Why I never get nervous attempting hard routes

Some climbers don't believe me when I say I don't get nervous before attempts on hard routes. Here I explain how I do it.
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[@MV78675]

Love the cat

[@gr.4380]

came for the advice, stayed for the cat

[@darrenvalentine2477]

As a Siamese owner I can empathise with the neediness!

[@TheoMagas]

They should collab with Louis cat!!!

[@thesuperchoober]

Sparkle is an absolute huge unit

[@csn583]

Mouthing off!

[@taker00]

Finally Dave figured out how to play this youtube game 2:39

[@boogaloo4640]

We need a Sparkle & Ink collab

[@gr.4380]

I can't wait for all climbing videos to have an obligatory cat halfway through

[@andrewbrockman8538]

Love that your accent dials up a notch for the cat 😂

[@savethebaysteve]

"If you are going to get upset about a single onsight attempt on a given route, then you're going to find climbing a very frustrating business." Internalizing this has been incredibly helpful to me, as I am a pretty bad onsight climber. Often missing beta that seems obvious on my second and third go. I would often compare myself to partners who were stronger at onsighting, wishing I could climb like them. But I have learned to just appreciate the movement, the outdoors, the friendship and embrace the redpoint!

[@ThatOneHomlessGuy]

Hey Dave, any plans to release a video on your first ascent of Bultitdue? Some of us are psyched to see that year long proj going down! Thanks for the insightful content once again.

[@AlecARGH]

Super helpful and cool video. I've been using the mantra "Let's take a look" before subsequent attempts and it's been pretty transformative in my climbing... I think I probably should apply it to other areas of my life!

[@markharris2562]

Dave, your videos just get better, which is astonishing given that they were incredible to begin with. This is one of the best videos I've seen, and easily applies to many other situations which may trigger this kind of anxiety, where you have to 'perform' (e.g. play live music, give a lecture, do well in an exam etc.). Thank you!

[@gergthims]

I got so much out of this to apply to guitar performance. Thank you!

[@DanA-bt7dr]

Hi Dave. Great to see a video on this. I often think about your "just goin' for a climb" mantra before hopping on something that may seem scary/intimidating, so it's great to have "it's just an attempt" to add to the repertoire for stuff that is hard or at limit even though I am not really projecting right now. The theme of my season has been mental awareness/training and I really find I am at my best when I am calm and in the present moment, for example, only thinking about hand/foot holds, body movement sequences and not letting other things distract me. This video about cognitive de-loading and overall mindfulness has reinforced all my learning this season. Cheers!

[@daver4331]

I came across a mantra seiging a long project that the current attempt has a binary outcome. It's getting done or it's not, dont stress. Weeks/Months/Years into a long term project every last bit of marginal gains will have being squeezed out. On any good day you should know they are aligned. Standing on the floor ready to go none of them will make a difference. In fact the elements that will make a difference such as training, rest and diet are already in the bank. Redpointing nerves were then replaced by curiosity, press play and run the process!

[@maximeferre6903]

Great video as usual ! Sparkles is making his way on your channel I love it !

[@bassic6959]

this is a great video Dave. I always get so caught up in the mental of it all and this is a really interesting perspective and it has given me a great deal of things to think about in my climbing.

[@dantelaw7759]

Great video, as always. Big fan of the cat.

[@Productionbrikfilm]

Amazing thanks Dave! So valuable

[@wilfinley]

Dave, you are the best! I really value your insight into climbing and training. Thanks for putting in the hard work to share it with us!

[@life_of_riley]

Great video. I find that if I say to my partner that I'm just going to climb bolt to bolt to practice beta, amazingly I'll be three quarters of the way up and I'm close to sending the route! I suppose I'm more relaxed because the mental pressure removed somewhat.

[@AmroNaddy]

I love Dave’s wisdom about preparation, and feel like it has broader life appeal. Part of what I hear is similar to dealing with anxiety: you have to “avoid avoidance.” If you avoid the most stressful parts of the climb during preparation, you ultimately have to face them during the red point attempt. This inspires me to bring more intention to preparation - am I avoiding some difficult part of a climb, instead of confronting it and drilling it?

[@AlexeiDrummond]

I do almost the same thing. If somebody asks me about the pressure I am feeling on the 17th go on a route I just say: it's just another tie-in. I try to find smaller goals than sending, and you almost always learn something from every attempt. Eventually you send it.

[@garronfish8227]

I use "Let's give this a go!"

[@MrTomo4415]

Personally I think its good just to remind yourself we do this because its fun and we enjoy it

[@bobwear123]

This video made me think of the book "The Inner Game of Tennis" by W. Timothy Gallwey. I haven't read it all, but I highly recommend

[@jackbrewin505]

Sparkle the cat is goated

[@RealWorldClimbing]

I needed this. And I finally feel I am ready to internalize it!

[@Dan-xh1ci]

Great video! This is going to help a lot of people on their journeys. Thank you.

[@kajtekmccranck9978]

Good video! Thanks a lot! It somehow resonates with my general approach which is: climbing is part of my life, but not my whole life.. So when I fail as a climber I'm not loosing as a human being. It's just an approach that takes away the burden that may limit me.

[@homemsapo]

Developed my own mantra a while ago. It makes me feel present before trying hard

[@zucabrasil]

Great video. Thank you.

[@MechanixPL]

I knew it, the cat stole the show and there already cat comments! Great video, as always. And an awesome cat.

[@bradb0t]

More Sparkle content please

[@NCTradLines]

Hey! Thanks for the content. Love the info. Especially, being a new climber 😊

[@Zacman333]

I agree with your belayer: Nice one, Dave!

[@biodieseler1]

Inspiring, as always.

[@miguelzapato59]

Great video..thank you so much for the insights.

[@middle-agedclimber]

Congratulations! I was listening without watching video and I honestly thought the scream at 16:49 comes from a certain Czech climber 😊

[@matteobecchi1210]

Great content as always!

[@Chris.p.roberts]

A dedicated video on how to prepare for hard trad on-sight attempts would be fantastic. Are you a fan of doing a "warm up route" or would you rather save the energy and just warm up with bands/hangboards/pulling on the rock etc?

[@PeterB-h6z]

Suggestion for a technical topic: I'd love to see a video about lat engagement. Although topics like keeping tension through the feet and "pulling" are common in climbing, I rarely hear them discussed through the lens of proper lat engagement. I think some climbers (myself included) shirk the lats in favor of a more bicep- and shoulder-oriented style of climbing. The result is a pattern of climbing movement that does not use what should be the foundation of pulling and core tension (the lats).

[@philleng480]

I think folks mix up nerves and fear. Nerves - concern about failure, fear - concern about danger. I don't suffer from nerves, too old and too practiced at failure. Fear - certainly, how good is that gear. I have a project i know i can do, but it is incredibly tenuous climbing, all above a single suspect piece (its groundfall if it fails). I know i can't let fear get into the hard sequence above the gear.

[@sethgilbertson2474]

Hearing you grunt with effort is extremely gratifying! 😅 This video addresses something I absolutely struggle with! Thank you!

[@erichardouin8903]

I'm a neuropsychologist and listening too you feels like hearing an expert of that field, applied to climbing (and certainly life in general). You could have been a great one :)

[@the_soap_opera]

omg, that cat ! 😍

[@nikikovacs1923]

+5000 extra thumbs up for the cat.

[@neaituppi7306]

I think onsite and flashing can be an unneeded competitive element. But it could also be a fun competition. I think I would do better to just climb something, not expecting to make it. Just climbing it, and see what happens.

[@mw5360]

Daddy's back.

[@Luca-cw9kg]

Dear Dave, I would love to see a video showcasing the different meals you take in a week while you're on a ketogenic or a carnivore diet and why you choose these different meals. As you mentioned before you're allergic to seafood so it doesn't apply for everyone but I still think it would be super interesting to see!

[@salamandersmith]

Using a shunt would fry my nerves for sure.

[@tommybinson]

Me too.

[@vasia_is]

Dave, how do you separate / define "nerves" vs being scared? "Nerves" meaning some anticipation anxiety, and being scared meaning physiological response when doing a scary thing? I am asking as it is somewhat confusing to me - when I have some anxiety before going for an attempt (i.e. because of fear of falling), I feel that I also have a physiological response, but when I actually fall I often do not have time to "get more scared" - it happens very fast for me (maybe because I do not take huuuge trad whippers, and only have bouldering or sport falls)

[@JoachimMilan1]

I take it that willingness to try hard, fail, reflect, and repeat is key to success. And fingerboarding.

[@alexbarcovsky4319]

The craziest thing is that this advice is not even about rock climbing but life in general. Stress is caused by identifying yourself with the outcome and underpreparation. Oh the things climbing teaches us about life. These days its even cheaper than therapy anyway.

[@gabrielrivera9594]

Does sparkle ever give a go at the home wall?

[@papalegba6796]

What about that John Dunne E8 in the Mourne? You were crapping yourself 😂

[@utubesuxb4lls]

do some 5.12x in the gunks

[@milkymat]

Siamese cats are the meowiest cats

[@climbermacleod]

Sparkle is actually a Chonkenese.

[@BoulderLab]

I always knew you were a cat person!

[@jensw6314]

I dont get nervous bevor redponts attempts because I get "performance anxiety". I get nervous bevor redpoint attempts, because I'm scared of falling a crushing my knee, because I'm not climbing steep overhangig roofs.

[@ryanpenrod1859]

How dare you kick Sparkles out of the video!

[@classicshadow2837]

anyone else think the cat should take over the channel, i mean daves cool but in all honestly he's got nothing on the little dude who won the video with 30 seconds of screen time

[@robertcreer8826]

algorithm

[@red_rassmueller1716]

2sek bro fell off... in the video that is...

[@ralfalfi]

This generation’s “Rock Warrior’s Way” is your series of videos on the mental side of climbing. 🫶🏼🫶🏼