Last night at the gym I jumped on an 11b route that's been spitting me off on a regular basis.
I've only worked all the moves once.......when I first tried the route and failed. Usually I get to the 2nd clip and get pumped and lower off.
But last night I hit it and everything flowed........I felt smooth and in control. My footwork was sublime, everytime I needed a foot placement I found one that accentuated my body position and every handhold led me to the correct positioning for my body. I'm not saying it was easy, there were some powerful and awkward moves and some real technical techniques I don't normally rely on involved.
It was more of a mental state I found, one that's been lacking lately.
Total focus on the next set of moves, the next clip, the next foot hold....everything just fell into place with no (mental) struggle.
Heightened awareness but total focus, no emotion until the end of the route.
I could hear some of the regulars encouraging me but it was relegated to the back of my mind.....most of my focus was on the climb.
That mental state is where I want to be all the time.......that's where I want to live.