The ups and downs

Another night at the climbing gym. Chris and I spent between two and two-and-a-half hours working our way through routes tonight. I have gotten into the bad habit lately of getting really mad at myself for not being able to finish routes that I should be able to finish quite easily. I got really pissed when Chris was attempting to get me to relax and have fun by being funny. I was less than thrilled. But it is very true that I need to chill out. Instead of enjoying the moment and just having fun with it, I have been taking certain routes way too seriously, which causes me to mentally psych myself out.

What started everything was that in order to get me to slow down and make more controlled moves, whenever I hit my knee, Chris would have been do a route below my skill level. It is a really good way to get me to concentrate on good feet placement, give me the benefit of being able to take my time and not stress out about it, but I managed to frustrate myself to the point of getting pissed that I didn't finish an easy route. I really have been setting too high of expectations for myself. Nothing new there.

On the bright side, I have been trying to work on more difficult routes as well, trying to improve my skills, and I've been working some more on the natural wall. I have been making some real progress I feel, like being able to hang onto the wall when my feet unexpectedly give out, being able to better problem solve by finding holds or using different techniques, etc. So I just need to focus on having fun and stop taking everything so seriously! I got into climbing because the first time I did it, I instantly loved it. I need to bring myself back to that point.