EXPERT | Udo Neumann on Movement, Learning, and How to Coach Climbing

Udo Neumann is a climber, performance coach, and motor-learning explorer. He’s the author of several books, including the cult classic Performance Rock Climbing.  He was the German National Team coach from 2009 to 2017, working with several European and World Champion athletes during that time, including Jan Hojer and Jule Wurm. Today he advises federations and works with athletes and coaches all over the world.

In this episode, we discuss his ideas around motor learning and coaching movement, whether a coach needs to be as good as the athlete, how he assesses climbers, what makes Janja Garnbret and Tomoa Narasaki special, and what makes the Japanese team so good.

Find Udo online at udini.com and on YouTube.

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🔍 EXPLORE FURTHER

You might enjoy these related articles, episodes, and other resources:

Performance Rock Climbing by Udo Neumann and Dale Goddard

Episode 482: The Coaching Eye - How Reliably Can Expert Coaches Observe Movement? | The Perception & Action Podcast

Cognitive Bias Codex Infographic from Visual Capitalist

Coaching for Mastery Course

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Find full episode transcripts and more at our website.

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📚 CHAPTERS

(0:00) Intro and Guest Introduction

(3:09) Have We Overemphasized the Physical?

(7:26) Udo’s Transition to the Ecological Approach to Coaching

(8:42) ANNOTATION: Bernstein, Degrees of Freedom, Repetition Without Repetition

(14:54) Deliberate Play

(29:32) The Athlete Doesn’t Need All of the Information

(32:33) Does a Coach Need to Be Better Than the Climber?

(34:57) Technique vs. Skill

(40:02) Open and Closed Skills

(40:52) ANNOTATION: Open and Closed Skill Continuums

(45:51) Adaptability and Biases in Climbing

(51:07) ANNOTATION: Marshmallow Test and Delayed Gratification

(56:40) What Makes Janja Garnbret So Good?

(59:20) Rhythm and Patience

(1:02:01) How Does Udo Assess Movement Skills?

(1:09:09) How Often Should We Give Explicit Instruction?

(1:16:29) Using Video in Coaching

(1:28:34) Are Comp Boulders Useful for Outdoor Climbers?

(1:32:40) What’s the Secret of the Japanese Team and Tomoa Narasaki?

(1:42:07) Wrap Up