Minimal Metric System for Climbers

Minimal Metric System for Climbers

The Problem With Overtracking

Tracking everything creates:

  • Analysis paralysis
  • Metric chasing
  • Increased anxiety
  • Reduced focus on execution

Tracking nothing creates:

  • Guesswork
  • Overload spikes
  • Misinterpreted plateaus

The solution is not more data.

It is better data.

The Four Core Metrics

For most serious climbers, only four metrics are necessary.

1️⃣ Max Finger Strength

Track:

  • Max hang load on a fixed 20mm edge
  • 5–7 second duration
  • Standardized grip

Test every:

4–6 weeks.

Purpose:

  • Monitor force ceiling
  • Evaluate strength block effectiveness

Do not test weekly.

2️⃣ Applied Strength Benchmark

Track:

  • One fixed board problem
  • Or one fixed benchmark circuit

Monitor:

  • Attempts to send
  • Movement quality
  • Success rate

Purpose:

  • Evaluate integration of force
  • Detect power stagnation

This connects isolation to performance.

3️⃣ Weekly High-Intensity Exposure

Track:

  • Number of max hang sets
  • Number of limit board attempts
  • Number of hard route sessions

Purpose:

  • Prevent structural overload spikes
  • Manage recovery
  • Identify unsustainable weeks

Volume awareness prevents injury.

4️⃣ Structural Irritation Score

Weekly self-rating (0–10):

  • Finger irritation
  • Elbow discomfort
  • Shoulder tension

Purpose:

  • Early warning system
  • Detect tolerance mismatch
  • Adjust volume before breakdown

Subjective — but predictive.

What Most Climbers Do Not Need

You likely do not need:

  • Daily HRV tracking
  • Advanced force sensors
  • Velocity trackers
  • Skin moisture logging
  • Multiple benchmark rotations

These add complexity.

Complexity must justify its cost.

For 90% of climbers, it does not.

How to Review Metrics

Every 4–6 weeks, ask:

  • Has max strength increased meaningfully?
  • Has applied performance improved?
  • Has irritation remained stable?
  • Has volume been sustainable?

If yes:
Continue.

If no:
Adjust one variable.

Not five.

The Stability Rule

Never change programming based on:

  • One bad session
  • One low number
  • One failed attempt

Evaluate trends.
Not moments.

Why Minimalism Works

Fewer metrics:

  • Increase clarity
  • Reduce emotional reactivity
  • Improve long-term consistency
  • Make programming cleaner

The goal is not to become a data analyst.

The goal is to improve climbing performance.

The Core Principle

Track what drives adaptation.

Ignore what feeds ego.

Four numbers, consistently tracked,
outperform twenty poorly interpreted ones.

Older post Newer post