Took me 6 years to realize I was pacing wrong on climbs

I always thought I was just slow on steep sections, so I'd push HARD to try and keep up with the group. Last month on the Cascade Pass trail near Marblemount, my buddy finally said, "you're sprinting the switchbacks, that's why you're dying at the top." He showed me his trick of taking a breath every 2 steps and basically shuffling, no matter how slow it felt. I tried it on the way down and it was like a DIFFERENT person on the next climb. All those years I thought it was fitness, but it was just my stupid rhythm. Now I'm wondering if anyone else had a basic technique click for them way later than it should have, or if I'm just uniquely oblivious here.

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mitchell.shane12d ago

Wait, so your buddy let you suffer for 6 whole years before dropping that gem on you? That's either a true friendship or a really long prank. I had a similar thing with hiking poles, took me forever to realize you're not supposed to just drag them like dead sticks, you actually push off with them. Once I figured that out I felt like a total idiot, but also like I'd unlocked some secret cheat code. Anyway, at least you got there eventually. Better late than never, right?

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