CLIMBING TRAINING Reading time : 8 min Updated October 28, 2026
Contents
A climbing session is built on three choices: the mode (top rope, lead or bouldering), which decides the safety to put in place; the band of the climbers, which decides what the library offers; and the theme of the work, of which there are nine. The library has 30 drills split as follows: 9 for the under-9 band, 20 for U11 · U13, 27 for U15 · U17 and 27 for U19 and adults. No finger-strength drill is offered before 18.
Three modes, three safety set-ups
The mode does not name the competition discipline: it says where the risk is, and therefore what must be in place before starting.
Mode
Safety
Library drills
Top rope
rope run through an anchor above; the belayer keeps the rope taut and lowers the climber. Partner check before every route.
Push with the legs, Top-rope belaying, Controlled lowering, Introduction to speed, Continuity / ARC endurance
Lead
the climber clips on the way up; the fall is caught dynamically. Yellow passport to lead climb, orange to brake the fall.
Six-minute observation, Progressive lead-fall practice, Clipping technique, Rope management on lead, Managing fear of falling
Bouldering
no rope; pads and spotting. The three rules of the white passport.
Spotting on the boulder, Landing & mat safety, Boulder in all directions, Limited attempts, Hover hand, Volumes & balance, Dyno & coordination, The quiet-feet game, Movement course (young children), Contact strength (adults 18+ only)
On any wall
the mode of the drill is that of the wall it is done on
Silent feet, Weight transfer & balance, Side-on / hip to the wall, Flagging, Drop-knee / backstep, Rock-over / mantle, Ground reading, Read then commit, Partner check (before every climb), Core & antagonist conditioning
Classification by mode: that of Paak's library. An “on any wall” drill such as the partner check applies as soon as a rope is involved.
Nine themes
The themes come from the FFME passport modules, from the teaching of the DAV and J+S, and from the literature, not from another sport.
Belaying and safety is a theme in its own right: a coach does it every session. Speed is thin out of honesty: no federation we read publishes a drill for the standard route.
Putting the session together
The library arranges its drills by the three moments of a session, with no set duration: a warm-up (Silent feet, Push with the legs, Partner check (before every climb), Spotting on the boulder, Landing & mat safety, Movement course (young children)), a main block (the great majority) and a game (Read then commit, Limited attempts, The quiet-feet game). A warm-up contains no high-intensity drill.
Start with the safety of the chosen mode: the partner check before any roped route, the three rules before any boulder problem.
The FFME white passport opens top rope, the yellow lead climbing, the orange the dynamic fall: choose belayers accordingly.
Choose the theme, then the band, then look among the drills of that theme: the hub list filters by band and by theme.
What the library does not offer young climbers
Some choices are written into the library and are not oversights:
No lead climbing before the U15 · U17 band: lead and the lead fall start at that band.
No route reading, speed or physical preparation before 9, and no mental drill before the U15 · U17 band: no source we read publishes a mental drill for young children, so none is invented.
No contact strength before 18: the one drill of this type is reserved for adults (see the guide on fingers).
The dyno, feet on the ground only before 18: the library drill rules out the double dyno with the feet off the wall.
Paak's u9, u13, u17 and sen bands are not federation categories; they only serve to arrange the drills.
Drills of the day
An example session for a U11 · U13 group, made only of library drills: a footwork warm-up, belaying work on top rope, a movement drill and a game.
the climberbody / movement pathhand holdfoothold
Silent feet
Place each foot precisely and quietly on the hold, with no scraping or re-adjusting, to build footwork accuracy and weight over the feet.
Drill details
Set out
An easy traverse or top-rope route on jugs and large footholds; coach or partner listens for foot noise.
What it trains
Place each foot precisely and quietly on the hold, with no scraping or re-adjusting, to build footwork accuracy and weight over the feet.
Published frame
Eyes to the foot before it lands.
How it runs
Place each foot precisely and quietly on the hold, with no scraping or re-adjusting, to build footwork accuracy and weight over the feet. An easy traverse or top-rope route on jugs and large footholds; coach or partner listens for foot noise. Climb slowly; look at the foot, place it once, weight it. Any audible scrape or slip = restart that move. Emphasise pushing up with the legs, arms straight.
Coaching points
Eyes to the foot before it lands. One placement, then commit weight. Push with the legs; keep arms straight to save the forearms. Quiet feet = precise feet.
Make it harder
Add a small overhang or smaller footholds; blindfold the last placement for advanced feel.
Make it easier
Lower-angle slab, big footholds, one move at a time with the coach naming each foot.
the climberthe belayer / spotterbody / movement pathrope line / line of sight
Top-rope belaying
Belay a top-rope climber keeping the rope taut but without hauling, always keeping one hand behind the brake - the core FFME 'blanc' belay competence.
Drill details
Set out
Top-rope station set; climber tied in and checked (see clim-partner-check); assisted-braking or manual device on the belay loop.
What it trains
Belay a top-rope climber keeping the rope taut but without hauling, always keeping one hand behind the brake - the core FFME 'blanc' belay competence.
Published frame
FFME (blanc), verbatim: 'Manipuler la corde .
How it runs
Belay a top-rope climber keeping the rope taut but without hauling, always keeping one hand behind the brake - the core FFME 'blanc' belay competence. Top-rope station set; climber tied in and checked ('Partner check' drill); assisted-braking or manual device on the belay loop. Take in the rope smoothly as the climber rises, keeping it taut but not pulling them up; the brake hand never leaves the brake side; use the safe hand-over technique.
Coaching points
FFME (blanc), verbatim: 'Manipuler la corde ... de manière à toujours conserver une main derrière le frein'. FFME (blanc), verbatim: 'Assurer la montée du grimpeur en moulinette en conservant la corde tendue, mais sans le treuiller'. DAV principle: 'Bremshand am Bremsseil'. Keep the rope taut, watch the climber, not the device. Never let go of the brake to swap hands.
Make it harder
Belay a heavier climber; add a short lower-off ('Controlled lowering' drill).
Make it easier
Coach backs up the brake hand; climber stays low.
the climberbody / movement pathhand holdfoothold
Flagging
Use a trailing leg with no foothold as a counterweight to stop the body swinging (the 'barn door') and free a hand to move.
Drill details
Set out
Boulder or route where a hold layout would swing the hips out (offset holds).
What it trains
Use a trailing leg with no foothold as a counterweight to stop the body swinging (the 'barn door') and free a hand to move.
Published frame
The free leg stops the barn-door swing.
How it runs
Use a trailing leg with no foothold as a counterweight to stop the body swinging (the 'barn door') and free a hand to move. Boulder or route where a hold layout would swing the hips out (offset holds). Before reaching, swing the free leg across or behind to counterbalance; press it lightly against the wall or air-flag it; then move the hand without the hips rotating.
Coaching points
The free leg stops the barn-door swing. Flag on the side away from the reaching hand. Small pressure, big balance effect. Move the hand only once the body is still.
Make it harder
Rear flag and inside flag variants; on steeper ground.
Make it easier
Use a real foothold for the trailing foot first, then remove it.
the climberbody / movement pathhand holdlanding / fall zone (pad)
Limited attempts
Solve a boulder in a fixed number of attempts, rehearsing the current competition points model where every failed attempt costs 0.1 and attempts break ties.
Drill details
Set out
An on-sight boulder near the climber's limit; a rule of e.g. 3 attempts; a bonus for reaching the zone hold.
What it trains
Solve a boulder in a fixed number of attempts, rehearsing the current competition points model where every failed attempt costs 0.1 and attempts break ties.
Published frame
Z = zone, T = top. World Climbing points model per source.
How it runs
Solve a boulder in a fixed number of attempts, rehearsing the current competition points model where every failed attempt costs 0.1 and attempts break ties. An on-sight boulder near the climber's limit; a rule of e.g. 3 attempts; a bonus for reaching the zone hold. Read from the ground, then attack; bank the zone first, then convert the top in the fewest goes. Track top?/zone?/attempts as a competition would.
Coaching points
Under the current model: Zone = 10, Top = 25, each attempt costs 0.1 (World Climbing). Bank the zone before going for the top. Every extra attempt is a tie-break loss. Read well so the first attempt counts.
Make it harder
Flash-only (one attempt); a 4-boulder mock round with a 5-minute clock.
Make it easier
More attempts allowed; easier boulder.
Frequently asked questions
How long do the blocks of a session last?
The library sets no session length. Each drill carries its indicative duration (10 or 15 minutes), to be read as a guide. The session catalogues of the FFME, the DAV and J+S were not read.
Does Paak plan the climbing session?
Yes, in the app: pick the age band, the duration and the theme, and Paak builds a five-block minuted outline on the team’s session from this library. The warm-up draws on footwork and balance and on belay safety, the closing game is a bouldering game, and physical preparation is offered only from the U11 · U13 band. The adult-only finger-strength drill never appears in a youth plan. Planning, editing and saving is free; printing the session sheet is in Paak One.
Is a specific warm-up needed to protect the fingers?
No prevention warm-up has been proven in climbers. The BMC page for over-18s advises warming up the fingers before campusing and placing it at the start of the session; that is advice, not a tested programme.
Sources
Paak's drill library (nine themes, four bands), built from the FFME passport modules (page modified 14 August 2026), the DAV Kletterscheine, the brochure “Sicher Klettern” and the World Climbing rules (January 2026). BMC, guidance on campus boards (approved by the UIAA Medical Commission). Not read: the DAV and J+S session materials, the FFME drill catalogues.
After “Building a climbing session”, plan the session
The generator is right on the session: plan by the players’ age band and the duration, pick a theme. Paak builds a minuted five-block outline (warm-up, two work blocks, a game and a cool-down) from this same library of 30 drills.
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