Amazing climbing, splitter weather, phenomenal people and dogs!

So here’s the conundrum…rock climbing is (relatively) dangerous! This is where the tension occurs. Our brains' sole job is to protect us, but often, our hearts' deepest longing is for the adventure, novelty, excitement, challenge, connection and exploration that climbing offers. All of these things can freak our brains out! Doesn’t it make sense that our brain may have a thing or two to say about this heart that wants to run off to do these crazy adventures and flaunt danger?

We can always find something to be grateful for, in even the worst situations. But we often need to wallow in the muck for a while before we’re able to see what it is really important to us and what we are truly grateful for.

So now the next obvious question is, what action should I take? This is a great place for the negativity bias to kick into high gear as we start to think of all the “stuff” that needs “fixed” in the world or in our own lives. This is right where we can get pulled into the cycle and end up overwhelmed, burned out or simply paralysed with the immensity of it all. The key is to start with tiny, little, baby steps.

The truth is, balance is dynamic and ever moving and there is no ‘perfection.’ The second you think you have everything just perfect something will come along and knock you sideways once again. But, just like the highliner, this doesn’t mean that you are no longer in the game of balance. It just means the game got challenging. It got interesting. It requires you to take what you are experiencing and make choices on what results you would like to see.

For years I was repeating this cycle with out understanding why or knowing how to change my behavior. I was rarely at a loss for ideas but very rarely ever completed any of my grand projects. This includes two attempts at college degrees. 

It wasn’t that I wasn’t smart enough, capable enough, motivated, inspired, or that I lacked any particular hard skill. It simply came down to presence and willingness.

As we talked and he opened up about his struggles, I started to think back to some of our tension and arguments. It hit me like the knuckled backhand of epiphany. 

If we’re honest and willing to look, we’ll see that many of our daily routines are studded with decisions that are based on doing or not doing something to avoid discomfort.

While getting stronger and improving footwork may increase the chances of sending, our true point of power lies in the ability to shift our attention and focus on a outcome that interests us and is geared toward learning and growth as a climber.

A simple, daily exercise to train your stressed out brain