More Than a Number: The True Meaning of Your 'Total Vertical'

In climbing, we often focus on the single, pinnacle achievement: the one hard send, the one perfect day. But what about the sum of all the other days? The warm-ups, the cool-downs, the easy mileage, the pitches you climbed just for the joy of moving over rock.

Each of those moments adds up. Every foot of rock you've pulled yourself up, foot by foot, contributes to a massive, personal accomplishment that's easy to lose sight of.

The Total Vertical chart is designed to make that accomplishment visible. While it’s a celebration of your commitment, it’s also a powerful analytical tool. It helps you understand your accumulated experience, track your consistency over time, and see how your base fitness supports your peak performance.

Why Volume Matters: The Foundation of Climbing Fitness

Before diving into the chart, it's crucial to understand why volume is so important. Elite climbers don't just train hard—they accumulate a massive volume of easier climbing. Why?

• Movement Vocabulary: Every pitch you climb, easy or hard, teaches your body a new way to move. High volume builds a deep well of movement patterns, making you more intuitive and efficient when you encounter new sequences.

• Base Fitness & Work Capacity: Your aerobic base, built through sheer volume, is what allows you to recover between attempts on your project, hike to the crag without feeling drained, and handle multiple hard climbing days in a row.

• Supporting the Pyramid: A wide performance pyramid is built on a massive foundation of mileage. The "junk miles" you climb on easier terrain are what develop the rock intuition and tissue resilience needed to support high-end performance.

How to Read the Chart: Beyond a Simple Tally

This is the most straightforward chart in the app, but it has hidden depths.

• The Number: A running total of the vertical distance you've climbed, calculated by summing the length of every pitch you've ever logged.

• The Milestones: To give this number context, we compare it to a new, tiered system of climbing-specific landmarks. As your total grows, you'll pass milestones that resonate with a climber's journey, from iconic routes to legendary alpine objectives.

Beyond the Total: Analyzing Your Volume Trends

The real power of this chart comes from looking at the trends over time. Your app allows you to see your volume broken down by month or year.

• Volume Velocity: How has your rate of climbing changed? A steep increase in your yearly volume might indicate a major trip or a new level of dedication. A slow decline might be an early warning sign of burnout or waning motivation.

• Seasonal Patterns: Do you climb high volume in the cool temps of fall and less in the summer heat? Understanding your seasonal pulse helps you plan your training and rest cycles more effectively.

• Discipline Breakdown: How much of your total vertical comes from long multi-pitch routes versus single-pitch cragging? This can reveal if your experience matches your adventurous goals.

Putting Your Insights into Action

The primary action this chart inspires is strategic planning.

1. Set Volume-Based Goals: Instead of only chasing grades, set goals for your total vertical. This is an incredibly powerful way to build your base.

   • Performer's Goal: "During my 3-month base-building phase, I will increase my average monthly volume by 20% to support my next projecting cycle."

   • Lifestyler's Goal: "I will aim for a consistent monthly volume of 2,000 vertical feet to maintain my fitness and stay engaged."

2. Use it as a "Slump Buster": If you're feeling stuck in a rut, a volume goal can be more motivating than a performance goal.

   • Action: "This month, my only goal is to climb enough to pass the 'Nose of El Cap' milestone." This can bring the joy back into your climbing when you're tired of chasing grades.

3. Align with Your Goals: This chart is particularly meaningful for certain Climber Archetypes.

   • An Explorer will see this number shoot up after big multi-pitch adventures, directly reflecting their goal of covering massive amounts of terrain. They can set goals to climb the total height of a famous multi-pitch route over the course of a season.

   • A Technician can use consistent, moderate volume on easier terrain as the perfect environment to practice new movement skills without the pressure of performance.

What This Chart Isn't

• A measure of difficulty. It treats a pitch of 5.8 and 5.14 exactly the same. That's not a flaw; it's the feature. It honors all time spent on the rock.

• A tool for comparison. This is your personal number. Comparing it to others is meaningless, as every climber has a different mix of disciplines, local crag height, and logging habits.

The Total Vertical chart isn't just about how much you've climbed—it's about how much you've learned. It's a simple, honest, and powerful measure of your accumulated experience.

Now, head to the app and check your Total Vertical. What does the story of your experience tell you?