Purpose:
Short term: To begin to pay attention to our anxiety levels and adjust our actions accordingly
Long term: To overcome a fear of falling or exposure on the wall
Where: any route on which you feel nervous
The key here is that we are learning to first recognise, then adapt to our feelings and emotions. Therefore, we need somewhere that makes us feel nervous.
This could be on the bouldering wall, on the lead, top rope or auto belay. You may even decide to run the same drill in different environments.
When: during the Learning Window
It is VERY IMPORTANT that this drill is run on climbs that you do not find phsyically demanding! We will build up to this later but adding physical difficulty will add unnecessary pressure that may impinge on the drill’s effectiveness.
This drill does not rely on the routes or holds on the wall. The only condition is that you are able to climb without working very hard.
This can be done at the end of the session but BE CAUTIOUS as both physical and mental fatigue are both still fatigue. Being physically tired may result in the mental strain becoming a bit too much.
The Drill:
This drill requires some explanation first.
We can equate anxiety to the three colours of the traffic lights, like this:
- Green = no anxiety. Totally comfortable, not stressed, can stay there for ages without worry
- Red = major panic. Imagine being at the top of the wall and realising you’ve not clipped in, this is total panic stations, maximum anxiety. NEVER GO RED!!!
- Orange = nervous but can handle it. This is the sweet spot, where we start to feel a bit uneasy but enough that we don’t start to panic
I think of this as a conversation in my mind. Anxiety kicks in when a small voice says “this is scary”. If you are red, you will agree and not want to return again. If you are orange, you agree but are happy to come back. That is the crucial difference.
- Set off on your climb, paying attention to how you are feeling
- Find the point where you start to go from green into orange
- Pause, take some deep breaths and then climb back to feeling green
- If you feel comfortable to do so, you can do a practice fall from this green-orange line
- Again, NEVER GO RED!
IMPORTANT POINTS: these lines can be very subtle; including sometimes less than the size of a move. You may need to pull higher on the same holds to become orange but not complete a move to avoid becoming red.
Also note that these lines will be different on different climbs, different wall angles and even different days. Ensure you are taking each attempt on it’s own rather than judgementally comparing one climb to another in the short term.
Oh and I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this but DO NOT GO RED. If you do, you risk reinforcing the fear factor and making the situation worse. Far better to develop the ability to maintain control than become used to being out of control
The Outcome: How do you know when it’s working?
Over time, you should find that your green-orange line rises up the wall.
Crucially, you should find that you feel more comfortable and happier being high off the ground.