Assets

So yesterday was a post on training, and since I have read so much on it and think about it so frequently I wanted to expand on it a bit more. First, all people and bodies are different. Everyone responds differently to stimulus and recovers at verying rates. Therefore, one person should never be doing anyone else's training regimen. This also applies to dieting. The exception might theoretically be twins or two individuals who were almost identical in tests such as metabolic rate, cell reproduction, existing physical conditions, and their needs for training. General recommendations can be made for the masses, but these should always always be tailored.

Second, I love training myself and coaching others. I wish I could do this as a full time job. Everyone who let me observe them and then train them would eventually become whatever their heart's desired. Anyway, I wish I coached people. Maybe I should write a book or something instead.

Lastly and mostly what I wanted to delve further into is the subject of special abilities of a physical nature or assets as it relates to climbing. This is referring to a strength that is so far above average that it is unique or would be desired by anyone who knew of it. Several examples would be the open hand strength of Jimmy Webb or Dave Graham, the timing of Tyler Landman, the total muscular fitness of Alex Puccio, the lock-offs of Iker Pou, the close-handed talents of James Litz, or Dave Graham's understanding of compression climbing. These people possess unmatched abilities. Perhaps they began with more of this than everyone else, but more likely they have always been pushing something that comes naturally or something preferred. These are just a few examples, but having such a highly developed ability can make one a world class climber. Some people will never be close to such an ability, while others like Dave Graham, Fred Nicole, or Chris Sharma may have multiple ones. However, anyone can train for such a goal, and with the right choices can vastly and quickly improve whatever is desired. Obviously the most arduous would be improving upon weaknesses. One must be committed in making their weakness of paramount importance almost to the point of obsession. This type of training is the least fun and takes the longest, but will yield the most return. For example, what is Tommy Caldwell's weakness? While he has no special climbing talent that would be higher than the 90th percentile, he has virtually no weaknesses other than missin a portion of a digit, which can be argued as a special ability in disguise. Well, that's enough with the training for one post.