Training for the Future

What if you viewed this next training phase or climbing season as an experiment?

Most of us go into a training plan or an outdoor season with an expectation of the kind of results we should be getting. By tying ourselves to these expectations, we create a narrow structure that success can live within. We lose sight of learning from the entire process and only focus on the results we want. We see it as pass/fail. Either it did what we thought it should, or it didn’t.

One problem with expecting results is that it can make us brittle when problems arise. What happens when you feel too tired for your training or you can’t make this plan work exactly how you wanted because of something unforeseen in your schedule? What if you’re half way through your training plan and you aren’t seeing the kind of results you wanted yet? This wasn’t part of the plan.

What if, instead, you looked at training as a way to find patterns you can use to improve your training and performance in the future? Rather than a transactional process of putting in training and getting out results, it’s seen as an opportunity to learn. When unexpected problems arise, it’s no longer a deviation from the plan, it’s something to take note of.

What would it look like to go into a training plan, or even climbing season, from the perspective of a scientist? When you approach something like a scientist, there aren’t failures — just tests, data, things to learn from. Most importantly, you gain knowledge that you can apply to future training and performance seasons.

This might sound like semantics, but this perspective change can be the difference between having hot and cold success with training, and performing and making incremental progress year after year.