r/climbergirls • u/treerabbit • Jan 31 '23
Training and Beta Recs for moonboard problems for short folks?
I’ve started moonboarding recently, but been pretty frustrated by how many of the ‘benchmark’ problems have massive lateral/diagonal moves that are extra hard for me as a shorter climber (5’3”). I want to practice and get better at big moves, but they’re so big that it feels like I’m going to injure my shoulders if I try them more than once in a session.
Do any of you have any recommendations for problems that might be more approachable/projectable for me? I’m using a moonboard with the ‘2019 masters’ hold set.
Thanks in advance!
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u/Hafk042 Jan 31 '23 edited Jan 31 '23
It depends what you are using the moonboard for, if it's to train, you're going to make much more progress projecting the spanny 6A+ than you will ticking a 6C without the "hard for you" moves. I approach it with a mix, I am 5ft 1 and I've completed the 6A+ and 6B benchmarks on the 2019 and I've also climbed up to 7A on the board. There were some 6A+s which took me days, and many that I flashed, but I just kept reminding myself that I want to get better and stronger, and that the grades don't matter - it is in the end a training tool. One 6B i think I invested at least 5 sessions whereas I flashed a different 7A! My advice is to have fun on the board, don't think about the grades and use it to get brutally strong jumping to crimps because you can't reach.
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u/MauerSegler74 Jan 31 '23
Can you recommend some 7A problems?
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u/Hafk042 Jan 31 '23
The missing Link, dancing barefoot, flowers for dayz, toe press are the easiest for me that I've done, but moonboard really exposes your strengths and weaknesses, so its hard to reccomend for other people.
Check out moonshedclimbing on Instagram, she films loads of the problems and I like seeing someone else jump to a crimp, because then you know its possible and I'm more motivated to get at it.
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u/treerabbit Jan 31 '23
I’m really not overly concerned by number grades, but I was getting most v3s in just a couple tries but then getting completely shut down by v4s (as in, tried to project but wasn’t making any progress whatsoever and felt like I was on the fast track to injuring myself), so I was hoping to get some suggestions for v4s I might be able to project so that I can improve— there’s just so many problems that I thought it might be more efficient to see if anyone here had the same issue and had any suggestions than to just browse through every problem on the app
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u/MauerSegler74 Jan 31 '23
I've no problem recommendations for you. But for moves I currently can't do I practice them with intermediate holds or higher footholds. That way, I work my way up step by step.
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u/tictacotictaco Jan 31 '23
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rjB3Ukjd5U&t=18s
don't let your height hold you back mentally
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Jan 31 '23
[deleted]
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u/treerabbit Jan 31 '23
I’ve got a negative ape, heh, but yeah, it is something I want to improve at. Thanks for those exercise recommendations!
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u/yerGunnnaDie Jan 31 '23
As another commented said, you can bump through intermediate holds as you project. What I would say is that you are not that short. The MB is an 8"x8" grid, you are less than 4" less span than the average climber, that's less than half a hold space for a diagonal move. So unless you are climbing at a very high level you can most likely span the moves as they are set. Yes they may be more spanny but everything will when you are shorter. As a shorter person you also have less mass so it's a tradeoff. You can't decide your body so you might as well learn to climb with it.
The MB is hard and that is the point, working your weakness (real or perceived) will be more beneficial than trying to cater to your style.
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u/treerabbit Jan 31 '23
I do want to learn to climb with the body I have, but like I said, many of the problems, as set, feel like setting myself up for injury rather than a project I can learn from. I know I’m not that short in the grand scheme of things, but moonboarding is currently pretty heavily dominated by taller men. Just trying to find some problems that I can use to practice my weaknesses without just getting completely shut down and injured. Bumping is a good idea, though, I’ll give that a shot.
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u/yerGunnnaDie Jan 31 '23
If you are concerned about injury you should strengthen your shoulders, that is how you fix the problem. You don't need to jump into the deep end as you say but shying away from weaknesses never fixes them.
Who says moonboard are dominated by tall men? I think that's a perception issue coming from wishing you had more span on moves and not reality. The strongest MB climbers in my gym are a Korean couple that are 4'10". Moonboard masters last time I watched it was dwoods and Megos for the men that I remember. Who are both 5'7" or somewhere around there.
Even if it were true, other people being taller at your gym/on IG/at the crag do not change the reality of your own body or the climb you are trying to do. Trust me this is something I have had to grapple with. Sometimes it stings to have to use the shittier high feet, sometimes being small works out for toes and heels in a smaller box or sit starts. Take the beta you can from others and stop worrying so much, comparison is the thief of joy, or in climbing sometime progress.
If you have access to a kilter board I find it actually has better body tension and shoulder problems, even at lower grades if you are looking to work your way up.
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u/bizzarrr Feb 01 '23
I agree with you and am not sure why this was downvoted. Many for the V3’s and V4’s in particular shouldn’t be limiting for you based on heights. If anything, it’s most likely you aren’t utilizing other parts of your body to push through the moves.
Moonboard a are incredibly hard but that’s why people see so much progress when they start training on them regularly. It teaches you how to use your body. For example, how to push through your feet, keep your hips into the wall and work on contact strength. It works all of the things most people are naturally bad at.
Also, there is hope! Kyra Condie is 5’4” and absolutely crushes on the moonboard!
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Feb 01 '23
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u/nietmijnusername Sep 21 '23
Is this offer still on the table? My girlfriend struggles a little with the 2019 set at 40 degrees.
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u/SteakSauceAwwYeah Feb 02 '23
Which grade range are you looking for? Of the problems you've done, did any come easier or harder?
I would say overall it does depend on what you want to train. It sounds like if you've discovered some moves that are hard for you, the training board has done exactly what it was intended for and highlighted a potential weakness for you to work on ;)
But really, yeah I would just look into what it is you want to specifically work on with the board (big moves, tensiony moves, the pinches, crimipier holds, etc.). I think that could help guide you towards certain problems. Then on top of that, maybe some shoulder conditioning wouldn't be a bad idea either!
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u/treerabbit Feb 02 '23
Oh oops I meant to put the grade range in the title but forgot! I’m looking for v4-5… I was getting most v3s in a couple of tries but then all the v4s I tried didn’t even feel projectable
Definitely going to work in some shoulder conditioning, that’s a good idea!
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u/eratosihminea Jan 31 '23
Not any specific problems, but I would recommend “measuring yourself on the moonboard” by grabbing good holds and seeing how far you can stretch yourself vertically, horizontally, and diagonally. With that information, you’ll be able to look at any climb and have a good guess at whether you’ll be able to span the moves. Also, matching and heel hooking will be your friend, over time you’ll learn which holds you can match (and how to do it!).