The values - performance link
“I prioritise happiness, because if I’m not happy I can’t win.” Shauna Coxsey
I have not always valued all elements of my climbing equally. I was not clear in my values either. I’ve always looked at my climbing holistically, however the reality is for a period of my climbing, I got stuck in the performance tunnel (as some people refer to it). Being in the performance tunnel meant I fixated on grades, valued strength in my fingers and arms (no other parts of my body got a look in), and my connection with climbing was confused and I would not have known what to say if someone had asked me what my values were. Technique was high up the list, I loved being outdoors and travel, but my ‘inner chimp’ was ruling the show! This story starts at the beginning of that period as I began to enter the performance tunnel.
Two times during competitions I experienced something significant in my climbing. But it still took me years to really listen. In fact, if I’m honest, I shunned it, deeming these experiences as being ‘needy’, choosing to believe that if I was to be a good climber (in this case a competitor) I should be able to over-ride all situations.
Me in the final at the 2003 World Cup, Ratho. What I’m wearing is crucial in this story - read on… Photo: Steve Crowe
To warm up in isolation in a World Cup competition is quite something. For me it was one of the most stressful parts of being a competitor. Isolation is a holding room where all the competitors go, away from the spectators and main climbing wall, to ensure than no competitors see any of the climbing in advance. It’s quite something to be warming up next to some of the best climbers in the world. It brings up all kinds of insecurities such as ‘what am I doing here’, ‘oh my god, look how strong they are’, ‘wow their warm up looks way more sophisticated than mine’. It took me some repetition of this to realise there was a level of purposeful intimidation going on – and it was supposed to work on people like me! What this really is though, is an exercise in focussing entirely on your own game and trusting yourself, your own skills, preparation, systems and warm up.
But twice I had an experience, which changed everything for me in those isolations – and competitions. The first time it happened was in 2003 at Ratho in Scotland at the Bouldering World Cup. I had actually made it into the final (see above picture). In those days 12 people made it through. Now isolation prior to a final just magnifies any other pre-existing insecurities, because now the world’s best is distilled even further.
This time Kathryn Meadows joined me in isolation. She was there to support the team with massage. The night before she had given me a massage, which had effectively enabled me to climb in this final, following a muscle aching qualification round the day before.
There I was doing some stretching, in the middle of box splits, when I realised there was a hole in my trousers in entirely the wrong place! She noticed it at exactly the same moment as me. There was a flicker of horror on her face, but it soon turned into hysterical laughter between us. That hole had probably been there for some time – err like throughout the whole of the qualification round probably! Fortunately I had a spare pair of back up trousers (see above photo!).
Here they are, THE trousers. They probably had a hole right in that exact moment. Qualification round, Ratho 2003. Photo: Steve Crowe
This one moment lifted the atmosphere massively.
In 2005 I found myself in isolation again in Birmingham ahead of anther World Cup qualification. My friend Joe joined isolation in capacity as team physio. I amused in watching him absorb his own first isolation experience - we swapped the odd smiling glance and I could relax with a chat.
That competition I climbed really well. I did not place as high as in Ratho and missed the final by two places (too many attempts on bonus holds), but despite a few mistakes I was satisfied as the field was much bigger.
These experiences really stood out for me because competitions really magnify certain aspects of climbing - the pressure, the importance of the moment - and finding your own way in it all. I never experienced anything like this in any other competition and these two, were by far, my best competition experiences and to me the natural result is that I climbed well. With the passage of time, I don’t think this was coincidence.
The learning: that who I’m with and the atmosphere around me matters. It needs to be fun. For me, it counts for an entirely different performance. And ultimately fun is one of my core values in life - and these days I highly value these slightly odd, funny and yet signficant, and sometimes magical experiences. Now, I’m not saying that to be a competitor I needed to recreate this isolation experience each time – that would not have been possible, but there would have been other ways to make them more fun for me. You might say – well isn’t having fun obvious?! Yes it is obvious, but climbing is not always fun, especially when you are filled with anxiety or underneath just feeling uneasy, or when you’re angry and frustrated you fell. It is still possible to have fun, while choosing to put yourself in mentally and physically challenging situations. This may seem like a subtle difference, but it adds up to a huge difference when you choose to put your values at the core of all your climbing experiences.
Every climbing experience is a learning opportunity and eventually I realised, that for me personally, in order to manage all the external stressors when I’m climbing near my limit (wherever that is), I need to feel a sense of joy and fun. And I prioritise this in my climbing. So as you can see, I really resonate with what Shauna, World Cup Champion, says above.
Now these are my values. Perhaps you share them, or you don’t, or yours are similar, or not at all. What is for sure, you will have your own set of values. Two miles from my house is Sheffield Wednesday football team. I drive past it all the time and my daughter has done all their school holiday camps for the last year. There emblazoned on their emblem is ‘Consilio et Animis’. Courage and Wisdom. Every football team does it. Imagine walking in each day to train and play there, reminding yourself of the essense of what your team stands for. I’m well aware that different people climb from different values. And people will have different behaviours, habits and actions, which will help them access those values. The key is understanding your own values and embodying them within your own climbing.
So what are your values? Do you incorporate them into your climbing and training? And do any of them conflict (ooo that’s a biggie)?
Professor Steve Peters (the psychiatrist behind the success of British Cycling) also describes how living by your values can have a direct, positive influence on your confidence, an important factor in success in sport. He did a brilliant podcast, which I share in the link below.