Speed laps (back-to-back runs)

3 sets of 2 back-to-back runs up an easy route, as fast as you can, 4 min rest. Don't look down.

Slot: On the wall
Focus: Speed
Time: 12 min
Intensity: High
Injury risk: Moderate
Intervals: 6 rounds, 10s rest
Equipment: Easy circuit, Boulders, Timer

How to do it

Use an easy, juggy vertical route or long easy boulder you know well. After warming up, climb it twice back to back as fast as you can, then rest 4 minutes. Do 3 sets, 6 runs in all. Drive with your legs rather than pulling with your arms, put your feet on the holds your hands just left, and keep moving: once a hand has found a hold, your body knows where it is, so don't look down. Between runs, pick one slip from the last run and fix only that. Stop the set early if your footwork gets messy.

Who it’s for

Climbers curious about speed climbing, and anyone who hesitates on easy ground. Sprinting a route you know well trains leg drive, placing your feet without looking and moving without stopping.

Common mistakes

Pulling with the arms. Drive with the legs. If your arms do the work, they’re pumped by the second run.
Looking down for your feet. Put them on the holds your hands just left, and trust it.
Resting between the two runs. Back to back. The rest comes after the pair.
Trying to fix everything. One slip per run.
Carrying on with messy feet. Once your footwork falls apart, the set’s over. Rest.
Using a route you don’t know. Easy, juggy and familiar, so the only question is speed.

How to progress

Stay on the same route until your runs are clean, then start timing them. When your times stop dropping, move to a slightly longer or harder route.

When it fits

The training periods this exercise fits into in Blok Sessions.

Power Explosive moves, momentum and coordination.
Performance Peak for a trip or a comp: focus, reading problems, trying hard.

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.