Emil Abrahamsson is an elite boulderer, route setter, and YouTuber from Sweden. We talked about goal setting and projecting his first V15 as a V9 climber, the importance of psych and inspiration, experimenting with hangboarding two times per day, how to do one-arm pullups, sharing the experience of outdoor climbing through films, and making a living through his YouTube channel.
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thenuggetclimbing.com/support
Become a Patron:
patreon.com/thenuggetclimbing
Show Notes:
thenuggetclimbing.com/episodes/emil-abrahamsson
Nuggets:
3:11 – Building a van and planning a bouldering trip around Europe
6:01 – My bouldering goals, Emil’s progression, and setting goals
9:27 – Trying a V15 as a V9 climber, and how a lot of climbers stay “comfortable” at a specific level
12:53 – ‘The Big Island’
17:17 – Emil’s first day of climbing, struggling early on, and getting hooked
19:38 – Alternating difficulty and volume goals
21:32 – ‘The Queen Mother’ (Emil’s first 8B/V13 project in Stockholm), and the limiting power of expectations
29:21 – Reflecting on ‘The Queen Mother’, and prioritizing psych and motivation
32:00 – Felix
37:13 – “Swiss Recruitment”, or the Swiss style of projecting
41:00 – How Emil got into YouTubing, capturing the experience of outdoor climbing, and my impression as a viewer
44:27 – Forgetting to charge the batteries, and the stress vs. fun of filming
47:42 – Work-life balance when you love your work, and turning YouTubing into a career
49:34 – How to balance capturing footage with training or performing, and capturing the good and the bad
51:15 – Emil’s “No Hangs” hangboard video, and his caveat for training advice
56:00 – Quick overview of the “No Hang” hangboard protocol, and Emil’s theory of why his fingers got stronger
1:00:16 – We get most of our strength through climbing
1:01:41 – 4x4s and other climbing games
1:04:10 – Training your strengths, and practicing weaknesses through climbing
1:06:59 – How Emil structures his training, and embracing the stretching “pain game”
1:11:49 – Turning challenges into positives, and the benefits Emil has noticed from stretching
1:14:46 – Patron question from Florian about avoiding crimping early on in his climbing, and how Emil worked to improve his crimp strength later
1:18:34 – How Emil rewired his brain to think, “Full crimps are comfortable. I can enjoy these.”
1:19:32 – Emil’s crimp progression and current level
1:21:53 – One-arm pull-ups, 4mm crimps, front levers, and getting weaker on purpose to get better at technique
1:28:55 – Emil’s recommendations for progressing to a one-arm pullup
1:33:41 – How Emil pronounces his name, and a Patron question from Flynn about training for indoors vs. outdoors and competing in World Cups
1:41:12 – Flash training
1:43:44 – World Cup goals, and the flame of competition
1:47:34 – What is one of the weirdest/worst training experiments that you’ve tried?
1:50:24 – Favorite films, the critical eye, and the need for consistent content
1:54:48 – Recommendations for new viewers
1:56:35 – Emil’s dream collaboration
1:58:17 – Gratitude
2:01:03 – Finishing the van, and plans for Switzerland and Italy
EP 119: Carrie Cooper — Thinking of Ourselves as Athletes, Research in Climbing, and Mobility and Warming Up
EP 118: Chad Andrews Interviews Steven Dimmitt — Repost from the Clipping Chains Podcast
Follow-Up. Joe Kinder — Sending 'Mamajamma', and What I Learned from 5 Weeks of Projecting with Joe (Teaser)
EP 117: Yves Gravelle — Lessons From Grip Sports, Basing Your Training on the Demands of Your Goal, and Top 3 Finger Training Methods
EP 116: Paul Robinson — Coming Back From Injuries, Opening Up About Autism, and Working Boulders Top Down
Steven's Blog: Mar '22
Reflections: Mina
Announcing "Reflections" and "Steven's Blog"
Follow-Up: Steve Maisch — Hueco 2022 Debrief (Teaser)
EP 115: Jordan Cannon — The Triple Crown in Yosemite, Big Wall Pooping Stories, and How to Build the Skills to Climb El Capitan
EP 114: Q&A 5 — My Current Finger Training Routine, How to Deal With Bad Body Image, and Golden Nuggets for Newer Climbers
EP 113: Ned Feehally — Beastmaking, Long-Term Finger Training, and Climbing With Ankle Weights
Follow-Up: Steve McClure — Sending ‘Lexicon’ E11, Projecting Tips, and How to Enjoy a Long Life of Climbing (Teaser)
EP 112: Favia Dubyk — Specializing in Lowball Roof Bouldering, Surviving Cancer, and Learning How to Dyno
EP 111: Jerry Moffatt — Being a “Crag Rat”, Developing Your Mental Game, and What the Top Climbers Have in Common
EP 110: “The Verm” Returns — Life Lessons at Age 62, Fun Facts About Birds, and Injury Stories
Follow-Up: Josh Wharton — Attempting to Flash 'Freerider' on El Cap (Teaser)
EP 109: Martin Keller — How to Train on Rock, Your Subconscious Brain, and Lessons from 150+ Days on a Boulder
EP 108: John Sherman — Hueco Tanks in the 80s, Highballing Before Crash Pads, and Adding Layers to the Bouldering Experience
EP 107: Tim Emmett — How to Climb Harder After 40, The Magic Formula for Climbing 9a, and Life Philosophies
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