fitness level fluctuations?

[Jens]

How many of us wankers like myself have rock fitness levels that fluctuate wildy within one calendar year? For me it's crazy. For a few months I am weak and then I resolve and train, stretch, do visualization excercises, and diet like crazy and get into top form and then I regress later in the year. And then next year it starts all over. Maybe its cause we all ski and climb mountains so much around here whereas if we lived in Arizona the situation would be different. I'm not complaining, I'm just curious if a lot of us are doing the same thing as me? I've been pretty much doing the same up and down thing every year. Sometimes as much as 3 NUMBER grades for my top repoint level in one calendar year! Any other wankers do the same thing as me? I'll bet some of you guys that go to the Himalaya a lot have this go on?

 

It seems crazy. Eat big, slog, lift, climb high. Then pull plastic, live on brocolli, and shrink the thighs. The start back to the Eat big,slog, lift, climb high, etc.

[Kevin_Matlock]

TOTALLY!

Now that the holidays are effectively done with (good ridence) I'm currently feeling like I'm at the bottom and ready for the big swing toward fitness again. Time to stop eating shit, stop drinking so much ( ), and start getting serious on the peaks/bike/gym walls/whatever.

 

You aren't suppose to fluctuate a great deal though. The whole yo-yo thing is suppose to wreck your body. Not sure the details though.

[EWolfe]

I call it Winter insulation...

[JosephH]

I've been in an out of shape and climbing a dozen times over 30 years - it doesn't always hold the same emotional bang for the buck at all times. Then I come back to it and get back in shape (like now). Getting in shape or losing weight (close to 30 lbs this time) is easy - deciding to do it is a bitch.

 

I know I've decided when I realize this is the last SuzyQ I'm going to eat for a long time. Like I said, after that it's all easy.

[joel20]

If you're getting fat because of drinking it's because you aren't drinking enough when you do drink and are able to hold all of that food down. But yeah when it starts to get cold we eat more because it warms us up and so we tend to over do it. Also you can't stay in the best shape of your life all the time, in fact I think that you should set aside a month out of the year and dedicate it to nothing but getting fat.

[drater]

Being fat is good for the tendons. That's what I'm telling myself anyway.

 

Seems to be at least partly true as all three of my A2 pulley tears seem completely healed now, mostly because as a fat-ass I don't crimp on heinous clings like I used to. Now big incut jugs give me all the workout I need.

 

As my good friend Morgan once said, "If you're not getting laid, you need to lower your standards". Holds true for climbing expectations as well.