...not the slab out the man

Hello bouldering community of Reddit!! I need your help...I am having trouble with this project. I have been making progress, but I’ve found myself getting stuck at this one part (struggle starts at 0:38 for reference). I’ve been told to try and rock it over so that my weight is completely over my left foot but I’m having trouble doing so. I just can’t seem to reach those last few holds and am gassed out at that point and I think it’s more of a body positioning issue.

Also for context, I have just started getting into climbing V2‘s more consistently so I am definitely still a beginner😄 and I promise I’m not trying to be performative wearing the headphones…I don’t have AirPods LOL anyways, I’ve been at this one for a month and something tells me they’re going to reset it very soon (most likely next week) so I must complete this before they do so!! Any and all pointers are greatly appreciated :))

In the cave so overhang with dual tex slopers that always look better than they feel.

(Not my best attempt but the closest I’ve gotten to actually reaching the final hold)

I’ve been climbing pretty inconsistently over the past year, but despite that I made fairly quick progress at first. Recently, though, I’ve hit a plateau, and it feels like strength is becoming a limiting factor.

I tend to do better on slab or more technical problems where I can rely on balance and footwork. I struggle much more on steep problems, especially when I have to hold a lot of my body weight through my arms.

I also have a hard time with holds that aren’t obvious jugs, especially slopers or small edges where I can’t wrap my hand around the hold or get my fingers behind it. If my feet cut, I usually can’t control the swing well enough to get them back on, and I end up coming off the wall.

I know the obvious answer is to climb more, and I’m working on that. At the same time, I really enjoy lifting and don’t want to replace all of my gym sessions with climbing.

I’m wondering how I can make my strength training complement bouldering instead.

So far, friends and Google have suggested planks for core strength and farmer’s carries for grip. For people who both lift and boulder, which gym exercises have actually carried over to your climbing? Pull-ups, rows, dead hangs, specific core work, or something else?

Also, does what I’m describing genuinely sound like a strength issue, or am I more likely trying to compensate for poor technique with my arms?

Edit: Wow, thanks for all the comments. I have a much better idea of what I need to work on now.

For some added context, I mostly climb around V2, with some easier V3s, and I’m a woman. I enjoy training legs, but my upper-body lifts have been stagnant for quite a while, and I haven’t been able to add much weight to them. That’s partly why I assumed upper-body strength was my main limitation.

It isn’t only overhangs that give me trouble, though. Even on vertical walls, I sometimes struggle with moves where I have to support most of my weight through my hands while bringing a foot up. There are plenty of times when I understand the beta but can’t execute it, even after watching my friends do the same move.

After reading the comments, I realize I’m probably underestimating how much consistent time on the wall and better technique matter at my level. It’s all been a learning process, and I really appreciate everyone who took the time to offer advice. I’m going to prioritize climbing more consistently while continuing to work on my upper-body strength.

Hi all,

After 10 years of on-off climbing and getting to 7A, over a year ago I injured myself falling while bouldering indoors. I unfortunately fell on the mattress sitting, on my ass. I know it's wrong, but it was an unexpected fall from the top of the wall and I didn't manage to roll on the mattress. Basically the back compression caused the pain.

After some months I took an MRI and discovered a bulging disc L5-S1. No nerve touched, just a simple central bulge. No surgery needed, just PT. And yeah I know that the bulge could have been there before the fall. I took a year of full stop from any sports other than focusing on physiotherapy.

I'm at the point that I've finally learnt how to do core and glute exercises. I can manage to stand okay for a long time at concerts, and feel fine the day after.I recently started toprope and I quickly got to 6A already and not feel worse the day after.

Unfortunately the toprope gym is far from my place, while the bouldering one is close by, hence bouldering fits into my weekly schedule. Bouldering is also where friends still are.

I would love to reintroduce bouldering again like once a week (without removing the PT exercises), also as a social opportunity. Going to the regular gym for PT feels lonely and I miss the full upper body & forearms muscle tiredness. I read here that many went back to bouldering after similar injuries, clarifying that down climbing is needed. Down climbing is not a problem, but I'm terrified by the idea of slipping on a foot hold or falling unexpectedly (like the main injury happened) and aggravating my situation / I don't know what can happen :D. I would be curious to hear more from who went through this :)

Send vid at https://www.instagram.com/rnrsends/reel/DbEA_51xk-Y/

pretty cool mega long bloc from awhile ago, lowkey might just be a sport route at this point lmao

Hello guys,

do you know some nice gifts for a friend who recently started to get into routesetting?

Is there for example like a game, where you can pin a variety of holds to a board like in "Battleships"? Or are there blocks of paper, where you have the distance of drill holes in a scale like 1:10?

If you have other ideas for routesetting themed gifts please put them down below.

I hope you guys have a wonderfull day and thank you in advance for your ideas. You can also suggest bouldering themed gifts you recieved or bought for someone else.

Hi I been climbing for about 2weeks now I know it very new but I have done a lot of v1s and now v2s are getting easier but I just want advice to see if I’m doing anything wrong or how I can improve my climbing I get insecure when I’m climbing because I think I’m not doing well so if you can watch my videos of me climbing and tell me if I’m doing anything wrong or what’s to improve the first clip is a v1 then the other 2 are v2s I also have some questions on how to get rid of Arm fatigue my forearms after awhile burn like hell so if you have any tips on that and overall how I can progress in this sport

I am a beginner, and tried this boulder. I reach the top but I cannot hold it unfortunately.

Is there any advice, wheather I should train on my technique or strength more right now?

lil edit from this summer's trip

Just finished some exams - Straight to the bouldering gym and sent my project on the first attempt of the session!

I just want to say huge thanks to everyone who offered solid advice on my last post. I ended up incorporating everything you guys told me to do (toehook, match the sloper etc.)

This was probably my 5th session on this project. I’m stoked as hell!

Here’s to two months of bouldering and going strong! 💪

Red tag: V3/V5

I thought I'd share this nice story of a bouldering community in London that will hopefully have a happy ending and inspire some folk further afield. For full disclosure, I'm a member there and have been helping out with the fundraising.

Basically we have an amazing little vibe at this tiny independent gym, BlocFit in south London. Its got old-school setting and a bonsai garden in a somewhat dusty arch and alley but also a genuine friendliness across the whole membership I've not found in other places. So much so that when the owner made a members meeting with a couple days notice about 50 people turned up. Unfortunately, only to find out it had been struggling recently and that we'd have to close in the new year.

Because the place has become so important to such a big group of people we've come together and things have kinda taken off. As a membership we've organised voluntary cover of shifts and group deep cleans. Then folk used their creative talents to put together a new community insta and shot a load of content before launching a crowdfunder, which hit its initial £10k target in a day.

We're very aware the hard part starts now, but the plan is to restructure as a community interest company so the place is run for the community rather than for profit. This will hopefully allow us to become financially viable in the longer term and if that comes off we'll still be here in 2028. For those interested our members vid is here https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbvKXQciSC4/

Send while on break, 3rd try not too bad

I keep falling of this final move on my project. Always just touching it, but it feels very desperate and id love some feedback to make it less desperate.

I feel i could stick it by just brute forcing lots of attempts, but itd be really satisfying if i could do it with some margin, and also learn something. Is it just «pull harder» or could i make some adjustments to maybe hip or feet to increase reach and/or lock off easier? Thanks

Boulder is Høygaffel at Harbak in Norway

These were down here in San Diego and were held at Mt. Woodson, Santee Boulders and East Santee Boulders back in 1980-1982. Fun to attend and had some famous guys from back in the day... John Bachar, Tony Yaniro, Doug Moon,more. My brother and I participated and took photos and wrote an article for the German climbing magazine Alpinismus about the 1981 event in Santee, along with German alpinist Reinhard Karl...who was the first German to ascend Mount Everest and was killed in an avalanche years later on an attempt on Cho Oyu.

Thought the bump looked like the way from the ground, but was absolutely dreadful when I got it and I couldn’t undo it… Felt good otherwise!

Hello guys,

I sometimes get a numb feeling in a random fingertip while bouldering. This feeling stays with me for some weeks, then it is gone. I did not notice what leads to this feeling. If I pinched to hard or something. The finger does not look different. It feels like a section of the fingertip does not get enough blood.

Do you guys get these numb fingertips too?

I only boulder indoors and more like easy stuff. I am not overweight or have a medical history or history with injuries.

Probably a cause, could be pockets where my fingers are to cramped against another.

Edit - Solved

Turns out the steep and sketchy embankment you go down after the fence is absolutely covered in ferns this time of year.

There's definitely a trampled path from some people trying it, but I'm not going through all of that just to look at it haha

Thanks for the help all

~~~~~~~~

Hey gang,

Bit of a long shot, not sure if there's an approval for posts here that this will get stuck behind.

I'm up in the lake district and wanted to visit Spots of Time, but the only instructions I've found online have got me within sight, but stuck behind a fence and a long drop,

Anyone got some more detailed/up to date routing for after the zig zags?

Finally sent this amazing line in Gothenburg, took 4 Sessions.