Big Ol'

If there were such a thing as a Clydesdale category in climbing, i'd rock it. Weighed in at 200 and change this morning. Having been around a lot of climbers over the last decade, i gather that my weight is sub-optimal (and kinda rare) for an obsessive climber. There have been short moments when i've weighed substantially under 14 stones, but i had a flaccid skeleton jutting out of a triathlete's trunk. Weight has always been a problem.

Presently, i haven't much weight to lose from my legs; but i'd guess and say i'm hovering around 15% bodyfat--meaning i could slough 25lbs without courting any danger of being "ripped" or sacrificing muscle. I just don't quite know how.

And that’s not to say I haven’t tried. I’ve ground through every diet fad thought of, and the thing is i haven’t simply experienced the standard disappointing result of losing a bit, then gaining it back; i tend not to lose any substantial weight. Now, by the calorie-deficit-equals-weight-loss equation that means i’ve either gotten perfectly adequate maintenance calories on a 1,400cal/day liquid supp diet, or i’ve managed to cheat and add an extra thousand calories or so in chia seeds. And while i’m occasionally convinced that my body’d sooner give up brain tissue than central adiposity, i suspect that i’m secretly an undisciplined, low-down, dirty cheater.

Currently, i’ve adopted a quasi-paleo sort of diet, and i will say it’s made a difference. I had got up to 215, and just by cutting out the grains and garbage i’ve dropped 15 or so. And it wasn’t very hard. But i’ve plateaued. I get that it should be hard for some of us to drop that last 5 or 10 pounds to hit optimal cranking weight, but i don’t think it should hurt much to stay at sub-equine training weight. How to get to the next level?

That’s what this blog’ll cover. My sport is climbing, and my clock is ticking. I only have a few years left (assuming God allows me that) to make whatever big gains i can make before i’m too old and’m fighting just to maintain. I’m going to have to become methodical in training, serious about rest days, picky about projects, detailed about goals, jealous about three day weekends, and i may have to give up cheese. And i really, really like cheese.

I have another board where i can post up weights and numbers, etc; the plan for this is motivation. I want to separate goals, the tic list, and my blathering from the numbers. Maybe this way i can keep 'em both a bit clearer.

Right now i redpoint v5 and the rare v6, and bouldery 5.12. I think it's reasonable to send v8 and 5.13 before i'm over the hill. There're the vague, long-terms. Now for the training.