New and Experienced Climbers Over 50 #8

Go for it Dallas.  I second Wendy's approach.  I've found machines to be much more effective than free weights.  But that could just be because of the simplicity.  No fussing with plates.  Push in the pin and go.

Given that you live in an RV, Dallas, you might also consider just buying some resistance bands to start out. 

Way to go, Dallas!   You can do this!!!

Just a mention: I'm planning another trip to Joshua Tree tentatively December 7-29.  If anyone wants to come climb, let me know!  We'll be renting some kind of AirB&B, which will no doubt have an extra bedroom, so you're welcome to it.  I have half a rack, ropes, and some pretty awesome belaying skills now.      

Depending upon who I can round up to climb, I'll still be climbing with guides on some days, and you are welcome to join me there, too.  Jeremy Shoenborn is available for full days, or half days.  He's a gentle and genuine kid who is an incredible 5.14 climber... I can't imagine an 11 hour day with Jeremy, but I could imagine it if there were two climbers.  Nelson is available most of those days.  And Bob Gaines has some open days, too... 6 hour days are about my energy and financial limit, he's also good for an 8 hour day... I'd be happy to share those, too.  

Shoot me a DM or text if you think you might be in Josh and want to climb, or even just get out for breakfast or dinner.  We'll be hanging dingle balls on a joshua tree for Christmas.  

Greg Opland wrote:

Mach 4? Nice. Love my Pivot.

Yes. 2020 Mach 4 SL. It currently has a dropper, but for racing, removing should get it down to a 22 lb machine.  

Pivot has really dialed in the geometry on their new bikes. It is equally adept on downhills as it is a climbing machine.

frank minunni wrote: I'm now 62, have fought cancer three times in the last 5 years (stage 4) and I've certainly noticed that I don't recover nearly as well as I used to.
The biggest plus for me is how much I appreciate and enjoy getting to the gym or outside to climb, hike, socialize, etc.  I'm sold on seeing all this joyful as opposed to work.  It's been hard to get my strength back but with a smile on my face, I've managed to work back from V0 to V6 and 5.11 outside since ending chemo in February.  

Frank, I really like the joyful and smiling attitude in approaching the hard work of coming back from a major setback.  Sometimes it is too easy to forget that climbing, biking, hiking and such are something we do because it is Fun and rewarding.  

frank minunni wrote: I'm now 62, have fought cancer three times in the last 5 years (stage 4) and I've certainly noticed that I don't recover nearly as well as I used to.
The biggest plus for me is how much I appreciate and enjoy getting to the gym or outside to climb, hike, socialize, etc.  I'm sold on seeing all this joyful as opposed to work.  It's been hard to get my strength back but with a smile on my face, I've managed to work back from V0 to V6 and 5.11 outside since ending chemo in February.  

You are amazing. And an inspiration. 

Best wishes, Phyl

Dallas          Step 1 - put the bottle down, no more wine every night with dinner, no more Scotch before bed 

Wait what!
Put down the bottle, no more Laphroaig, no more Macallan no more Prisoner? How barbaric! Dallas did you deck the last time you were climbing and hit your head?

You had me all excited to train harder but lost me on step one   The reason I do my elliptical as often as I do is so I can enjoy some decently good scotch. And I'll have you know that bottle of Prisoner is like a magic potion.  It turns me into the big sexy the wife actually thinks I'm good looking when she drinks.    Sorry Dallas I have to keep my priorities straight. Climbing is the second most important thing to me.  It's a brave bold new world out there and I'm not ready to face it without my Laphroaig or Prisoner.

Good luck with your journey sir i'm afraid I can't offer you a solid belay on that pitch I'll be at the bar.

Carl Schneider wrote:

Yeah I know but what I mean is like a row but upside down. Rather than moving the bar towards you, you are moving you towards the bar.  How is that even close to a pull up?  I get that it's a valid exercise though.  If I was going to do this 'Australian' pull up I'd use either gymnastic rings or Metolius Rock Rings set low.  This is my setup at home...

I thought that you had to be drunk to do an Aussie pullup???

;)

Dallas R wrote: You guys are scary, and not because it's Halloween.  You'all train hard.  So this is Nov 1, day one of my 60 training program.  I am not in Austin yet where the gym and routine await, Monday...

40 pounds over weight, 0 pull ups.  down to 5.4 climbing.  I know 60 days will not be enough, but what I want is to establish habits that stick.

Step 1 - put the bottle down, no more wine every night with dinner, no more Scotch before bed
Step 2 - Eat smart. I know what's good for me, so now I just have to not indulge. Something  have been doing a lot of.
Step 3 - Daily Cardio, target heart rate 130 for at least 20 minutes a day, doesn't matter what, biking, walking, running, waddling, climbing etc.
Step 4 - Pick something up.  Still working out what weight exercises to do, isometrics are most appealing right now simply because I have a large body and it takes a good deal of effort to move it, so isolate and move it.
Step 5 - If the new gym does not have auto belayers boulder, I have no idea how to boulder so will fake it until I figure it out.
Step 6 - put the computer down, get off the couch and go

60 days, this is day 1

Brilliant Dallas! 

I returned to climbing one year and one day ago after a 15+ year lay off.
I was never that great (5.10 follower) but i really loved it.
Starting back i could only do 5.8 in the gym even though i was in decent shape (I've always run and cycled for 30+ years and done taekwondo 2+ times a week for 27 years) but i’d gone from 150’s weight to high 170’s over those years.
I cut almost all processed foods, all soda, all sugar from my coffee, 5 coffees down to 2 a day, and backed off the wine and scotch.
I started doing core everyday.  Not crazy amounts but one or two exercises.  I do plank four days a week, pushups twice a week, abs twice a week, and 6 months ago i started doing triceps twice a week (because they were always so sore after climbing outside) and pullups once a week.  Just last month i started adding in shoulders and forearms twice a week.  The tri/forearms/shoulders/pull-ups are just 3-4 sets of high reps (except pullups-5 sets of 5-and i use the rock rings as i find a straight bar kills my elbows).  This takes just a few minutes a day and my core is so much stronger now.
I also run four days a week, not everyday, and climb twice a week either inside or outside.  
Now i am 17 pounds down and feeling so much better!  I am also now leading 5.10 sport outdoors and climbing so much stronger.
Your plan sounds great but i would suggest taking the long view.  Give your new plan a year to work,  not just 60 days.  And I’d shoot for 4 or 5 days a week of cardio, not everyday.  Very very hard to do everyday and then if you miss a day it gets discouraging and everyone needs at least one down day a week to recover (or more as i get older!).
My goal is to lead 5.10 trad and follow/sport a 5.11.  I gave myself two years on my plan and now, one year in, i’d like to think that i am making good progress but it is slow and steady in this race for me.  
Best of luck and let us know how it goes!

Dallas R wrote: You guys are scary, and not because it's Halloween.  You'all train hard.  So this is Nov 1, day one of my 60 training program.  I am not in Austin yet where the gym and routine await, Monday...

40 pounds over weight, 0 pull ups.  down to 5.4 climbing.  I know 60 days will not be enough, but what I want is to establish habits that stick.

Step 1 - put the bottle down, no more wine every night with dinner, no more Scotch before bed
Step 2 - Eat smart. I know what's good for me, so now I just have to not indulge. Something  have been doing a lot of.
Step 3 - Daily Cardio, target heart rate 130 for at least 20 minutes a day, doesn't matter what, biking, walking, running, waddling, climbing etc.
Step 4 - Pick something up.  Still working out what weight exercises to do, isometrics are most appealing right now simply because I have a large body and it takes a good deal of effort to move it, so isolate and move it.
Step 5 - If the new gym does not have auto belayers boulder, I have no idea how to boulder so will fake it until I figure it out.
Step 6 - put the computer down, get off the couch and go

60 days, this is day 1

One last thing and then I’ll shut up!

As for no auto belays:  i just climb up and down the wall to the gyms max “no belay” line on an easy route for 5 to 10 minutes, take a break, and repeat.  Really concentrating on “small, quiet feet” and not getting too pumped.  Not the most exciting thing but it really seems to help.  
I hear doing it with earbuds and good music really helps.
Right, time for the daily two minutes of core!
;)

Thanks all for the well wishes, cheering and good advice.  It's only been the last 2 years that my indulgences have really caught up to me.  When I failed the weigh in at the via ferratta in Canada it really hit home.  Then a fail on a 5.6 was further reinforcement that my habits are taking me down a bad path.  So this 60 day thing isn't about trying to hit the 5.10 mark, it's more about getting my habits back into line with my aging physiology.  Kind of like a course correction for life.  

I have decided to make my 6 year old grandson my personal trainer.  First off, he never sits still, he will just start jumping up and down simply because he is happy about something.  He runs practically everywhere he goes and he can fold up in ways that make my joints hurt just watching him.  Sigh!  One day at a time. 

Doing next years itinerary, stuck on July.  Any body know of a place that has rock climbing in low grades, doesn't get above 80 f. Has hiking, biking, river rafting, disk golf, motorcycle tour routes, with an RV park nearby?

Dallas R wrote: Doing next years itinerary, stuck on July.  Any body know of a place that has rock climbing in low grades, doesn't get above 80 f. Has hiking, biking, river rafting, disk golf, motorcycle tour routes, with an RV park nearby?

Maybe the central Idaho mountains? McCall area, perhaps? Our mountains can get hottish in the daytime, but the temps still go down at night. That's why we all head north to camp!

And Dallas? This old lady needs to get her backside in gear too. Even if I stop, over and over, "tis better to have started and stopped than never to start at all"....something like that.

Best, Helen

Dallas R wrote: Doing next years itinerary, stuck on July.  Any body know of a place that has rock climbing in low grades, doesn't get above 80 f. Has hiking, biking, river rafting, disk golf, motorcycle tour routes, with an RV park nearby?

You might consider the Needles in South Dakota---Rushmore area.  They've got everything you mentioned except the river rafting (at least I don't know about river rafting there).  Custer State Park has lots of easy-to-moderate climbing but it is adventurous trad.  The routes can be hard to locate and might be runout even though easy.  The Rushmore area is bolted sport and has a relatively up-to-date (2012) guidebook https://www.fixedpin.com/collections/climbing/products/the-needles-of-rushmore .  However, it is sold out at the moment, although available from Amazon for $89 for a paperback (!).  You might be able to borrow a copy---I don't have one but I could ask around.

Maybe a better climbing bet would be City of Rocks in Idaho.  If you approached via the Tetons (totally worth visiting by itself) you could raft on the Snake.  I don't know about your other desiderata...

Dallas R wrote: Doing next years itinerary, stuck on July.  Any body know of a place that has rock climbing in low grades, doesn't get above 80 f. Has hiking, biking, river rafting, disk golf, motorcycle tour routes, with an RV park nearby?

North Conway, NH?  It does get into the 80's but it should have most of what you are looking for and is a gorgeous area!

Dallas R wrote: Doing next years itinerary, stuck on July.  Any body know of a place that has rock climbing in low grades, doesn't get above 80 f. Has hiking, biking, river rafting, disk golf, motorcycle tour routes, with an RV park nearby?

Might you consider Truckee/Donner?  Temps are perfect.  Numerous rivers/lakes.  Definitely RV parks.  Hiking everywhere, biking.  Don't know about disk golf. (actually appears there are 3 courses nearby).  Best of all... we could finally meet and climb.  :-) 

Dallas R wrote: Doing next years itinerary, stuck on July.  Any body know of a place that has rock climbing in low grades, doesn't get above 80 f. Has hiking, biking, river rafting, disk golf, motorcycle tour routes, with an RV park nearby?

McCall Idaho has 5.6 & up routes, sport and trad. single and up to 7 pitches.  Variety of RV options, rafting on the Salmon river, lots of hiking, road and mountain biking, a disk course, lots of options for motorcycle tours.  It does get above 80f sometimes, but it is low humidity.  No need for air conditioning.  

rgold wrote: Maybe a better climbing bet would be City of Rocks in Idaho.  If you approached via the Tetons (totally worth visiting by itself) you could raft on the Snake.  I don't know about your other desiderata...

City can be ungodly hot in the summer. We coped by climbing in the morning and evening and just hanging out during the day. But it's not ideal.

Idaho Bob wrote:

McCall Idaho has 5.6 & up routes, sport and trad. single and up to 7 pitches.  Variety of RV options, rafting on the Salmon river, lots of hiking, road and mountain biking, a disk course, lots of options for motorcycle tours.  It does get above 80f sometimes, but it is low humidity.  No need for air conditioning.  

It also has Idaho Bob! :-)

wendy weiss wrote:

City can be ungodly hot in the summer. We coped by climbing in the morning and evening and just hanging out during the day. But it's not ideal.

A little known fact is that it is often too hot, cold, windy, or all of the above, perhaps on the same day at City of Rocks. But, you can chase sun or shade, it rarely rains the way east and west coast people define "rain", and it's a lovely place generally. But no, I'd not recommend it for the month of July. The rafting would be even hotter, that's lower. 

McCall, as Bob and I said, for Idaho. Otherwise, elevation, farther north, a seacoast....

All of the above mean tourists, including McCall, but, if you have your "house" in place, that takes care of the main bother, securing a weekend camping spot and the conga line drive to get there. They also have a lake with docks and a beach, and a nice fourth of July bash!

But, where are you coming from or going to?

Best, Helen