The Power Company Climbing Podcast Plug Tone Audio

Udo Neumann is a climber, performance coach, and motor-learning explorer. He’s the author of several books, including the cult classic Performance Rock Climbing.  He was the German National Team coach from 2009 to 2017, working with several European and World Champion athletes during that time, including Jan Hojer and Jule Wurm. Today he advises federations and works with athletes and coaches all over the world.
In this episode, we discuss his ideas around motor learning and coaching movement, whether a coach needs to be as good as the athlete, how he assesses climbers, what makes Janja Garnbret and Tomoa Narasaki special, and what makes the Japanese team so good.
Find Udo online at udini.com and on YouTube.
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🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER
You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:
Performance Rock Climbing by Udo Neumann and Dale Goddard
Episode 482: The Coaching Eye - How Reliably Can Expert Coaches Observe Movement? | The Perception & Action Podcast
Cognitive Bias Codex Infographic from Visual Capitalist
Coaching for Mastery Course
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🔌 SUPPORT + CONNECT
Help us keep the show sponsor-free when you join our Patreon Community for as little as $3.
Get two or more bonus episodes every month on Patreon, Spotify, or Apple.
Subscribe to THE CURRENT and get a monthly exploration of how we can all become better climbers.
Find Power Company on Instagram and YouTube.
Share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
_________________________
The Power Company Podcast is a proud founding member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry.
Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.
_________________________
📚 CHAPTERS
(0:00) Intro and Guest Introduction
(3:09) Have We Overemphasized the Physical?
(7:26) Udo’s Transition to the Ecological Approach to Coaching
(8:42) ANNOTATION: Bernstein, Degrees of Freedom, Repetition Without Repetition
(14:54) Deliberate Play
(29:32) The Athlete Doesn’t Need All of the Information
(32:33) Does a Coach Need to Be Better Than the Climber?
(34:57) Technique vs. Skill
(40:02) Open and Closed Skills
(40:52) ANNOTATION: Open and Closed Skill Continuums
(45:51) Adaptability and Biases in Climbing
(51:07) ANNOTATION: Marshmallow Test and Delayed Gratification
(56:40) What Makes Janja Garnbret So Good?
(59:20) Rhythm and Patience
(1:02:01) How Does Udo Assess Movement Skills?
(1:09:09) How Often Should We Give Explicit Instruction?
(1:16:29) Using Video in Coaching
(1:28:34) Are Comp Boulders Useful for Outdoor Climbers?
(1:32:40) What’s the Secret of the Japanese Team and Tomoa Narasaki?
(1:42:07) Wrap Up

Where's the first place your mind goes when you don’t stick a move?
If you’re like most climbers, it’s probably your finger strength, or tension, or even your effort, and you’re already considering what hangboard protocol to use or some front lever workout.
But it’s possible you’re looking in the wrong direction entirely...
 
Read the rest on the blog!
Watch the video on YouTube!
_________________________
🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER
You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:
Taped Tips | The Secret to Hard Moves that Most Climbers Are Missing
Our Movement Practice Resource Page
Coaching for Mastery Course
_________________________
🔌 SUPPORT + CONNECT
Help us keep the show sponsor-free when you join our Patreon Community for as little as $3.
Get two or more bonus episodes every month on Patreon, Spotify, or Apple.
Subscribe to THE CURRENT and get a monthly exploration of how we can all become better climbers.
Find Power Company on Instagram and YouTube.
Share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
_________________________
The Power Company Podcast is a proud founding member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry.
Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.

If we want to assess our climbing movement skills over time, are the standardized boards the best option?
We're conflicted...
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🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER
You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:
Our Movement Practice Resource Page
Steve Maisch on Assessments
Board Meetings | The Art of Learning Climbing
Expert | Will Anglin on Climbing All The Things, the Intersection of Strength and Movement, and the Ultimate Tool
_________________________
🔌 SUPPORT + CONNECT
Help us keep the show sponsor-free when you join our Patreon Community for as little as $3.
Get two or more bonus episodes every month on Patreon, Spotify, or Apple.
Subscribe to THE CURRENT and get a monthly exploration of how we can all become better climbers.
Find Nate on Instagram and YouTube.
Find Power Company on Instagram and YouTube.
Share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
_________________________
The Power Company Podcast is a proud founding member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry.
Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.
_________________________
📚 CHAPTERS
(0:00) Theme, Intro, and Topic Description
(3:38) Kris and Nate’s Stances
(5:41) Pro: Often Less Populated
(8:34) Pro: Boards Are Standardized
(10:46) Why Climbing Is the Best Assessment for Climbing
(14:09) Signal vs. Noise
(17:46) Pro: Boards Keep Improving
(20:38) Pro: Angle Change Can Help You See Where Things Fall Apart
(24:52) Pro: If It’s What You’ve Got, It’s a Good Tool
(26:57) Pro: Ability To Create Coaching Playlists
(27:44) Con: No Need for Adaptability
(30:05) Con: Limited and Rewards a Specific Strength or Style
(35:01) Board Climbing Is Wine, Outdoor Climbing Is Coffee
(38:49) Con: Self-Assessment Introduces More Bias
(39:46) Con: Single Snapshots Not As Useful for Assessing
(42:03) Wrap Up
(43:53) Credits and Outro

Will Anglin is one of the founders of Tension Climbing, a company that not only makes training tools, but also is committed to innovation in a way that leads climbers toward mastery over success. In this episode we discuss movement skills, some ways climbers are going wrong in their pursuit and how they can continue improving, and the tools that might get them there.
Check out Tension Climbing and use code STONE at checkout for 10% off of select training tools!
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🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER
You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:
If you’re a coach or a climber who wants to learn how to give better feedback, check out our Coaching for Mastery course, part of the Power Company Climbing Academy.
Go down the rabbit hole on our Movement Practice Resource Page.
Are Your Skills Current?  Also available on Spotify or Apple
Grades Aren’t the Only Way to Measure Progress  Also available on Spotify or Apple
More from Will and our friends at Tension:
Kerry Scott | Ambition, Confidence, and Climbing All the Things
Will Anglin and Rowland Chen | P.O.E.
Will Anglin and Rowland Chen | P.O.E. 2
Will Anglin and Michael Rosato | Boards vs. Spray Walls
Roy Quanstrom | Translating Movement
_________________________
🔌 SUPPORT + CONNECT
Help us keep the show sponsor-free when you join our Patreon Community for as little as $3.
Get two or more bonus episodes every month on Patreon, Spotify, or Apple.
Subscribe to THE CURRENT and get a monthly exploration of how we can all become better climbers.
Find Power Company on Instagram and YouTube.
Share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
_________________________
The Power Company Podcast is a proud founding member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry.
Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.
_________________________
📚 CHAPTERS
(0:00) Intro and Topic Description
(2:48) Climb All The Things
(6:23) Figuring Out How to Change Me
(8:06) Boards Make It Easier to Skip the Discomfort
(9:12) ANNOTATION: Constraints, Compensation, and Choices
(12:16) Climbing as Training
(13:16) Climb What?
(14:00) Not Stealing the Struggle
(15:45) Unlearning Skills
(16:50) ANNOTATION: Coach Over-Instruction and Skills Currency
(18:19) Improvement Is Hard to Measure
(22:50) Grades Only Say What We’ve Climbed, Not How Good We Are
(23:30) Will’s 3 Grade System
(24:05) ANNOTATION: Vegetable Climbs List and Diamond vs. Pyramid
(26:10) Skills Aren’t Separate from Strength and Power
(27:33) Skill Is the Intersection of What, How, and Doing
(28:11) How the Tension Board 1 Is a Movement and Strength Tool
(30:44) Just Climb, But With Intention
(31:33) ANNOTATION: Where Strength and Movement Overlap and the Ultimate Learning Tool
(34:31) Wrap Up
(35:35) Credits and Outro

Lauren Abernathy works hard to be a better climber. In fact, it’s part of her job as owner of Good Spray Climbing to help other people become better climbers, and she walks the walk. For several years she’s worked with our coach Blake Cash, and has recently been supplementing that with private movement sessions with Nate Drolet. 
In this episode, we discuss why she chose to also do in-person sessions alongside her remote coaching with Blake, what’s going well, how she fits the training and sessions into her busy life, and how the movement skills are showing up in her climbing.
Find Lauren online at Good Spray Climbing and on Instagram 
Check out her Fast Track climbing movement course
Listen to The Average Climber Podcast
Book a remote consultation with Nate Drolet.
Find Nate on Instagram and YouTube.
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🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER
You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:
EXPERT | Taylor Reed on Climbing Research and Evidence-Informed Movement Coaching
EXPERT | Rob Gray | How We Learn to Move and Skill Acquisition for Climbers (Part 2)
Lauren Abernathy | From Weekend Warrior to Full-Time Coach
BOARD MEETINGS | Top Ways Climbers are Holding Themselves Back with The Average Climber Podcast
Coaching for Mastery Course
_________________________
🔌 SUPPORT + CONNECT
Help us keep the show sponsor-free when you join our Patreon Community for as little as $3.
Get two or more bonus episodes every month on Patreon, Spotify, or Apple.
Subscribe to THE CURRENT and get a monthly exploration of how we can all become better climbers.
Find Power Company on Instagram and YouTube.
Share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
_________________________
The Power Company Podcast is a proud founding member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry.
Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.
_________________________
📚 CHAPTERS
(0:00) Intro and BUILDER Description
(0:36) Guest Introduction and Details
(2:45) Why Lauren Added In-Person Sessions
(8:17) Was There a Specific Goal?
(9:39) An Example of What Nate Noticed In Lauren’s Movement
(18:43) Lauren Rants About Muggle Gyms
(25:58) Fitting Sessions and Training Into Work and Life
(33:09) Adjusting Skill Session Intensity to Fit Life Stressors
(38:34) Kris Explains His Own Recent Skill Wins
(41:39) How Lauren’s Skill Practice Is Showing Up In Her Climbing
(50:14) The Complexities of Tension 
(1:00:19) Nate’s Monologues
(1:01:43) Wrap Up
(1:04:00) Theme

For most of us, climbing looks like this:
Pull on, try the move, fall off. Stare at your hands and try to understand why you fell. Pull on, try the move, fall off. Stare at your hands and come up with a new reason why you fell. Pull on again, try the move again, fall off.  Again
You get it. You've been there. But there’s a better way.
In this episode, we’re going to talk about the obvious thing that most climbers are missing when it comes to difficult moves and learn several strategies that will help you do those harder moves, harder boulders, and harder routes faster. 
Read the rest on the blog!
Watch the video on YouTube!
_________________________
🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER
You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:
Our Movement Practice Resource Page
Coaching for Mastery Course
_________________________
🔌 SUPPORT + CONNECT
Help us keep the show sponsor-free when you join our Patreon Community for as little as $3.
Get two or more bonus episodes every month on Patreon, Spotify, or Apple.
Subscribe to THE CURRENT and get a monthly exploration of how we can all become better climbers.
Find Power Company on Instagram and YouTube.
Share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
_________________________
The Power Company Podcast is a proud founding member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry.
Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.