Relaxation exercises
3-5 minutes of slow breathing, a body scan, or muscle relaxation before a hard attempt.
- Slot
- Mental and reflection
- Focus
- Mental
- Time
- 10 min
- Intensity
- Low
- Injury risk
- Low
- Equipment
- Floor space, Timer
How to do it
Before a hard session or attempt, spend 3-5 minutes on one method: slow nasal breathing (inhale for 4 counts, exhale for 6-8 - the exhale should be longer than the inhale); a body scan (notice tension from feet to jaw and consciously release it); or progressive muscle relaxation (tense a muscle group for 5-7 seconds, release, and notice the difference - work through legs, core, shoulders, hands, face). Pick whichever method you'll actually do consistently, not the one that sounds most advanced.
Who it’s for
Anyone who arrives at a hard attempt already tense. Three to five minutes is enough to change how you feel, and all three methods work.
Common mistakes
- Picking the most advanced method. Pick the one you’ll actually do.
- An out-breath shorter than the in-breath. The longer exhale is the mechanism.
- Doing it once and judging it. It gets more effective with practice, like anything else.
How to progress
Use it before hard attempts, not just before sessions. Once it’s reliable at home, the useful version is a shortened one you can do at the base of a boulder.
When it fits
The training periods this exercise fits into in Blok Sessions.
- Power Endurance Keep your power through one hard move after another.
- Performance Peak for a trip or a comp: focus, reading problems, trying hard.
Related blocks
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.