let's take slow steps

Since my last post, I've been doing my best to switch gears. After several months of living the renegade lifestyle, it's time to buckle down. I was able to find work part-time, but my search for an internship has yet to yield a favorable result. I've also made my peace with climbing in the gym, and I've starting pulling plastic on the regular. In addition to getting paid and stacking paper, I've been spending a fair amount of time in the library. It's become a kind of sanctuary- a place to get some personal work done without the usual distractions. It may not be the most exciting series of developments, but I feel fortunate to have some normalcy in my life after enduring a year plagued by misfortune and uncertainty.

The recent cold snap and unexpected snow fall have all but guaranteed that climbing in Southern Illinois will not be an option for quite a while. So that's the new struggle- finding ways to stay motivated and building momentum for the following year. Warmer weather is still months away, and that's a tough pill to swallow.

Until then, I've started the process of drafting my goals for 2011. This time around my goals aren't as concrete as they have been in the past. Rather than setting goals based on a numerical progression, I've decided that it would be best for me to round out my skill sets as a climber by exploring new destinations and new disciplines. Such a move may force me to scale back expectations, but I'm willing to check my ego for the sake of personal growth. That being said, I'm hoping to make a push for Rumney, New Hampshire and The New River Gorge in West Virginia this Spring. From what I've been told, both areas seem to have incredibly specific styles that rely on power and a technical prowess; I look forward to the challenge

My secondary goal is to make my way west for the summer. I would like to put some hours in Rifle, Colorado and Ten Sleep, Wyoming. I've heard amazing things about Ten Sleep, but I haven't ventured to Wyoming since February of this year. With the right running crew, I'd like to see that change.

In addition to switching up the yearly circuit, I've decided to finally pull the trigger and address my major weak link as a climber: strength. I'm still very much aware of my chronic battle with elbow tendonitis (one that kept me out of the game from Fall 2008 to Fall 2009), but I'm growing tired of allowing it to stunt my progression despite diligent and calculated efforts to keep it at bay. I've spent the last few weeks in the gym building a base (read: bouldering) in an attempt to prepare for my training schedule for the first quarter of the year. I've set aside two months within my plan to allow my body to acclimate to these new stress levels. Once I've adapted, my hope is that I will be able to increase volume and intensity with the overall goal being to begin sport specific training by mid-January.

Staying motivated under the circumstances is difficult, but I think setting goals and supplementing your personal climbing experience with specific literature, videos, events, etc. are key to surviving the winter. Luckily, we've been fortunate enough to have several recent releases to keep us pulling plastic and suffering in the gym until the weather breaks. 2011 is around the corner- what are you doing to keep good vibes on high?

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