What is a climbing pyramid?

A climbing pyramid is a training structure where you accumulate many sends at easier grades, fewer at moderate grades, and only a handful at your hardest grade. The broad base builds movement skill and endurance that support the harder tip.

How many routes should I do at each grade?

A common methodology targets roughly eight sends two grades below your redpoint, four one grade below, two at your redpoint, and one attempt at a project grade above. This tool scales those ratios from your input.

Does this work for both bouldering and sport climbing?

Yes. Select the V-scale for bouldering or French grades for sport routes. The pyramid logic is the same; only the grade labels and typical session volumes differ.

Why train below my hardest grade?

Volume at sub-maximal grades grooves efficient movement, builds capacity, and lets you climb often without excessive fatigue or injury. Pyramids that are too top-heavy stall progress and raise injury risk.

How long should I spend filling a pyramid?

Most climbers fill a pyramid over a four to eight week training block, then re-test their redpoint and rebuild the pyramid one grade higher. Treat the counts as weekly or per-block targets depending on your climbing frequency.

Climbing Grade Pyramid Builder

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A grade pyramid is one of the most effective ways to structure climbing training. This tool takes your redpoint grade and lays out how many sends to target across the grades below, at, and above your level — a broad skill base supporting a narrow hard tip.

How it works

Your input grade is mapped to a numeric index (French 6a, 6a+, 6b… or V0, V1, V2…). The tool then builds bands relative to that index using a standard volume ratio:

limit  (redpoint + 1):  1 attempt
goal   (redpoint):      2 sends
build  (redpoint − 1):  4 sends
base   (redpoint − 2):  8 sends
base   (redpoint − 3):  6 sends (optional mileage)

Each lower band roughly doubles the volume of the one above it, which is why the structure forms a pyramid. The wide base develops movement efficiency and endurance; the narrow tip is where you push your true limit.

Example and tips

A climber who redpoints 7a would target one attempt at 7a+, two sends at 7a, four at 6c+, and eight at 6c. Fill the lower bands first to warm into the harder ones, and only re-anchor the pyramid a grade higher once the goal band is comfortable. Keeping the base wide is what protects against the plateaus and finger injuries that come from chasing grades too aggressively.