Training routine to climb the North face of the Eiger

I'm going to climb the Eiger in 3 years time and I will be attempting the Mordwand. I am athletic and in my mid twenties but I have zero climbing experience. What should I do in the next 3 years to train? What are some lifts and progressively harder climbs?

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  1. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    You should ask someone who is good at climbing mountains. No one here probably can help.

  2. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    read "training for the new alpinism" also be prepared to train your ass off (2-3 hours+ per day).

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Don’t forget freedom of the hills.
      Spend some time training at altitude. Should get experience on rock snow and ice.

  3. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I don't think anyone here is actually an expert in alpinism, but maybe you should try climbing easier routes first? People have died climing the Eiger
    Train your upper body but keep yourself lean or you'll carry unnecessary weight

  4. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Maybe do pullups and a shitload of dips. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGcuXgYVteE&t=817s

  5. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Bodyweight calisthenics, a shitload of cardio and hiking (35lbs pack minimum)
    And fricking mountain climbing otherwise you're gonna die like a noob dipshit on the side of a mountain you had no fricking business being on

  6. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I'm trying to get into climbing too, OP. Going to do Rainier next summer and try and get some 14ers in CO this winter. Does anyone have some gear they want to get rid of, or know where I can get good deals on stuff by chance?

  7. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >Mordwand
    It will be if you're asking IST for advice

  8. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    You don't lift weights to climb. You need strength endurance and insane stamina. So climb as much as you can (rope climbing on training walls and easy natural routes) and train a lot of stamina.

    I'm not sure why you selected one of the most difficult and dangerous routes of the Alps for your first big climb, though.

  9. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >North face of the Eiger
    I don't think you will get enough technical experience for that in 3 years

  10. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    You should climb and possibly boulder. Several times per week.

  11. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Climbing that is almost certain death

  12. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    actual alpinist here
    honestly, this sounds like an early mid age crisis; your objective feels rushed and very random. why eiger? why the north face? what happens after 3 years? why all this if you have never climbed before?
    i assume you're from europe, so start doing this:
    start doing long trekks (3-5+ days) into any mountain range. get used to walk long distances with +20kg of equipment/food. theres so many little stabilization muscles you're gonna work out that a gym wil never even touch. do as much summits as possible so you properly train and understand how climbing and descending mountains works.
    try to do this at least once a month.
    get a experienced partner to go with you EVERY TIME. you need to bond, as your partner will be the most important piece of equipment in any climb. you HAVE to get along at ground level to get along up there with all the pressure, discomfort and tiredness. don't even bother if you don't match.
    climb waterfalls first, A LOT of them. only ice is good to have the notions of what the frick you're supposed to do, but it's nowhere near the same as rock/ice, it's a whole new level.
    if you keep the thread alive for a couple of hours, i can get you more advices, as i need to leave now

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I'm trying to get into alpine climbing but I live in Texas. What should I do? Will indoor climbing translate at all or is it a waste of time? Any way to practice with crampons and ice axes and other basic mountaineering skills away from snow, ice, and mountains?

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        i'm not familiar with texan geography, but if you don't have mountains near you, try running on trails with bad terrain. you absolutely need each step to be uncomfortable and unstable, as this will train those micro stabilizer muscles in your legs and core.
        as for indoor climbing, for sure it will help, especially with all the knowledge of knots. they are a must: you need to know how to execute them in every scenario possible (one handed, left/right handed, traced and 'untraced' variations, opposite pov (as to tie someone who cant do it at that time), and so on). seriously, this can be the difference between life or death in some situations.
        sadly, there's no replace for ice climbing. arguably, tree climbing could be somewhat similar, but i think they use a whole different anchor technique, as well as different type of 'crampons', if they're crampons at all, i really don know, as i never done tree climbing.
        you can, however, train the same group of muscles used in ice climbing. calisthenics should cover most of the strenght training needed for climbing. don't forget legs and especially calves, as they will do a lot of the work in climbing in rock or ice.
        if you're serious about alpine climbing, i'd suggest to do as much work you can while at home and or boulder gym, practice every time the knots in different scenarios, they really should be your second nature, and plan on travel in winter to a rocky/icy location near you for the whole season. alternatively, travel to chile or peru (or europe) as they have great mountains for all levels.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          This is very good advice, OP.
          t. ISTist
          [...]
          Gym climbing is very different from outdoor rock but it translates a good deal. Ideally you want to do both. Outdoor climbing experience is mandatory if you're going to do anything remotely close to the Eiger. I don't have much experience with rock climbing (or ice climbing), although I've done both, so I will offer you other advice.
          Get backpacking experience. TX is a huge state and you may not be near parts that have varied elevation. If you are, go there though. Build experience backpacking since that's the base you'll need. Then add other factors like winter (cold), ropes (maybe you can find a canyon in TX to practice in), etc. You need to be fit, of course, but mountaineering (and outdoor skills in general) are so much more about good judgement than how many squats or pullups you can do. Build good judgement. That is your primary focus when you're training. You don't need to go mountaineering to do that, backpacking will help. Learn how to plan really well and how to handle unexpected situations when they come up (they will, no matter what). Where should you camp and why? How much water and food and fuel will you need? How will you handle a whiteout at 12,000 feet? What will you do if you get separated from your climbing partner? What will you do if you encounter dangerous wildlife on your trek in? Experience will teach you all of these things. Start going on hikes and make them progressively harder. Go backpacking a lot. You should do as much mountaineering or similar activities before your actual climb too. A serious mountain demands serious experience. You need to do other less technical mountains first (like Rainier).
          Again, mountaineering (and any serious outdoor skill) is about good judgement. If you're not in control of the situation, turn back and get out.
          As you build experience you'll get a feel for what you can handle and what you can't. Don't take unnecessary changes.

          thx for the replies. I've been working on knots at home already and am going to take a belay class later at an indoor gym. I'm ex-mil so am familiar with rucking and have national forest near me where I can ruck at.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      This is very good advice, OP.
      t. ISTist

      I'm trying to get into alpine climbing but I live in Texas. What should I do? Will indoor climbing translate at all or is it a waste of time? Any way to practice with crampons and ice axes and other basic mountaineering skills away from snow, ice, and mountains?

      Gym climbing is very different from outdoor rock but it translates a good deal. Ideally you want to do both. Outdoor climbing experience is mandatory if you're going to do anything remotely close to the Eiger. I don't have much experience with rock climbing (or ice climbing), although I've done both, so I will offer you other advice.
      Get backpacking experience. TX is a huge state and you may not be near parts that have varied elevation. If you are, go there though. Build experience backpacking since that's the base you'll need. Then add other factors like winter (cold), ropes (maybe you can find a canyon in TX to practice in), etc. You need to be fit, of course, but mountaineering (and outdoor skills in general) are so much more about good judgement than how many squats or pullups you can do. Build good judgement. That is your primary focus when you're training. You don't need to go mountaineering to do that, backpacking will help. Learn how to plan really well and how to handle unexpected situations when they come up (they will, no matter what). Where should you camp and why? How much water and food and fuel will you need? How will you handle a whiteout at 12,000 feet? What will you do if you get separated from your climbing partner? What will you do if you encounter dangerous wildlife on your trek in? Experience will teach you all of these things. Start going on hikes and make them progressively harder. Go backpacking a lot. You should do as much mountaineering or similar activities before your actual climb too. A serious mountain demands serious experience. You need to do other less technical mountains first (like Rainier).
      Again, mountaineering (and any serious outdoor skill) is about good judgement. If you're not in control of the situation, turn back and get out.
      As you build experience you'll get a feel for what you can handle and what you can't. Don't take unnecessary changes.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      moron advice lmao
      What you actually need to do is focus entirely on heavy lifting. You need to hit 2/3/4/5 and you are good to go. Don't bother doing cardio as the increased elevation makes the air lighter and less tiresome for your lungs to inhale.
      Also you need a partner to "bond with". View your partner as your most important piece of "equipment". You have to get along lifting to get along with all the "pressure, discomfort and tiredness".
      Also you should probably watch a few introductory videos on rock climbing the week before you go.
      Have fun bro

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Can you post body? I am curious what an alpinist looks like.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        can't right now, will do later if the thread is still up.
        still, i think there's not such thing as a alpinist body. i've met a fat guy who could climb just fine. maybe not the most enduring routes/lines, but very technical lines were even easy for him. ofc if that guy would have been thinner he'd literally fly up the walls. it all comes on how much time have you been doing this, and how willing are you up for it. there's a reason on why there's lots of old people doing alpinism.

  13. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >Mordwand
    If that's not a bad omen I don't know what is.

    Like everyone else already said.
    Practice Practice Practice
    Ideally at altitude. You need a lot of experience to attempt that climb.

  14. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    train climbing
    train for iron hard stamina
    famous ueli steck would use to train daily at least 1 -4 hour of running
    stabilization (core) training or other training
    1 hour of strechting

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      somewhat bad example. he had a great train regime, but only a rich guy like him could follow. as acomplished as ueli was, he was an arrogant piece of shit that his own stubbornness got himself killed.

  15. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >What should I do in the next 3 years to train?
    climb easier mountains
    dude, climbing is extremely taxing on your body

  16. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Some alpinists make this mistake of treating it like an athletic endeavor, but the stressors in alpinism are not athletic, but existential.
    >muh training for new alpinism
    Alpinism is about being able to survive the extremes of existential stress, the best way to train for that isn't hillrunning with a backpack or some other moronic stuff, it's having sex and eating lots of ice cream. Mallory went to 8600m with no oxygen after never having jogged in his life. The whole myth of "training" is very detrimental to the reality of alpinism, especially high-altitude.

  17. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    don't have much advice as I have little to no experience with climbing sports - but I imagine a rigorous, endurance based cardio routine combined with a metric shit-ton of body-weight exercise will form your foundations. Fricking awesome that you're doing this man, so stoked for you - good luck and stay safe. Godspeed based mountain-climber anon.

  18. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Kettlebell swings, pull ups, and dips 3x a week should get you strong enough without taking too much energy away from climbing training and without making you gain much weight.

  19. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >zero climbing experience
    >I'm going to do one of the most dangerous climbs on earth because I saw it on youtube
    Guy you haven't even taken a step on the path and you're declaring you see the finish line.
    Go get experience and come back, maybe then I'll take you seriously.

  20. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    You better start learning climbing and alpine mountaineering then.

  21. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Don't have a nice day on the Eiger, there's no glory left on that old boulder. If you are serious about it, do something original.

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