Photo of Kylie Cullen taken by photographer Michelle Ranaee Johnson.
Within two months of starting the sport of indoor rock climbing, my climbing partner and I had successfully conquered our first 5.9 and we were feeling pretty confident. "Let's try the bouldering area," I suggested. "I bet we can at least get a V1 by now."
Such arrogance.
That was not the case. It took us both a couple of weeks to finally, successfully, scale our first V0. We'd already built up some strength by climbing on top rope for the previous two months, but it wasn't enough. We could barely make the first move on any bouldering route, which typically has low holds, forcing a person to sit on the floor (or very close to it) and, using more upper body than lower, pull themselves up to the next hold.
Weeks later, when we finally accomplished our first V0, my climbing partner and I immediately decided that now we could handle a V1.
Wrong again.
This time, it took us about a month and a half, climbing 3-4 times a week. It was longer for our first V2. Progress was slow. When we asked friends at the gym why we were so stunted, they described the progression of bouldering grades as an "exponential growth,” that is, at least twice as hard as the last grade.
For the common climber, and especially one who doesn't have the advantage of height, every new grade advancement in bouldering will take a lot of time. In our rush and desire to improve, it is easy to forget this simple principle – it takes time to achieve each new grade.
Sometimes we also have unrealistic expectations that once we are climbing at a certain grade, improvement will become easier. It doesn't.
Because advancing grades is difficult and takes time, I have had to make mental shifts to keep me motivated. Here are a few ways I boost confidence:
Such arrogance.
That was not the case. It took us both a couple of weeks to finally, successfully, scale our first V0. We'd already built up some strength by climbing on top rope for the previous two months, but it wasn't enough. We could barely make the first move on any bouldering route, which typically has low holds, forcing a person to sit on the floor (or very close to it) and, using more upper body than lower, pull themselves up to the next hold.
Weeks later, when we finally accomplished our first V0, my climbing partner and I immediately decided that now we could handle a V1.
Wrong again.
This time, it took us about a month and a half, climbing 3-4 times a week. It was longer for our first V2. Progress was slow. When we asked friends at the gym why we were so stunted, they described the progression of bouldering grades as an "exponential growth,” that is, at least twice as hard as the last grade.
For the common climber, and especially one who doesn't have the advantage of height, every new grade advancement in bouldering will take a lot of time. In our rush and desire to improve, it is easy to forget this simple principle – it takes time to achieve each new grade.
Sometimes we also have unrealistic expectations that once we are climbing at a certain grade, improvement will become easier. It doesn't.
Because advancing grades is difficult and takes time, I have had to make mental shifts to keep me motivated. Here are a few ways I boost confidence:
- I remind myself that every time I get to a new level, it feels amazing.
- I try harder routes, even if it's just the first move, AND I view that as an accomplishment (rather than berate myself). Being able to stick the first 2 moves on a V5 when I was climbing at a V3 level was a great motivation to push myself harder. (Though, be careful with fingers in the beginning -- they'll be most prone to injury if pushed too hard, too quickly. The tendons in fingers need to build up strength gradually. If climbing at a V1 level, be careful when sticking fingers in small pockets of any harder grade.)
- I tried different route styles. I'm not as tall or as strong as most of the friends I climb with regularly. Due to this, I tend to rely more heavily on technique and my favorite route styles focus on balance and exact foot and body placement. I know which types of routes I have a better chance of completing, but I will branch out beyond that, even if they initially crush my confidence. Admittedly, I sometimes struggle on routes 1-2 grades less than what I regularly climb if the move is really high, strong, or requires a dyno. (I'm terrified of dynos. I'm working on that, though.)
- I remind myself why I love climbing. On days where I'm reading about 14-year old Ashima Shiraishi getting her first V15, I just have to remind myself: I climb because I love the puzzle of figuring out how to get to the next move and, eventually, the next level. It may take me a long time, but as long as I'm having fun, it doesn't really matter.