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Endurance training is so important to one’s climbing that it’s surprising – or should I say scary – how little information there is out there on the subject. For most people, endurance simply means doing routes or long traverses, and getting pumped. What more do you need to know? Lots.

Guido Koestermeyer, coach of the German Competition Climbing Team, once told me that the difference between the winners and losers is how long (or far) they can climb without getting pumped. No matter how good they are, once they’re pumped, they’ll make a couple of desperate moves and then fall. This is a very important realization, and has a major consequence with regard to your training. This is that most of your endurance work should occur when you aren’t pumped.

This is achieved using interval training, something athletes have been doing in other sports for a long time. For intervals, you do repeated bouts of work (climbing in our case) that only result in partial fatigue, alternated with timed rest intervals, which don’t allow full recovery. Fatigue accumulates incrementally with each repetition, and you only achieve "complete" fatigue (pump) at the end of the workout. This is when you stop, and end your session.

There are four different methods that I will explain that train endurance effectively. They are, in order of increasing intensity:

• Continuous
• Extensive Intervals
• Intensive Intervals
• Burns

For each method I will give a suggested grade, which depends on the level that you can on-sight (i.e. climb first try without falls) consistently. These are only suggested grades, and may vary slightly. The number of routes you should do and the length of the rest intervals are given in ranges, because more advanced climbers will need to do higher amounts to get a training effect. If you can’t complete the specified number of routes, the routes you’re doing are too hard, or the rest interval was too short.

The Business:

Continuous:
For continuous climbing, pick a route (20-30 moves long), two number grades below your on-sight level. Climb it up and down 2-3 times. This is one repetition ("rep"). A workout of this type consists of 3 to 5 reps. Assuming you’re taking turns with a partner, the rest time between reps will be about the same amount of time it took to do the rep. This is referred to as a 1:1 work-rest ratio.

Extensive Intervals:
Extensive intervals are done on a route one number grade below your on-sight level. One rep is just doing the route once, but a workout consists of about 12-16 reps. The work-rest ratio is 1:1 to 1:1.5. For convenience, break up the repetitions into sets of 4, so you can alternate sets with your partner. If you’re getting confused, don’t worry – here’s an example for someone who on-sights 5.11-:

Pick a 5.10-, and climb it. Say it takes 2 minutes to climb it. Lower off, and rest for 2.5 minutes (a 1:1.25 work-rest ratio). Climb it again. Rest again, and repeat until you’ve climbed it 4 times. Congratulations! That was a set of 4 reps. Now, un-tie and belay your partner for their set of 4. Once they’re done, it’s your turn to do your 2nd set, either on the same route or a different one. Repeat for a total of 3 or 4 sets each.

Burns	Continuous	Extensive	Intensive	Burns
Moves / rep	100-150	20-30	20-30	20-30
total reps	3-4	21-16	6-9	4-6
work : rest	1 : 1	1: 1 - 1 : 1.5	1 : 2 - 1 : 3	1 : 6 - 1 : 10

 

Putting it all together:
Each method needs to be used 2 to 3 times a week for at least three weeks to make significant gains. Each week, you can change the variables a bit as you adapt, i.e. do more reps, shorten the rest interval, or increase the grade. It is best to use the methods in sequence, as each one builds on the last. For example, if you’re four months away from a climbing trip or important competition, you could use each method for one month, in the above order.

For this type of organized training, you need to put it down on paper. Write down your weekly schedule, and then after each workout, write down everything you did, and what you need to adjust for the next workout. It is very motivating to look back a few weeks and see how much you’ve improved!

Keep in mind that this endurance training does not make up your entire schedule – you still need to do some bouldering and supplementary strength training, but these are beyond the scope of this article.

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