Free Inquiry 7: The power of routine.

The November blues… I always forget how tough it can be to get past this particular month. School feels like an absolute whirlwind, with each week going by incredibly fast, but still not feeling like I have enough hours in the day to get everything done on time. This past week, I have been uninspired to do pretty much anything, and this includes climbing. I have allowed myself to take a break from doing things such as climbing that tires me out easily – mental health is extremely important, and it can impact physical health too. Climbing is dangerous, and I want to be in a headspace where I can safely practice, train and climb, and unfortunately this week just didn’t feel right. My climbing partner Steph has also sadly been down with the stomach flu, so that was another part of why there was very little climbing this week.

Reflecting on the past week of non-climbing, it makes me realize a) how important it is to have a climbing partner as it helps motivate you to go out and climb, and b) how having a routine / set schedule could help push me towards my goals. So, I made a schedule that I could potentially follow to get me up and climbing.

Monday: Crag X Climb 9-11pm (Power Hour) – focus on training endurance (easier, longer climbs on big wall, less breaks in between)

Tuesday: Rest Day

Wednesday: Climbing Club 7-9pm at CARSA – focus on strength through Bouldering

Thursday: Rest Day

Friday: Crag X Climb 7-9pm – focus on technique (shorter wall, technical climbs, grading range 5.10c / 5.10d.

Saturday: Rest Day

Sunday: Rest Day / short climb for fun!

I also highly believe that mindfulness is extremely important in these moments of feeling stressed and tired. I think that when thinking about climbing, you aren’t just thinking about the times that you are climbing the wall, but as well, when you’re on ground and taking care of yourself. Some things that I have found useful this past week include:

• Yoga – even if this is just 10 minutes before going to sleep. It helps me destress, take care of my body and unwind from the day/pump me up for the day.
• Care for my body – this includes making myself coffee or tea in the morning, drinking lots of water throughout the day, getting some low impact exercise in.
• Time away from school – life as a full time university student means that you are doing school FULL TIME. It’s extremely tricky to take time in the day to not do any school work, especially at this time of the year. It’s extremely important to take a step away from doing school so that you don’t burn out. Knitting, spending time with my roommates, and watching Desperate Housewives is what has gotten me through this week.
• Calling my family – I call my family almost every day of the week, especially this week. I’m extremely grateful that it’s reading break this coming week because I am in need of some family time for sure (and my mom’s cooking…).

This week has made me realize how much I am constantly on the go. With school, work and life in general, I never seem to be able to slow down. Climbing requires a lot of energy that I simply just don’t have the energy for, and it’s absolutely okay. I think it’s so much better to take care of myself, than to push myself too far, as this could result in dangerous climbing and injuries. Hopefully this week’s rest will stock me up with energy to climb much more!