Big week! Sent my first V8 in the gym, my first V5 outside, and led a 5.8 trad route. Holy cowabunga, spaghetti monster!
Monday
2 hours of bouldering at the gym. Sent my first V8, a slabby balance-fest with a tricky finish. Tried a lot of other crimpy, slabby, pinchy problems. Finished with shoulder exercises, stretching and rice bucket work.
Tuesday
Rest day. Pull-ups, one-armed hangs, foam roller.
Wednesday
Big day! Sent my first V5 outside, and my first project, an arete traverse starting from under a roof, using heel hooks and big reaches to crimps. Real fun.
Thursday
Lower impact day. One hour of bouldering outside on “my” project walls: Cleaning lines, trying variations, did about 5 problems.
Friday
30 minutes of step-ups with 42#. Pull-ups, foam roller.
Saturday
Big day! Two trad leads, including a 5.8 classic (highest grade yet)! We did a “multi-pitch” and I practiced setting up an anchor with gear and belaying from top. Easy bouldering in the afternoon.
Sunday
Big day! Sent a fun V4 classic in Lincoln Woods. Took quite a few burns (8 or 9 attempts, maybe?), then tried my hand at a similar styled V3 on the opposite wall.
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Photo sources: The author
Aaron Gerry 