I’ve been climbing a long time and I always struggle with movement. Possibly because, as I evolve in the sport, the way I move inadvertantly changes. Nevertheless, my mind has to catch up. To visualize upcoming moves you must know what to expect from your body. I climb slow. Guys who climb slow think I climb slow. When I go to the Santa Barbara Zoo I love to watch the three-toed sloth. He makes me wish I could take 10 minutes to do a move, stop, think about stuff, do another move, stop, look around at stuff, do a move… But unfortunately I am human (technically) and maybe I climb too slow sometimes. The argument can be made that some moves are done much more efficiently with momentum. I try to remember, on my strongest climbing days, how I feel while I’m moving. Last week I had such a day. Everything felt easier. I felt lighter. Tension was effortless. Most importantly, slow, deliberate movements felt natural. To maximize such days would be huge. I believe training in a slow, deliberate way is more effective than slapping at holds. Try telling Mr. Sloth to pick up the pace. Exactly.