I’ve just fallen in love with the concept of training. I don’t enjoy training…yet. And yikes, if you know me, you know that’s a crazy sentence. Like Spenser mentioned in the last post, we’ve been in Colorado over two months. Since being in Colorado, Spenser and I have kicked up our training several notches. Through this, I’ve realized that my quit threshold is extremely low…
Pat Goodman exhibiting a high quit threshold while giving his all on the crack machine at Summit Strength Training (photo courtesy of Brad Jackson). I’m not looking to get into crack climbing, but I want to learn how to try that hard!
What is a quit threshold, you ask? I see it as the moment you lose your “grrr,” when you stop trying hard. It’s completely psychological. You could do one, two, or even three more push-ups/crunches/squats, but you choose not to. You essentially give up. You know that the extra effort won’t kill you, so why do you stop? The negative impact is not solely felt in your training, this attitude will eventually permeate throughout all your actions. It could mean that you will not make that last move on the climb you’ve been projecting, or that you will lack the mental gumption to study hard for class that you need to excel in.
So here we are. In Colorado, surrounded by ridiculously strong climbers. Living with Brad Jackson, a training master. He knows how to train smart, not just hard. So…exactly why are we not taking FULL advantage of this? When this realization finally hit me, I felt like quite a bonehead.
Brad Jackson dead lifting his way to glory at Summit.
The past 2 months have been the most active months in my entire life. Hiking to and from Rocky Mountain National Park, at high altitude, training hard…but not hard enough. There’s still a ton of other things that seem to get in the way – selling the trailer, keeping up with the social media (blog, Facebook), and climbing. I have realized that climbing is not enough, I HAVE to train my antagonistic muscles if I am going to improve my climbing and even survive as a climber long-term.
Making the hike to Upper Chaos. Thankfully, it’s gotten exponentially easier – I actually look forward to it now!
This brings up The Pain Box. Spenser sent me this CrossFit article, and although I am completely skeptical of CrossFit, this article is applicable to anyone and everyone. The concept of pain and pleasure reallocation is quite simple, albeit easier written down rather than applied.
You have a fixed quantity of “pain,” but the divider in the middle of the box can move. Do you want more of your pain to come from sacrifice and hard work or from, as the author of the article puts it, sucking.
Same goes for pleasure:
Much of the pleasure in your life comes from making a choice between the superficial thrills associated with “guilty pleasures” (you know what they are for you!) and a deeper pleasure from true gratification and/or fulfillment.
I am currently unable, let’s be honest, unwilling to give up certain guilty pleasures of my own, such as Breaking Bad. Nonetheless, this is a great concept to keep in mind when making choices.
Training is helping me raise my quit threshold and move my pain and pleasure boxes in the right directions…one more push-up and Russian twist at a time. I’ll be learning throughout this process and keeping y’all as updated as possible.
Hard work paying off – me sending my second V5 EVER this past Sunday at Emerald Lake! Zack in for the spot, helping me keep it together at the top 🙂
While we’ve been haphazardly training since settling in Fort Collins, today Brad, Spenser and I sat down to create a set training plan with a goal – crush to the best of our limits at the ABS 14 Regional Championships at Miramont North in Fort Collins, just 10 days away. Updates will be coming with our exact training and fitness plans! If anyone has any favorite training tricks or tips, please share them!
As Brad puts it, if you’re not strong, you’re f***ing weak.
So…let’s get strong!!
Brad Jackson and Adam Papilion taping up while mentally preparing to take on the crack machine.
Awesome post Vicky! I know exactly what you’re talking about. I’ve lost a lot of that grrrr since we got back from the road trip. Climbing in the gym just isn’t the same anymore. I’ve got the post-road trip blues. Living on the road had spoiled me and I find it harder to get psyched now, which is such a bummer. I gotta keep this in mind the next time I go to the gym.
Thanks, Emily! There’s nothing like another little trip to help revive your psych, no? 😉 I hope you get your grr back ASAP, but sometimes you just need a break! Would love if our paths can cross and we could finally climb together soon!!