rebooting the system

After a long lay off from climbing - long for me anyway - there is only one way to find your form again. It's not about easing your body slowly into the climbing again, it's like stopping hiccups: a good sharp shock and your back to normal.

I went to the Climbing Works with Tom yesterday for just such a session. 3 and a half hours of climbing, trying the purple circuit (47 problems ranging from 6b - 7a+). By the end (well, the end for us! Around problem 41) just feeling the holds was an effort, and I was finding it difficult to articulate properly!

Complete power outage was probably achieved around problem 33. So there is my bench mark. Next session I'll do the circuit again (probably in reverse) and hope to get further round before my power fails me.

My weaknesses were very apparent:

• Finger Strength
• Power Endurance

So, after I've conditioned my body for climbing again with a couple of weeks of mammoth sessions like yesterday's, I will begin to address these weaknesses.

life gets in the way

I haven't climbed for about a month. University, job, weather, Christmas... all of this has got in the way of my climbing.

But. There is relief. I'm getting organised this year, so I will always have time to fit climbing in. I'm not that bothered about climbing indoors most of the time if it means when I get outdoors I am in good shape to crush.

There is talk of a return to Mallorca in September 2010. This is good news.