Breaking the Climbing Fear Cycle
Leading rock climbs can be scary. When I'm scared I grip too hard. When I grip too hard I get tired. When I'm tired the climb is harder. Climbing hard can be scary. Let's discuss my strategy for breaking this cycle of fear.
When I'm lead climbing, especially a new-to-me route I have self-doubt and fear. Instead of letting the fear shut me down, I try to push it in the back of my mind. I try to harness the fear to sharpen my focus, not distract me from the climbing.
A few techniques for managing fear are:
- Practice falls: before you set off, decide whether you are trying to send or not, and take practice falls where it's safe to if not. This will help with trusting the bolts / trad placements.
- Don't look down: you're climbing, look at the rock! You can look at your feet. You can look at your last placement / bolt. You cannot look at the ground if you're scared, it never helps.
- Practice stoicism: your fear is a normal emotional response to being on your tip-toes on the side of a cliff. It's ok. But you can use your rational brain to acknowledge and then override that fear. "Let the fear pass like a train not stopping in the station."
- Build a pyramid of happy sends: develop a positive relationship with climbing. If every time you get on X-rated no-fall zones at your physical limit, you won't have a fun time climbing and develop negative subconscious associations. Climb easy routes. Smile. Your tick list should have a base of easy climbs, a decent amount of moderates, and a few that are at your limit, hence a "pyramid".
If done successfully, you can build a positive cycle when leading scary climbs, where you use the fear to get into a focus zone, start flowing, send, and feel proud of yourself! You got this!
New video · Friday, Jun 6 🎬
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