Opponents of training for climbing have long pointed to Chris Sharma as an example of why systematically training for climbing isn’t necessary.  Their logic is summed up in statements like: “Sharma doesn’t train so just climbing outside must be the best way to improve”.

While we obviously disagree with this statement and don’t think saying Sharma doesn’t train is true to begin with, it is true that Sharma has never followed a strict training program.  However, that is all changing now that Chris has committed to training with the renowned Spanish trainer Patxi Usobiaga as his coach.

With goals like climbing the Le Blond Project, a route that has the potential to be the world’s first 9c/5.15d, Chris decided to change his approach and train systematically indoors rather than simply training on the routes themselves.  Here’s a video that showcases some of his training sessions with Patxi.

Video of Chris Sharma Training With Patxi Usobiaga:

The video itself includes Chris talking about his reasons for committing to this kind of training and then showcases Patxi putting Chris through some brutal looking training circuits.

Enjoy the video below or click through for the original.  Either way, be sure to give this video a watch.  There’s really no better cases for training than seeing one of the sport’s icons trying out a different approach and feeling gains from their hard work.

Original Video: Chris Sharma Training for Le Blond Project

(video still courtesy of epictv.com)

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