It is the Best Mental Skill.
From our previous article ‘Why Do You Need Cross-Body Tension in Climbing,’ we now have a clearer understanding of how cross-body tension helps prevent you from falling off the wall. Let’s now discuss one of the most useful mental skills for ensuring that you never, accidentally, get into that annoying barn door position. It’s called sequencing. Do you climb? You better learn basic sequencing. And we’re here to help.
What Happens if You Don’t Sequence? Goodbye Energy.
Sequencing is a critical skill that climbers must master in order to advance. Many climbers, especially when getting started, tend to sort out moves as they come while hanging out on a problem or a route.
However, this adds significant additional time to a climb, time spent hanging on your hands, and drains your energy.
On a slab, this may be a minor issue; but, as climbs get harder and steeper the pump clock starts ticking, and this extra time results in many more falls than is strictly necessary.
The solution to this is simple in principle: plan your route before you start to climb! While simple in principle, it is not always obvious the best way to do this in practice.
In this article, we will discuss some basic tricks to getting a good sequence. It will significantly cut down the amount of time you spend on a route or problem, and therefore conserve much more of your precious energy.
Planning Your Climbing Route. In Your Head.
The process of sequencing begins with mapping out handholds. You will map out from start to finish which ones you will use and in which order you will grab them.
When doing a sequence, it is critical to use your imagination. Physically pretend to grab each hold in sequence and in the way in which you would if you were climbing.
This is referred to as “imaging”. The physical act of pretending to grab holds increases your speed while climbing and reinforces the memory of the moves.
The Fundamentals of Sequencing: Let’s Begin
Determining your sequence can be tricky. And it gets trickier as the difficulty increases. However, a few basic ideas can go a long way to creating an effective sequence for a new route.
Alternate Your Hands
Most sequences alternate hands.
So most will be L-R-L-R… or the reverse. Use this as your default pattern unless there is an obvious reason the sequence may require a different pattern (like in a bump, L-L-R, etc.).
Pay Attention to the Holds
Aim to grab each hold in the best way possible.
At easier grades, sequences are typically straightforward. Tilted holds are usually meant for side pulls (not gastons) because these require less effort to hold to. Handlebars are usually jugs, not underclings, for the same reason.
Footholds are not typically used for hands, etc. Need a refresher on holds? Check out ‘What to Know About Climbing: Basic Hold Use.’
Reverse Engineer It
If a sequence seems hard to figure out, reverse engineer it.
Sometimes, it is not obvious exactly what order a group of holds should be used in. A useful trick for this situation is to look further up the problem and find a hold that must “obviously” be grabbed in a certain way.
For instance, an obvious left-hand side-pull that moves up and right to the finish (i.e. a move that could not be done with the hands reversed). From that hold, pretend to “downclimb” the sequence, reversing the sequence back down through the problem area.
This procedure can be used to determine the moves you would need to do to get through the tricky part and end up grabbing the upper hold the proper way.
Remember, Remember, Remember Your Sequences!
This last tip is particularly critical.
I am constantly surprised by how many climbers will successfully get all but the last move or two of a route, then, the very next time they get on the problem, fall several moves lower because they used a completely different sequence.
Good sequencing provides two key benefits.
First, as we discussed, it speeds up your climbing by removing the time it takes to figure out a move while you are on the wall.
Second, it allows you to figure out more efficient routes to the top. Once you have figured out a sequence, particularly an effective one, it should only change if you find a more effective option.
Remembering and preserving a good sequence saves you wasted time and energy on your next attempt. But it also allows you to rehearse and refine those movements on successive attempts. This greatly reduces your energy drain and improves your odds of a send.
So, avoid creating unnecessary work for yourself–remember your sequences!
What About My Feet?
On a final note about sequencing, you may have noticed that we have not mentioned anything about planning which footholds to use in our sequences. This was intentional.
While sequencing your feet is a useful skill, it is a bit more complicated than hand sequences, and cannot be done well without learning a few skills that we will cover in later articles. Further, planning your feet properly requires a mastery of planning your hands first.
This is because, due to the need for cross-body tension, your feet follow your hands (not the other way around).
What we mean by this is that since the hand you plan to reach with determines the foot you should be standing on, you must have your hand sequence set before you even start thinking about planning your feet.
A Few More Tips and Tricks
As you get started, these tricks will help you decipher most sequences, and learn how to get into the flow of a route. A few final general tips will help climbers get the most out of their sequences.
Always sequence and use imaging from the bottom to the top (from start hold to finish hold) before starting a route or problem.
Develop the habit of re-running your sequence before every attempt, even on problems you are familiar with.
Always physically imagine your sequences–don’t just run them in your head.
Do You Climb? You Better Learn Basic Sequencing
We sequence our climbs beforehand to help prevent falls and wasting energy. Use your imagination and make sure to remember your sequence. If it helps, sequence after every climbing attempt. Alternate your hands and pay attention to your hand holds, your feet will follow. When in doubt, reverse engineer it starting from the top and working your way down.
Got it? I know you do. Climb on.
All material is reprinted with the permission of the author. Copyright 2022 David H. Rowland. All rights reserved.
