Tag Page Sport

#Sport
Jessie

Climb Smarter: Foot First, Then Hands

Ever try to high-step mid-route, only to feel totally stuck? You tell yourself your hips aren’t flexible enough. But the problem might not be mobility—it might be timing. New climbers (myself included) tend to follow one rule: Get your hands secure first. It feels safer. But here’s what happens— You grab the next handhold, your body stretches out, and suddenly… your foot won’t go where you need it. Why? Because when your body is fully extended, your hip joint locks up. Biomechanically, you lose range of motion: a straight posture gives you ~90° of hip flexion. A slightly bent posture—hips sunk, arms soft—gives you over 120° to work with. That’s the difference between getting your foot on and getting shut down. So here’s the better habit: Foot first. Then hand. Before reaching up, bend your arms slightly. Sink your hips like you’re sitting into the wall. Then step high. Then shift weight. Then reach. It’s not about brute flexibility. It’s about keeping the body loaded but mobile. Like a bowstring—tense, but not locked. What’s a tiny movement habit that made a huge difference in your climbing? #sport #climbing #techniquematters

Climb Smarter: Foot First, Then Hands
Jessie

The Grip Decides Everything

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about control. Specifically, hand control. As my climbing has progressed, one truth has become obvious: If your hand can’t hold the grip, you don’t move. No matter how strong or smart the beta—if the hold isn’t secure, your body knows. It won’t commit. That’s when hips swing out. Or fingers peel. Or both. So what actually helps you control a hold? I see two big factors: 1️⃣ Raw capacity: strength and endurance in the forearms, fingers, and tendons. 2️⃣ Body mechanics: technique, joint mobility/stability, proprioception—aka how you move and feel. You can climb decently with just ①. Strong beginners do it all the time—pure brute force gets them to the chains. But when ① hits a wall, ② becomes essential. Technique exists to put your center of mass in a better place—and sometimes, to help your legs carry the load your fingers can’t. That might mean flagging, twisting, or cutting loose—not to relieve the hands, but to trust them better. A few reflections on the moving parts: • Handwork: Crimp, pinch, open-hand, slap, press, push. • Footwork: Edge, smear, toe hook, heel hook, drop knee. • Mobility: Being able to high-step without lifting your shoulder? That’s leverage most people don’t train for. • Joint stability: Lets you hold tension and reduce unnecessary swings. • Body feel: Helps you know where the center of mass should be—before you even move. On core strength—what matters most is functional core stability. There’s general strength, and there’s sport-specific strength. For climbers, the wall trains both—especially on steep terrain. If you’re short on time, don’t over-focus on floor workouts. Just climb more, and smarter. The grip decides everything. But the rest of the body decides if the grip can hold. What made you realize “just getting stronger” wasn’t enough? #sport #climbing #controlfirst

The Grip Decides Everything
Jessie

Climbing Smoother: Learning to Switch Feet

Ask any beginner climber (including past me): Swapping feet should be easy—until you’re stuck mid-wall, heel dragging, toe fumbling, balance tipping. There are a dozen foot-switch techniques out there—hop-switch, smear-in, flag assist, cut-and-place. But flashy names don’t mean clean execution. After months of falling off simple transitions, I’ve learned three quiet rules that changed how I move: 1️⃣ Don’t switch if you don’t need to. Every foot swap adds risk. Ask yourself: can I flag or cross instead? Fewer moves = more stability. 2️⃣ Clear your line of sight. Step back slightly from the wall as you switch. It helps form a soft bow in the body and removes visual clutter between your eyes and the foothold. 3️⃣ Heel up, toe in. Lead with your toe, not your sole. Lift the heel to create space, slide the new foot in before removing the old one. No stepping on your own foot. No crowding the hold. It’s not just about balance—it’s about respect for timing and space. And sometimes, the smallest, cleanest foot swap is what keeps the whole climb flowing. What climbing move took you way too long to get right? #sport #climbing #techniquefirst

Climbing Smoother: Learning to Switch Feet
Jessie

The Power in a Bent Knee

I watched a climbing comparison video the other day: one year vs. six years. The difference wasn’t power. It was space. The beginner’s movements were linear, direct. The veteran left room for tension to build—more angles, more options. It’s World Cup season, and I’ve been quietly studying Miho Nonaka’s style. She’s a master of drop knees. Not flashy, but efficient. That subtle twist—pulling the wall closer with your body instead of your hands—has become something I’m learning to rely on. At first, my hips refused to stay close. Gravity pulled me out. But I learned not to fight it. With more core, more footwork, it started to click. The drop knee became less of a move, more of a pause—where I could breathe, reset, and shift weight smartly. It also taught me this: Your feet will save you more often than your hands ever will. What’s one technique that quietly changed the way you climb? #sport #climbing #quietstrength

The Power in a Bent Knee
Jessie

From 5.9 to 5.13: One Year on the Wall

In a year, I went from barely trusting my feet on a 5.9 to clipping chains on a 5.13. Here’s what actually moved the needle—not just physically, but mentally. 1️⃣ Strength You don’t need to be a beast at one thing. You need to be average at everything. Shoulders, fingers, core, legs, endurance. The higher the grade, the smaller the holds. And the more body parts you can recruit, the easier it gets. I lifted for three years before climbing, and that base helped when I started pushing limits outside. 2️⃣ Technique Every route is a sequence of tiny problems. The more you climb, the more patterns you unlock. Body positioning, weight transfer, toe work, drop knees, deadpoints—they only come with volume. I’d break down hard routes into move-by-move micro-goals. Indoors, I’d train 5-hour sessions with no distractions. Outdoors? I climbed every single day. No rest days. Just reps. 3️⃣ Headspace Redpointing is mental. Some routes haunted me. I’d fall in the same spot, again and again, until I stopped believing I could top it. So I made rituals: breathing before cruxes, visualizing beta, drinking a Red Bull like it was a power-up. I’d talk to myself at the start hold—“You’ve done harder. Just climb.” 4️⃣ Strategy Read your route. Know your body. My finger strength’s decent, but my full-body power is better. So I’ll skip intermediate crimps and dyno to jugs. Pick problems that match your style. If you’ve got endurance, go for pumpy lines. If you’ve got raw power, find bouldery ones. Climbing isn’t just muscle—it’s pattern recognition. What’s one lesson climbing taught you that had nothing to do with strength? #sport #climbing #fromfeartoflow

From 5.9 to 5.13: One Year on the Wall
Jessie

Why My Arms Hurt While Others Keep Going

I used to wonder: why after two hours my arms feel like they’ll give out, while others climb for four or five? It wasn’t just strength. Turns out, as a beginner, I relied way too much on my arms and barely used my legs. I’d heard “don’t overuse your arms,” but didn’t know how to change that. One simple idea helped: bending my knees to bring my body closer to the wall. Suddenly, my legs weren’t just there—they started carrying me. Instead of hanging away from the wall, I learned to lean in, shifting my weight, pushing outward with my feet for better balance. That fourth climb felt different. My arms still tired, but my legs finally ached too—proof I was doing something right. It felt like becoming a cheetah, using every part of my body to move smarter, not just harder. What’s one technique that changed your climbing game? #sport #climbing #climbingtechnique

Why My Arms Hurt While Others Keep Going
Jessie

What No One Tells You About Your First Climbing Holds

I still remember freezing the first time I walked into a bouldering gym. Everyone else looked like they knew the wall. I didn’t even know what I was looking at. If that’s you too, here’s what I wish I had: a breakdown of the 6 most common holds and how to grip them. • Jugs: Deep, comfy—hold with your whole hand. Easy to love. • Pockets: One, two, or three fingers go in. Use middle and ring. • Slopers: No edges, just friction. Think palms, not fingers. • Pinches: Squeeze with thumb and fingers. Weird at first—gets better. • Crimps: Tiny edges. Three ways to grip: open, half, or full crimp. • Underclings: Grab from below and pull up. Straight arms help. Which one threw you off the most when you started? Let’s trade stories—drop it below. #sport #climbing #boulderingbasics

What No One Tells You About Your First Climbing Holds
Jessie

Why Do I Keep Swinging Off the Wall?

Ever start a layback and immediately feel like a revolving door? Yeah. Same. Here’s what’s happening: you grab that sidepull, maybe even match hands like a pro—thumb up, thumb down—but the second you weight it? Boom. You’re swinging out like the wall told you to get lost. It’s called “barn-dooring,” and it’s brutal. What causes it? Balance collapse. When your hands and feet are stacked in a straight vertical line on a sidepull, there’s nothing countering the rotational force. Your body pivots open. You’re not weak—you’re just missing leverage. The fix? Straighten up. Literally. Extend your arms and legs. It slows the rotation and pulls your center of gravity further from the wall, which increases friction and gives you control. Stop fighting the wall. Learn to lean with it. Let’s all retire from being automatic doors. Deal? #Sport #Climbing #ClimbingTechnique

Why Do I Keep Swinging Off the Wall?