I can´t believe in less than one month I will be turning 40, yet I am so proud of it!
I am proud
because so far I have been able to juggle with life without dropping the balls
a single time, or if you prefer I have been climbing on sight a multi-pitch
with no rests!
If I stop a
second and I watch back I see my life full of great experience and most of them
have been somehow connected with climbing.
I am not a
professional climber, I am an office guy like the vast majority of people out
there. Yet since I started back in 2004, climbing has been always occupying a
large part of my life, and a lot of space into my mind.
I am sure
you completely understand what I am talking about.
You wake
up, go to work, but you are still thinking about the movement of the project
you are working at. You get a sore throat on Wednesday, you hope it will not
give you fever not to lose your climbing weekend, lifting your baby you get a
new pain on your shoulder or your knee and you realize your body probably needs
a rest because your aging but your mind pushes you forward. You are watching the
calendar and you are already bridging days off to spot the best moment to go
for short climbing trip.
I assume
this happens to anybody passionate about what they do, but we always tend to
think that climbers got it all! Such a big egos we are….
Some days
ago I was reading some articles about how our body changes as we grow older,
and how to cope with that without affecting too much climbing performance.
Basically
the article says that our body naturally reaches the peak of power at the age
of 30 and from that moment onward slowly start dropping. It makes sense if you
think about how many beers and sleepless night we all could carry before 30 and
what actually happens now after an alcoholic night out!
Personally I get a
massive hangover only after 3 x 33cl beer that’s way I almost entirely stop
drinking.
The article
goes on saying that facing this natural deteriorating process, if we are able
to keep the same climbing level we are already winning! Indeed, it could be put
on a graph, the older we get the performance curve should decrease, but if we
keep the standards then we are winning against aging process. That’s a good
kick of motivation!
Personally
speaking I noticed that in the very last 2 years, since my son was born, I
actually got stronger. I kind of got stronger in my mind, I am more able to
keep the focuse, and most important I am able to listen with more attention
what my body has to tell me.
After 10
years of climbing and at the gates of 40 I understood that my body cannot climb
roofs, or heavy overhangs because I just can’t! Perhaps I am too heavy,
obviously I am not strong enough, I do not like the sensation of having my back
so exposed, I just can’t and I do not enjoy it and if I do it, either I get a
brand new pain somewhere on my body, or I get so sore that I need a month to
recover.
On the
other hand I know I can give my best holding small crimps, climbing technical
walls with complex combination of movements or short and hard bouldering
sessions.
Another very
important thing that enables me to climb at my best is to be inspired!
I do not
care climbing this or that route just because of the grade, or because it is a
must of the area or because the local climbing book says it is in the top 50
routes of the area.
Of course I
like to challenge myself of higher grades but normally is the route that picks
me up, not viceversa.
I prefer to
walk around watch the wall, spot a line, start figuring the movement and then suddenly…WOW
this looks really nice, I want to climb it, I feel like the route itself is
inviting me for a dance and then the magic happens.
Happy climbing!
