ROAP

This video is all about THE 3 MOST common mistakes we see when people are climbing (beyond footwork etc). It really is that common. IF you’ve era found yourself falling out from the wall whilst reaching in to catch a hold - you’ve made these mistakes. IF you’ve caught a hold and swung out...you’ve made these mistakes. We’ll go out there and say, you will have made these mistakes. IF you can address these errors and be conscious of them when performing larger and more dynamic rockers, you WILL see a huge improvement. The mistakes: 1. Climbers lock-off too much - throwing away so much potential energy. Their center of gravity (CoG) is too high and if they even make any sort of dynamic move, it will be short lived as their energy will then go out from the wall. This is the same with a poor set-up. We want linear power - and your CoG should start in the opposite position to the direction you are going in. To fix this, “allow the sails out”. Allow your bum to drop away and for your arms to go straight. We want bent legs and straight arms for maximal power. Initiate with your hips and drive up through the wall. 2. Climbers tend to initially have a lot of internal rotation with their feet. This pushes the foot to be front on. This will then push the knee into the wall as it will be bent due to the rockover. The bent knee means the bum will be pushed out. To fix this - make sure you focus on your inside edge being used and your knee will go over your toes along the contour of the wall, not into the wall. 3. The heel drops. Much of this is due to point 2, but often climbers are not placing enough emphasis on the pressure through the big toe. We need to lift our heels in order to help raise and engage our hips! Low heels mean the bum will also be pushed out further. Practice these steps one by one to focus on the different they can make. Film yourself from the side and you will notice a HUGE improvement. Good luck!#roapcoaching #climb #bouldering #climbing #trainingforclimbing

As climbers we often “muscle” our way up the wall, over-using strength and climbing not only defensively, but inefficiently. Try to generate momentum from the lower body, driving with the legs and hips. Dynamic movement is often more efficient! Go try and have fun!

Find trust small feet hard? If you have doubt, the last thing you want to do is tap those feet. Tapping unweights the foot, moves it about and makes it far more likely to slip or pop off. Instead, watch the part of your foot that you want to go onto the hold actually go onto the hold. Then apply pressure by weighting it. Then trust it and move! Perfect practice makes perfect. Go off and try it, apply it and stick to it! Thanks for watching :)

“Switching Gears” This is a term we’ve been using for years now to describe when we need to switch from high revving (trying hard) and cruising (relaxing). It’s something we see climbers not able to do. Often climbers will have to try a hard move (high revving) and then they stay in that gear (trying hard) for the remainder of that climb! Being able to recognize when to try hard and when to relax is so important and will help you be able to climb harder for longer! A 7min YouTube vid on this is out now, go check out our channel and let us know what you think? 🙏 Thanks to @hayden.nichole for the ✍️ and to @movementgymscolorado for hosting us at their Rino location, Denver! #climb #bouldering #roapcoaching #climbing #training

Shoulders are rapidly becoming the most injured part of a climber’s body (especially younger athletes). It used to be fingers and elbows, but with the style of indoor climbing changing we have to do better at looking after that floating joint. At first, these exercises should be stationary (isometric) and very controlled, but as you increase your exposure over time, these exercises should become more dynamic to best prepare the shoulder for what it’s going to do in a less controlled environment (climbing). Here we show you some of our favorite shoulder exercises (not that you should necessarily approach them in this order though): 1. Bar swings - you can start this by having two hands on the bar and releasing one hand. Shoulder should be engaged. But you can also jump into these as you build experience); 2. Bar catches -2 hands is fairly safe, 1 arm should be approached with caution; 3. Lock-offs (2 and 1 arm). Vary the angle( 4. Single-arm scap pulls; 5. Bodyweight and weighted single-arm bar hangs; 6. Overhead shoulder press (we love the Arnie variation); 7. Rotator cuff external and internal rotations; 8. Lying overhead lowers/overhead pulls; 9. Frontal and lateral raises Recommendations: Start with the isometric exercises. 5-10 secs Rpe 6-8/10 Rpe If you’re used to bar hangs and scap pulls, perhaps add the bar catches. Overhead press should be in most Climbers training schedule, as should frontal and lateral raises. 8-10 reps Rpe 7-8/10. X 3 sets Let us know if you’d add anything? #climb #bouldering #roapcoaching #climbing training

One of the best out there - Pinturas Buldestres 7C+/V10 🪐 One of the best boulders I’ve ever done, techy and powerful start onto some tricky foot moves and then a leap for the top 🔝. It doesn’t get much better than this 🫶 It feels like it’s been way too long since I’ve last been on a climbing trip. Thinking about nothing else but getting up and going climbing is the best thing in the world. Every year life gets busier and it’s easy to put off the things we enjoy most, so here is your reminder to go and do it. What a place to turn one year older 🎈 Supported by: @roap.c @lasportivauk @betaoutdoorsports #climb #bouldering #boulder #climber #climbing

If you climb a problem that is in the moderate to difficult range for you, how often do you try and repeat it using different beta or to perhaps even “break the beta”? Especially necessary for competition climbers, but also for any climber wanting to improve. By trying you are forcing yourself to think of other possible methods. This creates memory banks. Moves in the bank. Your body will remember specific climbing moves. Especially if they are unusual or interesting. You may fail, but you may also learn in the process. This is especially fun with friends. Try it next time you go to the gym! #roapcoaching #climb #bouldering #climbing

Do you find jumping into a pull-up easier than doing a strict pull-up? Of course you do. When most people climb, however, they perform almost every move as if they are performing a strict pull-up compared to a jumping one. The goal of technique is efficiency. We want to make every move and every climb feel as easy as possible. We always say ‘make that V5 feel like a V3 or V4, NOT like a V5 or even a V6!’ Our hips are such an important part of our body and neglected in climbing. Creating a momentary sag in order to thrust is far more efficient than locking-off, dragging feet and being static. Yes, there’s a time and a place for being delicate, completely in control and static (think techy slab), but for the most part, we can make every move feel a little easier with momentum. Initiate the move from your hips, not your arms. Here @alex_puccio89 shows you a drill in how to achieve that! The full video is live on YouTube now! Good luck trying and send us your attempts! Big thanks to @hayden.nichole for editing #climb #bouldering #roapcoaching #climbing #trainingforclimbing

Do you try to learn from your warm-ups? Most people don’t, they just burn through them trying to get to the “juicy” flashing and projecting. You’re missing out if so. We can learn so much below the threshold. Where we are not physically and mentally stressed. You can break down climbs into sections to really improve each move and each transition. You can add flow and efficiency. Over time, these efforts blend into your initial attempts. You will climb with more grace and efficiency without trying. Learn from trying (and filming), breaking sections down and attempting to iron out the flaws, then repeating as a whole!

What a hectic but great couple of weeks! Sheffield ➡️ London ➡️ Bristol ➡️ London ➡️Austria 🇦🇹 ➡️Poland 🇵🇱 Been squeezing in training wherever I can 🫶 Many Moons V11 ✅ Thanks @roap.c for helping me feel strong 🎥 @marcus.m.stirling (aka-markinibikini) Supported by: @roap.c @lasportivauk @betaoutdoorsports

When you are projecting, grades are super subjective. So don’t just put a “glass ceiling” on what you try just based on grades! Here @alex_puccio89 proves this point by flashing a V11 and struggling on a V8…styles, strengths and weaknesses all dictate this. We hear a lot of climbers say they don’t even try certain climbs in their gym because of the grade (could be one grade higher, or a milestone grade like V8). This will limit progression and your understanding of what is and is not possible in the now. #climb #bouldering #roapcoaching #climbing #training

Send your projects faster! Do you know how to visualize? There’s a lot of videos on YouTube telling you that you HAVE to do it, but not showing you how to start learning the process. This video addresses that and helps you learn the skill in bite sized chunks. 1. Unlike most technique drills, try it on harder climbs (for you). There are less beta options and therefore less chance to be confusing. 2. Climb the problem first…even if you fall multiple times. 3. Break the climb down into 2 or 3 sections. 4. Climb the first section, come down. Turn your back to the climb and see if you can remember firstly where all of the holds (for that section) are. 5. After you’ve done that fit each section, can you remember what you did? Picture the climb, try to “see” yourself climbing it. Turn around. Climb it and see if you were right? 6. Once you’ve done this for each section, rest for a few mins and see if you can do it for the entire climb. 7. Climb it and see if you were right? 8. Try to repeat in better style (no errors). Think about where you want your toes and hands go exactly on the holds. 9. Advancing this, think about your hip positioning, your toe orientation, knees etc. Try to see yourself climbing it in really good style, but be realistic. Try to think about how the holds “feel” in your hands etc. These latter steps are more advanced, so let the first 7 steps feel normal to you at first. 5min video now live on YouTube! Thanks for watching!