Mindset : Being Too Short Is Not the Real Problem…
You are not too short! Being short should never be confused with being too short. Leave the excuse behind. Get really disciplined about catching yourself in the act of blaming an uncontrollable factor for your climbing problems. You can not control your height. But you can control how you think about it.
If your thoughts are not so easily managed, I recommend working with a mindset coach so you have tools ready to be used to steer your thoughts back to a growth mindset. 99% of the time it is doable! That said, you will often have to find your own way, which takes a lot more creativity and playfulness than one might realize, and both of those abilities are squashed by the “can’t” mindset!
Read also our article : The shorter you are, the stronger you have to be
Too short ? Certain Moves Might Be Harder…
You might need to have certain strengths be over qualified for the grade, and that is okay! Here is a list of what I really focus on strengthening as a short climber:
Fingers: I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve been told I have strong fingers so I don’t need to focus on them… LIES. As a shorter climber I am always grabbing the worst holds, and being able to use them or not is a make or break situation.
Hip Mobility and Strength: So important for being able to use high feet. When you can’t reach something the solution is often using higher feet. Rarely do I have to jump, but I often get my foot above hip level or higher.
Core: Read this article
Lock-off Strength: A very important strength for the smaller humans out there and often misunderstood or not trained correctly. My favorite drill for practicing lock-offs is 5-Second Hovers. In this climbing exercise, you simply hover over a hold for 5 seconds before grabbing it. You can do this on routes or boulders, and on as hard of grades as you can actually maintain the 5-second hover!
To summarize, it is possible you are not strong enough for the grade you are trying to climb, but your height is probably not the thing that is going to hold you back from ever sending it.
