Espresso Lessons from the Rock Warrior's Way

Physical training for rock climbing, or any sport for that matter, is formulaic; there is, more or less, an equation to improvement. But perhaps due to its inherent complexity and nuance, mental training has always taken a backseat to physical training in our sport, despite its equal and oft underrated importance. Arno Ilgner’s Espresso Lessons from the Rock Warrior’s Way ($19.95, warriorsway.com) takes the complicated fears, emotions, and doubts our mind creates while rock climbing and teaches us how to handle them and climb harder. Taking ideas from the earlier The Rock Warrior’s Way, it goes deeper than learning to breathe and how to utilize resting, tapping into the almost spiritual aspects of climbing, while offering practical applications for training the mind. Like pushups for your brain, this book offers easy-to-remember acronyms like BERP: Breathing, Eyes, Relaxing, Posture. If your brain is the only thing keeping you from going for that next hold or attempting that sick line, then Espresso Lessons might have the gentle nudge you need to send. — Julie Ellison