Tag Archive for: Climbing

Martin Bingisser

HMMR Podcast Episode 306: Under the armour (with Carrie Lane)

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The worlds of throwing and endurance have a lot of differences, as well as many surprising similarities. Carrie Lane spent coaches world-class throwers before turning her attention to building stronger and faster endurance athletes. On this week’s podcast she joins us to discuss the different planning challenges presented by both populations, the balance of sprint training for non-sprinters, the influence of Bondarchuk on her programming, and the value of climbing.

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Martin Bingisser

April 2019 in review: mental training

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Physically developing athletes is only part of the game. Champions require excellence across all pillars of sport, from the tactical to technical, from the physical to mental. Throughout the month we took a look at how athletes can improve their mental game, with a special focus on case studies of how concepts are put into practice by top coaches and athletes. We put together 3 new podcasts and 8 new articles from our team of coaches. Read more

Craig Pickering

Mental toughness and mountaineering

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Mountaineering can provide some great case studies in risk and mental preparation. The types of situations encountered by mountaineers are at the extreme and can really highlight the decision making process because each decision brings with it more consequences. As I wrote about earlier this year, you might think this environment would lead to more accurate weighing of risks, but often it presents a cautionary tale of what can happen when you’re too motivated to meet a goal. We can learn from where climbers have failed, but we can also learn from where they have succeeded and some new research looks at mental toughness among mountaineers. Read more

Martin Bingisser

Living beyond fear: lessons from Free Solo

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In case you missed it, a sports movie won this year’s Oscar for best documentary. The film Free Solo explores Alex Honnold attempt to climb a 3,000 foot of rock face in Yosemite without the assistance of any ropes. Just the thought of that makes my heart start beating a little faster. I’m not scared of heights, but you can’t help but watch the film and think about what would happen if he made just one tiny mistake. Read more

Vern Gambetta

Thinking about strength (part one)

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Yesterday as I watching the documentary Free Solo all I could think of is how strong Alex Honnold, as he was suspended by one hand thousands of feet above the ground. Yet I hardly think by any traditional weight room measure would he be considered strong. So what’s the deal with strength? I think we need to rethink strength training and what is strong. For over fifty years I have been puzzled by the question – How much strength is enough? I am convinced that there is no answer if we are looking in measurable terms. Alex Honnold has as much as he needs to Free Solo El Capitan. Read more

Martin Bingisser

Lessons on achieving impossible goals from The Dawn Wall

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Living in Switzerland means it is hard to avoid the mountains. The more I explore them, the more I am amazed by climbers. Some adventure sports are simply about who has the most courage. Climbing is about who is the most focused on their goals. I have never climbed a mountain or even gone bouldering, but as a spectator of the sport I am captivated by just how focused the best climbers are. While more often than not they fail, every time they succeed my jaw drops a little more. Read more