me in for sure! We only had time to get in 3 of the 4 sets we were supposed to but it was still an ass kicker and I loved it! Thursday we were supposed to repeat the same intervals with bouldering but due to an unexpected time constraint we only did the bouldering section which was still challenging by itself.

Saturday, however, was the day that I fell deeper in love with climbing......I got to climb on my personal rock, Osprey Spire, for a few hours and it was amazing. It was my first time climbing outdoors and my first time self-belaying with my Grigri so it was a little scary and I took everything super easy just to be sure it would all work and it did!!!! I ended up making it up a pretty easy route twice which was more than enough to leave me with a smile and an adrenaline rush that lasted a while! I wish I could explain the void that climbing has filled in my life, but there are no words for it. It has taken over my life in an amazing way and I can't wait to see what each new experience brings!

Climb A Grade Harder: Week 5 - The Double "Rest" Week

So I went on vacation with the full intention of taking the first week off to rest and then keeping up with the program the following week to stay on track.......well that didn't quite happen. I am, however, impressed that I did actually stick to climbing while I was on vacation. I had 2 days at Vertical Rock in Manassas, VA and the bouldering was fun, although the climbing grades were sporadic and confusing. The route climbing was cool because the walls were about 10 - 15 feet taller than my home gym but they were also a little confusing at spots. I suppose each new gym you climb at will have their own way of grading and setting routes and that is part of what makes climbing so exciting and challenging. The fact that I spent 2 days of my vacation doing this for fun and bringing more people into the sport tells me one thing.......it truly is love and I'll never leave climbing!

Back to work next week for the ass kicker portion of the program! I'm ready and rested! Let's go!

Climb A Grade Harder Program: Week 6 - I Should've Rested

So this is actually Week 5, which was supposed to be a rest week, but I'm on vacation next week so I figured another hard week of training wouldn't be too bad......I totally needed the rest week, lol.

The week started off and I was packed at work so I had planned to split the workouts into 5 days this week instead of 4 but my body had other plans. Got the cardio in great but after climbing Tuesday, I couldn't tell if I tweaked something in my shoulder or just slept on it wrong so instead of working out Wednesday, I skipped the conditioning circuit and rested in hopes of climbing Thursday. Mission accomplished, climbed pretty well on Thursday despite the fact that my shoulder was still a little sore and my left forearm felt like something was stabbing it (not a great idea, I know, but sometimes I'm still just a stubborn athlete).

The long V4 route from last week went a lot smoother this week and I was able to complete it in 2 segments instead of 3-4 like last week. I also had time to try one of the new black V4 routes that was significantly harder due to it mostly being finger pockets...... I got about 3/4 of the way up this route but should be able to get it without a problem once I'm rested. The new purple V4 is going to be one of my new favorite routes. I was able to get it in 2 segments but definitely can get it in 1 shot next time. Tuesday I also got through one of the hardest sport routes I've ever done. Not sure what it is rated yet but I was excited that I was able to push through even through it took a good 10 minutes to get through the whole thing.

All in all it was a good week of climbing but not a great week of training. Lesson of the week: when you're supposed to take a rest week, TAKE THE REST WEEK!!!! On to vacation........

Climb A Grade Harder Program: Week 4 - PROJECTING!!!!!!

This week we got to focus on finger strength with some hangboarding which, I must say, I was kind of impressed with myself! When I started climbing last July I could barely do 1 pull up and Tuesday I was able to do 3 sets of holds on the hangboard with no issues at all. I mean it was challenging, but I still have moments when I shock myself that my shoulder can do these things again with such ease!

Now onto my favorite part of climbing.......projecting! I got to sit down this week and not only stare at some of the new routes that have been set since starting this program, but I got to get my hands on them and give them a shot! One of the V4 routes is the longest bouldering route I've seen to this point so of course I wanted to jump right into that one......and I did! The first attempt, I got it pieced together in 4 parts and by the end of projecting time on that route I was able to get it down to 3 pieces. A big part of this issue is the endurance to get through the route all in one shot but I'm not one to back down, I'll keep trying til I make it! The second route I projected on was one of the routes that beat me at the last competition I did! I was shocked when I was able to get past the point I was stuck on at the comp and make it all the way to the final hold with one hand. Finger strength is going to be the sticking point for this route but super excited that I made it as far as I did!

Next week is supposed to be a rest week but since I'm on vacation the following week, I switched it up so I could get another hard week of training in before my "rest" week! So far I am incredibly pleased with my progress and am more excited for each new week of training to come. Is it climbing day yet?

Climb A Grade Harder Week 3: Settling In

This week was my favorite so far. My body finally accepted that we were going through this new program and I felt like I started to perform like I expected myself to. I was able to get back to climbing V3s and 5.10a without fatiguing as quickly and had a few extra minutes at the end to start projecting a V4! Couldn't be more excited about that! I can definitely feel my body getting tighter......my biceps are actually tight in a few shirts which thrills me and I can see a major difference in my abs. Even though I'm a trainer, sometimes you need an outisde influence to push you to see the holes in your game. There's a big difference between doing what you want/like to do and what you need to do to get better and stronger. I am looking forward to the rest of the program, even though I might have peeked ahead and know that I'm going to get my ass kicked.......I still can't wait to do it. I like that I am enjoying the journey on this athletic path and not so focused on the end result that I forget to have fun. What an exciting adventure!

Climb A Grade Harder: Re-Week 2 - Building Baseline

This week I decided to switch things up a little to try to fit my schedule better! I felt that my bouldering was slightly hindered the first week because of all the forearm work in between the 2 climbing days (not complaining, I totally needed it, but I also want to perform without immediate fatigue). After route climbing and working out Tuesday I also felt like I should split that up because I felt too rushed during the climbing portion. So here's my modified schedule:

Monday: cardio and strength

Tuesday: route climbing

Wednesday: climbing assistance exercises

Thursday: bouldering

Friday: climbing assistance exercises

It's a little confusing, if you aren't doing the program yourself, just ignore all that.....

For routes this week I was able to get 3 sets of route doubles: Llamas On Mars - 5.9, Momo - 5.9+, New 5.10b

For boulders this week I was able to get 3 sets of contrasting hard/easy bouldering routes: V2/V0, V2/V1, V2/V1

I definitely felt less fatigued bouldering this week so I'm hoping the modified schedule is the way to go! You have to make things work for you to get results you want! Did I mention I'd like to be able to see my abs again? That's another goal after doing all the core work in this program! Time to rest up for week 3! Later! 

Climb A Grade Harder: Week 2 - The Ick

Week 2.....ugh.....week 2! Sinus infection turned bronchitis destroyed this entire week! Back at it next week!

Climb A Grade Harder Program: Week 1 - The Baseline

I started the Climb A Grade Harder Program a few weeks ago and decided that I would blog my progress weekly as I go through it and kind of give some insight as to how I feel it's going and of course, at the end to see if I actually climb a grade harder!  

For those of you who don't know me, I have been an athlete in various sports my whole life, most recently retiring from MMA in 2011 following a 5 anchor labrum repair to my shoulder. To say I was hesitant to start a shoulder focused sport, even 4 years later, would be an understatement! I was terrified of retearing my shoulder and imagined it in many horrific ways but, at some point you have to believe in your training and learn to trust your body again. 

I started climbing in June 2015 and was at the very beginner of beginner levels. Being a high level athlete most of my life, that itself was pretty hard to accept but it also lit a fire inside me that I'd been dying to find since leaving fighting. I competed in my first competition in October and although I finished dead last it was well worth it for the experience!  

Now enough about me, onto the program.......I decided to do an overall focus, splitting between route climbing and bouldering since I'm kind of new to this and really just want to improve overall as opposed to focusing strictly on bouldering.

Week 1 was super simple, do your top 4 route climbs and top 6 boulders to establish a baseline......

I ended up getting 3 x 5.10a / 1 x 5.10b or a starting average of 5.10a for routes AND 4 x V2 / 2 x V3 or a starting average of V2 for Bouldering. 

My goals for this 9 week program are maybe higher than they should be but why not reach for the moon and see what happens! For route climbing I'd like to increase to a 5.10c steadily and be able to project 5.10d. For bouldering, I feel pretty good at V3 for projecting right now so I'd like to steadily get V4s and be able to start projecting V5s! 

So there you have it, week 1 in a box, much more to come......

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Friday, January 03, 2014

6 Sets

10 x Power Snatches

1 Minute Overhead Squats

1 Minute GHD Sit Ups

1 Minute Explosive Step Ups

Thursday, January 02, 2014

# of Rounds in 30 Minutes

Row 250 Meters

10 x One Arm High Pulls

10 x Suspension Trainer Pike Ups

10 x Bosu 2 Arm Swings

10 x Alternating DB Rows

Wednesday, January 01, 2014

Running Intervals

1 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

2 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

3 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

4 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

5 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

4 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

3 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

2 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

1 Minute Run / 1 Minute Rest

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

5 x 10 – Go up in weight each set

Alternating 1 Arm Swings

Pop Cleans

Get Up Sit Ups

Lunge Presses

Sumo Deadlift High Pulls

Monday, December 30, 2013

Tyger Tabatas – 45 Seconds Work / 15 Seconds Rest – 5 Sets each exercise

Jump Lunges

Alternating Toe Reaches

Jumping Jacks

Reverse Hyperextensions

Wall Ball Shots

Friday, December 27, 2013

6 Sets

10 x Squat Cleans

1 Minute Push Ups with feet on Stability Ball

1 Minute Stability Ball Reverse Crunches

1 Minute Back Extensions

Thursday, December 26, 2013

# of Rounds in 30 Minutes

15 x Clean & Thrusters

20 x Alternating 1 Arm Swings

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

15 Rowing Intervals

1 Minute Row

1 Minute Rest

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

# of Rounds in 30 Minutes

10 x Bulgarian Squats

15 x Single Leg N Ups

10 x Side to Side Swings

15 x Knees to Elbows

10 x Jump Shrugs

15 x Stability Ball 4 Count Sit Ups