Slab climbing

Reviewer The hip-out-for-smears explanation alone (and why it contradicts what you usually hear) makes this worth watching.

Moderator Fully on-topic slab technique breakdown — smearing mechanics and edging, delivered by a slab specialist (Anna Hazelnutt). Every section is directly about slab climbing.

Reviewer Excellent — covers the mechanics AND the mental game AND gives you drills to train it.

Moderator Comprehensive and entirely on-topic: smearing mechanics, shoe choice, hip position by angle, palming, calf endurance, heel resting, the mental side (commitment), plus specific training drills (one-hand/no-hand climbing, repeat-the-boulder). All slab-specific.

Reviewer Sharp, specific tips - exactly the kind of detail that usually only comes from years of trial and error.

Moderator Three tips, all specifically slab: leaning out then snapping back in to stand into a higher foothold without getting pushed off the wall, turning the knee out when stepping down so it does not knock you off, and using the arms as counterweight on big balance-y slab moves. No filler.

Reviewer The friction-physics explanation is a great foundation — you understand why the technique works, not just what to do.

Moderator On location on a real slab route (The Nose, Looking Glass), builds up the physics of friction (coefficient of friction, normal force) and ties it directly into shoe choice and foot positioning technique. Entirely on-topic.

Reviewer The controlled-fall warm-up drill for managing slab fear is something I don't see covered elsewhere in this batch.

Moderator Answers a viewer's specific slab question (fear of face-planting on a slip) with three on-topic tactics: shoe sizing for smaller footholds, hip position on sloped holds, and a controlled-fall mental warm-up drill. All slab-specific.

Reviewer Genuinely technical footwork detail from a serious coaching outfit.

Moderator Filmed explicitly on 'vertical slab, really technical walls' and teaches precise footwork (inside/outside edging, weighting for a rock-over) that is exactly what slab climbing demands. The real thing.

Reviewer The at-home board drill is a nice touch - real way to train slab balance without a wall.

Moderator Opens by defining slab climbing itself (low-angle, foot-intensive, balance-dependent, punishes people who lean on upper body strength), teaches correct foot placement (outside edge of the toe box), then gives an at-home balance-board routine built specifically to train slab-relevant balance. Consistently on-topic.

Reviewer Explains the why behind every cue - that's what separates a real coach from a highlight reel.

Moderator Every single tip here is slab-specific: heel drop, hips out for visibility, smooth weight transfer, lateral hip shift, palm press. Nothing generic bolted on - this is a slab lesson start to finish.

Reviewer Sharper and more technical than part one - genuinely useful once you're past the basics.

Moderator Same format as part one - Emily walks through specific slab boulder problems and explains her reading and footwork on each. Entirely slab-focused.

Reviewer Straightforward, well-explained fundamentals - a good starting point.

Moderator All five tips are core slab body-position fundamentals - weight in the feet, hips over feet, hip openness, feet-first movement, plus a slab-specific training tip (wall squats). No detours.

Reviewer The 'push test' demo for toe placement makes the physics click immediately.

Moderator Three tips, all squarely slab fundamentals: weight over the target foot ('nose over toes'), toe placement near the wall edge for a better angle, heel down when smearing on volumes. Entirely on-topic.

Reviewer One clear fix: hips under the hold first, then drop onto the foot. The foot and knee detail stops you blocking your own move.

Moderator Squarely slab: where your body goes when reaching for a far foothold. Get the hips under the hold first, stabilise, then go down, rather than chasing the foot. Includes opening the foot and tracking the knee along the wall so it doesn't hit and block the move.

Moderator This is a genuine slab climbing session - they specifically pick slab boulders and narrate footwork, weight distribution over volumes, and patience on small holds in real time. Squarely on this sub-skill.

Reviewer Good real technique cues on patience and footwork on slab, even if it's more conversation than formal lesson.

Reviewer A strong slab climber explaining her reasoning, not just showing off the send - worth your time.

Moderator Route-by-route slab breakdown the whole way through - heel-out balance, approaching close starts from the side, using volumes, push-pull counterbalance to avoid barn dooring. Every technique is demonstrated on an actual slab problem.

Reviewer The before/after demo (barn door vs. one-finger stick) sells the cue better than most longer videos manage.

Moderator Single, specific slab technique tip — bottom-foot positioning and rising onto the toe to bring the hips over the foot when the feet are spread wide. Entirely on-topic, no filler.

Reviewer Solid, accurate intro to what makes slab different - balance and precision over strength.

Moderator Whole video is dedicated to slab - comparing it to other styles, discussing balance over pulling, smearing, precision footwork. Squarely on topic.

Reviewer Practical, honest tips - the fall-practice advice for building trust on slab is worth the watch alone.

Moderator Does exactly what the title says - explains why slab is hard (no holds, polished rock, mental game) then gives concrete slab tips: stay compact, rehearse moves instead of muscling through, practice falling to build trust, heels-down smearing on volumes. Squarely built around this sub-skill.

Reviewer Actually programmable - durations and reps, not just vague advice.

Moderator This is a training session, not a technique breakdown, but every drill - traversing, toe stabs, down-climbing - is explicitly built to train slab-specific balance and weight-over-feet skills. In service of the sub-skill even though the framing is my routine, not how-to.

Reviewer Explains the why behind smearing, not just the what - genuinely useful for slab.

Moderator Framed as general footwork (episode 2 of a series), but the meat of it - heel down on slopers and volumes to keep pressure and stick the smear versus heel up sliding off - is precisely the core skill of slab climbing. It's just not branded as a slab video specifically, so I won't call it fully squarely-on-topic, but the content transfers almost directly.

Reviewer Strong strength-and-mobility breakdown for high-stepping, which does carry over to slab — just don't expect smearing/edging technique here.

Moderator Framed as slab-climbing lessons and tied to real slab sends (Quarryman, Push the Sky), but the actual technique being taught is high-stepping/rockover mechanics and the flexibility/strength to execute it — that's one component that matters for slab, not the core slab skillset (smearing, edging, friction, hip positioning on featureless rock) covered by the other videos in this batch.

Moderator A meaningful chunk of this is spent working through a slab boulder specifically, with real coaching in the moment (hand and foot placement calls) and direct discussion of why slab is hard and how avoiding it holds people back. It's wrapped in a broader 'break your plateau' framing, but the slab content is substantial and genuine.

Reviewer Genuinely useful approach to cracking a hard slab boulder, aimed at climbers already comfortable at V6+.

Reviewer Gets the slab mindset right: balance, feet, body position, less arm pull. Principles alone won't fix a specific problem.

Moderator Slab bouldering explained through its core principles: balance, precise footwork and subtle body positioning rather than pulling with your arms. That's the right framing and it's squarely about slab.

Moderator This is about precise foot placement on small, indistinct holds and pure friction when you move from gym climbing to real rock - balancing through your feet rather than the wall. That's squarely a slab-climbing skill.

Reviewer Short but genuinely useful: learn to balance through your feet on small structures, not the side wall.

Reviewer A genuinely useful drill - keep the hips still, trust the feet, stop yanking with your arms.

Moderator This is the core of slab technique even though it's never named that way - keeping your center of gravity low and still while you move your feet, standing on friction instead of pulling with your arms, practiced on easy routes. That's exactly the skill slab climbing depends on.

Reviewer Good core idea about hip position, but explained a bit unclearly.

Moderator On topic -- this is about keeping your hips away from the wall for foot friction on slab, which is the central slab-climbing principle, even though it's awkwardly worded.

Reviewer The smearing section alone is worth it for slab climbers.

Moderator General face-climbing footwork (edging/smearing, balance, straight arms), and it explicitly calls out smearing as the go-to technique for slab. Covers slab among broader technique, not exclusively.

Reviewer The slab drill portion is clear and genuinely useful for a beginner.

Moderator Slab (the 'no-hand slab' drill) is one of five exercises in a beginner progression video, not the whole focus, but it gets real, dedicated teaching time as one of the named drills.

Reviewer Clear, well-demonstrated footwork basics - good foundation before tackling slab specifically.

Moderator Good fundamentals video on precise foot placement and avoiding banging/scuffing/bouncing, but it's general climbing footwork, not slab-specific - doesn't touch smearing, slopers, or the trust/friction problem that defines slab. Foundational, transfers to slab, but isn't about slab.

Reviewer Smart insight buried in watch-this-watch-that commentary - you need the video, not just the words.

Moderator The whole session is spent working comp-style slab boulders and talking through them - it's on topic, just delivered as banter between two strong climbers rather than a structured lesson.

Reviewer Good list of what to work on, but no actual instruction yet.

Moderator On topic -- names three real slab climbing fundamentals: standing up, standing on volumes, and foot swaps.

Reviewer Solid, specific fixes that transfer directly to slab.

Moderator General beginner mistakes video, but two of the three (lazy leg/smearing with the non-active foot, stable base as a triangle) are core slab-balance skills, even though never framed as slab-specific.

Reviewer Right idea, but the explanation tangles itself up mid-sentence.

Moderator This is genuinely about core slab mechanics, staying close to the wall for friction, hip positioning, and the balance trade-off of standing too close vs. too far. Squarely the skill, even though it's delivered in 23 seconds.

Reviewer Excellent live coaching on the slab portion - just know that's only half the video.

Moderator Only the first of two climbs coached here is a slab - Paul says outright they're moving to something a little bit steeper for the second half, which is overhang and steep-wall technique, not slab. So a good chunk of this video is off-topic for this specific sub-skill even though the coaching quality is real.

Reviewer Fun to watch, but it's comp commentary, not real instruction.

Moderator Literally a slab-only competition, every boulder shown is a slab problem including the no-hands ones. On-topic throughout.

Reviewer Right skills to work on, but it mostly tells you what to practise, not how.

Moderator Names three real slab fundamentals: standing up on a foot, standing on volumes and foot swaps. The topic is spot on, but it works as an introduction, with the actual breakdown promised over the coming weeks.

Reviewer Quick beginner intro to slab. Enough to get you thinking about balance and feet, not a full lesson.

Moderator Beginner-level slab climbing tips, which is squarely the right territory. Pitched broadly rather than at one specific slab skill.

Moderator Same territory as most slab-climbing shorts -- the title is squarely about slab technique, and the caption specifically calls out balance and outdoor bouldering, which are genuinely central to climbing slab. On target.

Reviewer Calls out the balance side of slab climbing specifically, which is the right focus, even if the depth is hard to judge from this alone.

Reviewer The slab section is smart and specific, just wish it were the whole video.

Moderator Opens on a genuinely slab-specific problem (footwork on dual-textured jibs and volume smearing, shoe choice for it), but then pivots into coordination dynos, a different discipline entirely. Partial coverage.

Reviewer Good structure and a solid smearing explanation, but most of it isn't about slab.

Moderator Covers five separate skills for breaking the V3 plateau - foot switching, hip pivoting (built around overhangs), smearing on tight footholds, and rock-overs. Only the smearing segment is really speaking to slab; the rest is general bouldering technique for movement efficiency.

Reviewer Clear drills, but there's a coaching-services pitch in the middle and it's not really slab-focused.

Moderator This is about fixing 'front-on' hip position via rotation and pivoting, mostly demonstrated on an overhanging route - that's more about taking weight off your arms on steep terrain than it is about slab's balance-and-friction problem. The pivoting-on-the-toe piece has some crossover to slab footwork, but the drills themselves are built for overhangs.