New Blog Post on RCTM.com

[MarkAnderson]

A while back somebody suggested that I post a link to new blog posts since astonishingly some of you don't read our blog  

So...there is a new blog post: Delivered From Purgatory

This one talks about the hateful pain of extended redpoint campaigns, and the use of Non-Linear Periodization within the Rock Prodigy program to extend a performance peak.  And some other filler nonsense.

[jessebruni]

Nicely done and congratulations on the FA! It sounds like a beautiful route. I honestly have to say that the biggest selling point of the RPTP (to me) is that the authors are drinking the kool-aid along with everyone else. I think that sets it apart from every other training program out there. Not only do you guy's believe in your method, (as opposed to just selling it for a profit) but you've used it time and again to consistently provide results in your own climbing as evident by this this ascent.

[Jon]

I really appreciate the fact that you discussed the fact that you experimented with block periodization to keep your power up to send the route. I know both you and Mike are strong proponents for your linear periodization methods, with great results to show for it, but I always believe there are multiple ways to achieve athletic success and different plans fit best at different times. Thanks for sharing.

[MarkAnderson]

Thanks Jon!

I really don't believe the RP method is linear periodization. I definitely agree there are many paths to success and different approaches are called for at different times, which is why we've been incorporating NLP for many years. Somewhere along the line the RPTM got labeled as LP, and it's been hard trying to shake that label, but I think if you read the book carefully (page 80 comes to mind  ) you will see that it's a bit more complex than that.

[MarkAnderson]

Mar 11, 2015 8:53:10 GMT -7 jessebruni said:

I honestly have to say that the biggest selling point of the RPTP (to me) is that the authors are drinking the kool-aid along with everyone else. I think that sets it apart from every other training program out there. Not only do you guy's believe in your method, (as opposed to just selling it for a profit) but you've used it time and again to consistently provide results in your own climbing as evident by this this ascent.

Thanks Jesse, we also think that sets us apart, but it's really re-assuring that others notice this too.

[jonfrisby]

Awesome post man! I saw your mention in R&I and Climbing - nice!!! I totally agree with Jesse - when folks at the gym ask me what I'm up to and whether it works, I tell them that the guys who designed my program climb hard and are regular dudes, which has definitely lent credibility

[Jon]

Hello Mark,

I agree that the RP method isn't completely linear in periodization, but is more so than a majority of the other programs out there. At any rate, I do like the fact that you guys practice what you preach and are still experimenting to find the best possible solutions to improving your performance. I value that as a reader of your blog/forum comments.

I personally tend to cycle on an off between slight modifications of your program and Bechtel's programs, depending on mood, goals and time of year.

Thanks for your contributions to the climbing community!

[MarkAnderson]

That's a great approach Jon. I think a lot of people (myself included) tend to forget the importance of experimentation. If we all do the same thing all the time, we'll never learn anything new.

[jcm]

Another interesting thing that this route / blog post highlights is the ongoing resurgence that is happening in Clear Creek Canyon.  It seems like CCC doesn't always get the respect it deserves.  I always viewed it this way: it may be just a mediocre locals-only sport crag, but it is a really good mediocre locals-only sport crag.  It also now has a collection of 5.14s that, in quantity at least, rivals almost any other US sport crag.

Lastly, if any area should be tapped out by now, it should be Clear Creek, given the number of strong and motivated climbers who live within 45 minutes of there.  If Clear Creek can keep giving great new routes, then this is surely possible in many other areas that you might otherwise think to be totally picked over as well.

[heelhook]

Hey MarkAnderson, thanks for sharing the blog post, really cool to read the story. I see you mention you like cold weather for hard climbing, which I often hear people manifest that preference too. My question:

How the f do you guys do it?!!!

I can't, for the life of me, climb on cold weather, my hands get really really cold when on the rock and I lose all sensitivity in my hands, so I end up with less precision in my accuracy and less strength (it seems like my hands just open-up when they are too cold).

I've tried warming up and even stopping mid-route in my warm up route during cold days to warm up my hands with breath or putting my hands under the armpit but still!

Any tips???

Thanks!

[joev9]

Hey heelhook, here's some info I wrote long ago on my website for bouldering in the winter: www.newenglandbouldering.com/new-england-bouldering-blog/2015/1/29/throwback-thursday-winter-bouldering

The main key is to start warm and stay warm. Way better to overdress and have to remove layers, than to get cold. Once I get cold, I can't really warm up again. I blast the heat in my car on the way to climbing and try to stay as warm as I can. Another key is to "acclimatize" your hands to the cold rock. Even if it just means touching some holds, warming up your hands, repeatedly until you can take the cold.

Getting ready to head out in 25F weather in a few minutes, can't wait for the prime sending conditions!!!

[MarkAnderson]

Ya, what Joe said, you pretty much just have to train yourself to tolerate it, and this will be a many-year process. One thing that really helps is ARCing. If you do enough ARCing it will substantially improve the blood flow to your forearms, hands and fingers, and that will help keep them warm. Icing can help, but really you just need to get your hands really cold a lot (but not to the point that you get frostbite). If you live in a warm place like Spain, that will be tough to do, but take advantage of any opportunity to get outside in cold weather, and resist the urge to wear gloves when you're trying to acclimate your hands.

Once you are generally acclimated to cold weather, you will have to re-acclimate every year. When winter is approaching I make a point to go for a walk first thing in the morning, when it's the coldest, without gloves. It's still pretty rough the first few times out in January, but eventually my hands get used to it again. Now I have the opposite problem, 50 degrees is too hot!

[Chris W]

I train in my barn, and if it's 5 degrees outside, it's probably 10 in the barn. I wear pants, a long sleeve fleece shirt, hat and down jacket with the hood on. I put a hand warmer in my chalk bag. I try to ARC on my vertical wall for 10 minutes. It's soul-crushingly cold and my fingers are so cold they hurt at the end of that 10 minutes. Sometimes I only last 5. After that, I warm up my hands and feet in front of a little propane heater for 5 minutes, which gets the blood flowing again. If I'm outside, I do the same thing except use hand warmers in my pockets in the place of my propane heater.

After my painful "warm up" and subsequent 5 minutes of rewarming, I can tolerate the same bitter cold temps without any trouble for a full ARC set. Wind makes all this harder. Like Mark and Joe, I just get used to it.

I'm in the same boat as Mark now though; normal human temps feel a bit warm for me.

[MarkAnderson]

Wow man, I thought my barn was cold! We have gotten as low as -20 at my place, but my barn is insulated and not super big (the floor is 12'x24'), so a single 1500W space heater is enough to make a difference. On the coldest nights I have to run the heater all night for a session the next day, but if I do I can usually get it into the 20's or 30s even on the coldest days. For Limit Bouldering ~35 seems to be ideal, but I campus better towards ~45.

How big is your barn? Have you considered insulating it, or at least part of it?

[Chris W]

So the barn (cleverly named "The Barn") has a floor space of 24' x 24'. Half of this is used for training, the other half for workshop space. From floor to rafter beams is 10' and from floor to the roof peak is 15'. The roof has a thin sheet of insulation on the inside, which is kind of like heavy duty bubble wrap sandwiched between two space blankets. I've thought about insulating it but am not sure what kind of difference it would make. I would also have to price out the materials.

I've looked into different heater options. A big propane heater would probably be the best option for generating heat, but all of them seem to go through propane pretty fast. It's also a wet heat thanks to combustion. I remember my dad piping in natural gas from an oil well growing up into his workshop. He ran it into a wall heater. Granted, it came straight from the ground, but it generated so much moisture the walls and windows would sweat.

I could use a big garage style electric heater, but they are expensive.

Ultimately your suggestion, to insulate the barn, sounds like the best one. Fortunately, it's only (usually) super cold in January and February here (Wrightsville PA). I often have to train at 04:30 (little kids and tired wife at home), which is why it can be so cold. The hardest workouts for me in the cold are the ARC workouts. I can tolerate the bouldering, hangboarding, campusing and power endurance in almost any temp, so long as I have my little Mr Buddy heater near by to warm my hands between sets.