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Anti-style climbing

6 boulders in the style you're weakest at, 10 minutes on each. Note what stopped you.

Slot
On the wall
Focus
Technique
Time
60 min
Intensity
Moderate
Injury risk
Low
Intervals
6 × 10:00 on
Equipment
Boulders, Timer

How to do it

Pick 6 boulders (on the wall or a board) in the style you're least comfortable with - for example slab, compression, small feet, wide moves, or coordination. Spend 10 minutes on each, resting between attempts as needed. Focus on learning how the style moves rather than on topping, and after each boulder write down the one thing that stopped you.

Who it’s for

Anyone who has plateaued. Most plateaus aren’t a strength problem, they’re a style you’ve been quietly avoiding for two years. An hour on six boulders you hate is worth more than a session on your favourites.

Common mistakes

  • Choosing boulders that are almost your style. If you’re comfortable in the first two minutes, you picked wrong.
  • Trying to top them. You’re learning the movement. Ten minutes of good attempts on a boulder you never finish is a successful round.
  • Skipping the note. Writing down the one thing that stopped you is what turns a frustrating hour into a training plan.
  • Doing it once. One session tells you what your weakness is. Six weeks of it does something about it.

How to progress

Run it every couple of weeks and keep the notes together. When the same word keeps appearing, build a block around it: if it’s always compression, put squeeze boulders and core work in your next few weeks.

When it fits

The training periods this exercise fits into in Blok Sessions.

  • Base Lots of easy climbing, good movement and aerobic fitness.
  • Performance Peak for a trip or a comp: focus, reading problems, trying hard.
  • Deload Train less, let your fingers recover, keep moving.

Start with a ready-made block

A six-week strength plan with a deload, as a file for the app, and seven short emails on how to run it.