The TrainingBeta Podcast: A Climbing Training Podcast

TBP 279: Overcoming Fear of Climbing Above Bolt - A Mindset Coaching Session

In this episode I do a full mindset coaching session with Nathaniel Lamont, a Canadian climber whose performance is being affected by his fear of falling above his bolt while lead climbing. This is such a common issue among climbers, so if you or someone you know struggles with this, please listen to this one!
We go through the reasons he’s afraid, we acknowledge and validate those reasons, and I help him figure out ways he can feel more in control of the controllables (who his belayer is, what device they’re using, what climbs he chooses to get on, etc.).
Then we make a plan to work through some of his fear with strategic fall practice. He outlines what he thinks is realistic for him and I give him some clear guidelines for how to implement it in his sessions.
I really hope you enjoy this one – I loved doing this session with Nathaniel and really appreciated his willingness to be honest and vulnerable in front of thousands of people on the podcast.
If you’d like to watch this interview on video with no ads, no intro, and no outro, you can become a member on Patreon for $5/month to get that and other bonus content.
Work with Me on Your Fear in Climbing
If you want to work on your fear with me one-on-one, I’m accepting 6 new clients to do 3 months of work (6 sessions) on all things climbing. But we’ll also branch out into other areas of your life you want to work on, including:
Career satisfaction
Relationship issues
Body image
Life design
All things climbing
I’ve been climbing for 27 years, and I feel uniquely qualified to act as both your coach (asking you questions only you know the answers to) AND your mentor (giving you advice) in climbing. I am a Certified Professional Coach and will hold a safe space for you to explore your thoughts and feelings about any topic you want to discuss. We will make goals for each session, and I’ll hold you accountable to carrying out the homework I give you during each session. I’m really looking forward to working with you!
Work with Me on Fear 

TBP 278: Using Zen Philosophy for Performance Anxiety, Fear, and Grief with Francis Sanzaro

Francis Sanzaro is a 45-year-old climber out of Carbondale, Colorado who's been climbing for about 30 years. He got his PhD in the Philosophy of Religion and has been studying the practice of Zen for decades. In recent years, he started applying Zen more directly and intentionally to his climbing and found that his performance and his enjoyment of the sport increased dramatically, so he wrote a book about it: The Zen of Climbing. I HIGHLY recommend the book! 
I had him on the show to discuss the book and to have him tell us exactly what it means to apply Zen philosophy to your climbing. It's not complicated and you can start using these principles right away. What I took from the book is that I don't have to have as many emotions about climbing as I think I do. All I'm doing is trying my best to get to the top of a climb, and that's all it really needs to be. 
What we talked about:
What Zen is as it relates to climbing
How to use Zen with performance anxiety
How to practice Zen in everyday life
Dealing with failure using Zen practices
Dealing with FEAR using Zen
Using Zen in his grief process after (and during) losing both of his parents recently

TBP 277: Climbing Sessions to Train Power Endurance, Endurance, and Strength

Coach Matt Pincus discusses some drills he uses with his clients and himself to train the different energy systems in climbing: power endurance, strength, and endurance. 
More Details:
Overview of the energy systems
Differences between practice sessions and performance sessions
Sample sessions
Power endurance session
Endurance Session
Strength/Power Session
When you'd want to train each of these energy systems
How many sessions you'd want to do of each 
When to do them in conjunction with each other

TBP 276: Ashley Hardy on Climbing 5.13c with No Gym, No Training, & a Full-Time Job

Ashley Hardy is a friend of mine who lives in Boulder and just climbed her first 5.13c, a stout climb called "Choose Life" in the Flatirons. The reason I asked her to be on the show is that I find her situation to be both relatable and inspirational. The relatable part is that she has a full-time job as a software engineer and that she climbs with her husband, and she really REALLY loves climbing. 
The inspirational part is that despite working full-time, she manages to climb outside 3-4 days per week for a lot of the year. And she doesn't train in any conventional ways (hangboarding, strength training, board climbing, etc). She just goes outside and climbs on routes that challenge her and has steadily worked up to 5.13c doing it.
I really liked this conversation and I think Ashley has a lot to teach us about how to pursue your passions and goals despite limited time and energy. 
What we talked about:
Why she loves climbing so much and whether she ever gets burnt out
How she fits outdoor climbing in with her work schedule
Why she feels she needs more rest than other people and how much that is
How she overcame the fear caused by a dangerous fall on her 5.13c
How she works on her fear on a regular basis
How she's gotten so strong mostly climbing outside
How she and her husband keep their climbing relationship healthy
Advice for people trying to break into the 5.13 grade

TPB 275: Fundamentals of Strength Training for Climbing with Matt Pincus

Coach Matt Pincus discusses the fundamentals of using weight lifting as a training strategy for climbing. He prescribes weight training to almost all of the athletes he coaches, and he wanted to make it more approachable and understandable to our audience.
More Details:
Why Strength Train?
Why consistency is more important than improving your numbers
How (and why) to make it supplemental to your climbing and not the main focus
Tips for getting started
Movement patterns to focus on
Using progressions and regressions to fit your level
Learning to calibrate your sessions to your body’s current state
Sample Strength Training Sessions
Find the sample strength training session at www.trainingbeta.com/media/matt-strength

TBP 274: Dr. Stacy Sims on Climbing Training and Nutrition for Aging Women

Stacy Sims, MSC, PHD, is a well-known exercise physiologist and nutrition scientist who has done groundbreaking research and education for women in athletics. Dr. Sims has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers and several books and is a regularly featured speaker at professional and academic conferences, including those by USOC and USA Cycling.
Stacy currently holds a Senior Research Associate position with SPRINZ- AUT University, supervises PhD students, writes academic papers, and is on the advisory board of some cutting-edge companies, including Tonal Strength Institute, WILD.AI, and EXOS. She also has her own business (www.drstacysims.com), creating and delivering online learning material focused on women training with their physiology across the lifespan.
I highly recommend her book Roar, which first introduced me to the differences in women's vs men's needs in sports performance. It was mind-blowing, honestly, and so validating to learn that a lot of what we've been taught about exercise science doesn't really apply to women. After all, the research was mostly done on men, and that is what Dr. Sims is trying to change. 
I was honored to sit down with Stacy to talk about some really important topics for perimenopausal and menopausal women, and all females in general. She really knows her stuff and speaks quite scientifically, so I asked her a lot of clarifying questions so we can all make use of the information she provided. I hope you enjoy this one! 
What we talked about:
The real journey she had with menopause herself
Why running stopped working for her body and what she did instead
An optimal training schedule for peri- or menopausal females
Cortisol differences as we age and what it does to our bodies
How estrogen plays into aging and athleticism
Which exercises are best for energy levels and body composition for menopause
The all importance of sleep for aging women
Carbs and menopause
Caffeine for menopause
Intermittent fasting?
Which supplements are worth it

TBP 273: Route Projecting Tactics for an Efficient Sending Season

Coach Matt Pincus discusses some very detailed rock climbing projecting tactics to make your process more efficient. He goes over why you'd use a top-down vs ground-up approach, why you might want to use both of them, and when each is appropriate. This is for you if you want to hear from a 5.14/V12 climber about how he gets projects done and how he advises his clients to get theirs done. You can sign up to work with Matt as your coach at www.trainingbeta.com/matt.  

TBP 272: Charlie Schreiber Coaches Me on My Climbing and Training

Charlie Schreiber is a climbing coach at ParadigmClimbing.com who was recently on the show. After that episode was done recording, we decided we should do a coaching session with him as my coach! 
So we recorded it right then and there, which was a couple months ago. In the session, he asked me a lot of clarifying questions to figure out how to create a training program for me, which he did the day after this conversation (links below to see that program).  
What we talked about:
My goals with climbing
My experience with training - what has worked and not worked
My weaknesses and strengths
What I WANT to be climbing
How to get me to 5.13c again
What holds me back in my climbing
How my age (46) plays into my goals
How my height has informed my climbing
My Training Program from Charlie
Charlie created a detailed training program for me with some educational content included in it. He sent them in google docs that are freely available:
Neely Quinn's Spring/Summer Training Program #1
Neely Quinn's Supplemental Training Program #1
 

TBP 271: How to Get Out of a Motivational Slump - Coach Alex Stiger

Coach Alex Stiger describes a 3-month slump she was in, how she methodically got out of that slump, and how she coaches her clients to get re-motivated when they've lost their psych for climbing. 

TBP 270: Sport Psychology Coach on How to Foster a Growth Mindset in Youth and Adult Climbers

Zoe Sayetta is a youth and adult climbing coach in New York and she has her masters in sport psychology. She loves working with youth, especially on their mindset, and she has a private practice as a sport psychology coach for youth and adults. I asked her to be on the show so we could talk about the most common things she sees in her team and her clients and how she helps them all have a healthier, more productive mindset in climbing.
Here’s what we talked about:
How to foster growth mindset vs fixed mindset
How to deal with emotional regulation in teens
How to teach kids (or anyone) to try hard
Productive vs unhealthy self-talk
How to coach someone to want success but not identify with it
Social comparison
Imposter syndrome
Using visualization for physical and emotional practice
Lots more