EP 199: Will Anglin & Matt Jones — A Masterclass in How to Progress Your Climbing
The Nugget Climbing Podcast
The Four Stages of Competence in Climbing
This chapter explores the concept of the four stages of competence in climbing, from unawareness to mastery. The speakers discuss the importance of continuously learning and adapting, as well as the value of identifying weaknesses early on to prevent setbacks.
Will Anglin returns and is joined by coach and trainer Matt Jones. This is one of the most valuable episodes I’ve ever recorded. It’s a GOLD MINE for anyone who wants to progress their climbing. Will and Matt provide clear and in-depth guidance for beginner, intermediate, and advanced climbers in this three-hour masterclass. If you feel stuck at a plateau or simply want to progress to the next level, don’t skip this episode!
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- Michael Roy, Craig Lee, Mark and Julie Calhoun, Yinan Liu, Zach Emery, Alex Pluta, and Matt Walter
Show Notes:
thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/will-and-matt
Nuggets:
(00:00:00) – Intro/Ads
(00:03:55) – Introducing to Matt Jones
(00:06:43) – The goal of this episode, and who it’s for
(00:09:20) – How we are defining beginner, intermediate, and advanced
(00:12:37) – Reminder about timestamps
(00:13:31) – Overview of core themes (skills and strength feedback loop, the four stages of competence, selecting training tools)
(00:20:24) – My first plateau in climbing, and helping people identify and address what they’re missing
--BEGINNER STARTS HERE--
(00:23:45) – Beginner | Overview
(00:23:45) – Gaining initial awareness, and meat suit competence
(00:25:53) – Beginner | Strong Not Good
(00:27:35) – The Hammer
(00:28:51) – Not everything is a nail
(00:30:00) – The hammeriest hammer Matt and Will have ever seen, and taking away the hammer
(00:34:06) – Beginner | Good Not Strong
(00:34:06) – The goal for the beginner climber overall is to diversify the toolset
(00:34:47) – The Stringbean (aka The Crowbar)
(00:36:18) – Overutilizing sneaky tricks, and adding constraints/rules to your climbing
(00:41:48) – Interventions for beginners
(00:46:35) – Identifying the low-hanging fruit
(00:47:40) – Beginner | Summary
(00:51:11) – Using climbing as a training intervention
(00:53:41) – Checking your ego
(00:55:27) – Building strength and skill at the same time through climbing
--INTERMEDIATE STARTS HERE--
(00:59:06) – Intermediate | Overview
(00:59:06) – Exiting the beginner stage, and learning to quantify your progress beyond grades
(01:01:42) – “Oh no, now what?!”
(01:03:22) – The logarithmic aspect of climbing the grade scale, and the room for growth as a climber
(01:05:24) – My experience of collecting more tools in sport climbing in the last 6 years
(01:07:14) – Finding what trying hard means, and the Nationals training camp story
(01:10:09) – Trying hard vs. trying well
(01:12:10) – Identifying what you need to address in your climbing
(01:13:30) – Understanding exactly what you’re doing, and why it is working or not working
(01:17:54) – Intermediate | Strong Not Good
(01:18:51) – Chunking
(01:20:25) – Getting beyond the left-right-left, and increasing the resolution of your beta
(01:22:47) – The guess and check model, and turning new dials
(01:25:21) – The sloth monkey drill, and finding the line
(01:27:50) – Hip in vs. square drill
(01:29:43) – Building a process for problem-solving
(01:30:16) – Guidance for off-the-wall training for the intermediate climber
(01:33:38) – Keeping off-the-wall training in perspective, and becoming fluent in training
(01:39:20) – A tactical pitfall for intermediate climbers
(01:43:00) – Why you shouldn’t punt, the nuance of resting, and energy economy
(01:48:20) – Separating practice, training, and performance
(01:50:11) – Intermediate | Good Not Strong
(01:50:11) – Getting the reps in, and eating your vegetables first
(01:56:34) – Strength training to support your movement, and learning to reverse engineer moves
(02:03:19) – Asking why, being more intentional, and why Chris Sharma led the intermediate climbers astray
(02:04:33) – More on reverse engineering, amplifying your strength through mobility, and being in the correct position
(02:07:12) – Learning how to guide yourself, and choosing how to train
(02:10:31) – The optimal training plan doesn’t exist, and it’s ok to have fun
--ADVANCED STARTS HERE--
(02:16:25) – Advanced | Overview
(02:18:41) – Specific goals, and going from dial-up to fiber optic
(02:21:46) – Advanced | Strong Not Good & Good Not Strong
(02:23:57) – Occupying the position
(02:29:14) – Mobility and sensation
(02:33:33) – Proprioception, feeling mode, and micro beta
(02:37:57) – The Golfer study
(02:41:00) – The opportunity of the intermediate climber, and Will’s beef with strength metrics
(02:43:23) – Affordances, and becoming a better athlete
(02:46:31) – Off-the-wall training for an advanced climber, and Usain Bolt
(02:51:23) – Misusing tools from the pros
(02:56:50) – Wrap up, and EXTRA teaser
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