letting your body learn - two experiments

Last week I had a learning moment on an old nemesis climb called Zen. It involves a difficult move of pulling on to a slippery crimp rail then going BIG to a jug.

When I first tried the move, I felt nowhere near sticking it. But instead of getting frustrated and overanalyzing everything I was doing wrong, I let my body learn the move. Eventually, I stuck the move then was able to do it on repeat because my body had it dialed.

Here are two experiments adapted from The Inner Game of Tennis for you to try so you can experience the difference between "making" your body learn a move vs. "letting" your body learn.

Experiment 1:

Choose a climb at the gym that you haven't tried before. This climb should be pretty challenging at 1-2 grades below your redpoint level. Select a move from the climb to work on. If you can, try to choose a move that looks somewhat complex.

Stand back and plan what you need to do to successfully complete the move. Figure out how hard you need to pull with your arms, what angles your elbows should be at, how much tension you need to keep through your feet, and where your hips need to be.

Then hop on the wall and try to do the move. Attempt it again if you're unsuccessful. If you're successful, try to repeat what you did to complete the move again.

Give this move 4-5 attempts, no more than 10 minutes max.

Experiment 2: 

Choose a different move on the same climb from Experiment 1.

Stand back again but this time take a few deep breaths and relax your body. Visualize yourself doing and sticking the move a few times.

No instructions, no analytics - just trust in your body. When you get on the wall, focus on the hold you're going to then let your body do its thing.

Whether or not you do the move, notice where you got to. Maybe you hit it exactly right, maybe you were an inch short of the hold. Make sure you are neutral in your observation of the results. Most importantly, only observe and do not try to make any corrections - keep your "teller" out of it!

Again, try the move 4-5 times or 10 minutes max. What do you notice? Are you getting closer to sticking the move? How does it compare to Experiment 1?