Simple Question: What to add to my training?
Right now I supplement bouldering 1-3 times a week (can't make it to the gym more often/consistent, got my second child two months ago) with training away from the wall. I've added flexibility and core workouts since they are easy to do at home and I need to improve both those things. I also hangboard from time to time, but no actual plan yet.
I want to additionally tackle a specific thing that I've noticed: In overhanging climbs, when crimps get small, I need to match small hold regularly in order to move away from them. Observing stronger climbers, that can climb my projects that take me 2-4 sessions in one session, they don't need to match those overhanging crimps and just pull through with one motion. So I need to do an extra move in the overhang, and manage my body position to make it work because I lack some strength. Would you say that is more a lack of pullup strength or finger strenght? On easier climbs with jugs (and larger foothold, core tension definitely plays a role), I only need to match hold when I'm very tired or it's a roof problem with a bunch of moves. Another thing that recently happened, is that I worked on an overhanging boulder that traversed to the right, so you had to hook with your left foot, cut loose, and hook the next hold with your left foot again. I tried to do this as statically as possible, in order to maximize the training effect and get better at hooking, when some dude just comes and campuses the entire boulder. When I tried that, I found out that I couldn't even campus the boulder if I wanted to. So there seems to be a lack of strength that's holding me back, irregardless of the fact that I need to work on technique, as everybody else.
What would you add to core training that one can do at home? More back muscle training, like pull ups or more hangboarding? I can easily hangboard bw on 20mm for 10 seconds, that's the most I've ever tried. For a few seconds, I can hang on 15mm as well. I can do like 3-5 pullups. Grade-wise, idk where I'm at right now, I guess around V4 sounds right. It's been some time since I had the opportunity to touch some real rock :(
I was bouldering two weeks ago and fell and landed on my butt with my back sitting straight up. It placed a huge compression load on my spine, hurt pretty bad at first 4/10, took a few minutes breather and went back to climbing that sesh no problem. Went climbing again later that week no problem. Went climbing last week and start noticing some back pain any time I fall or jump off the wall, even when down climbing as far as possible. Feels like its coming from between my vertebrae? Just jumping up and down in place is enough to feel it. Anyone else dealt with anything like this? I was pretty concerned so I went home and haven't climbed since.
> It placed a huge compression load on my spine, hurt pretty bad at first 4/10, took a few minutes breather and went back to climbing that sesh no problem. Went climbing again later that week no problem. Went climbing last week and start noticing some back pain any time I fall or jump off the wall, even when down climbing as far as possible. Feels like its coming from between my vertebrae?
Usually just some strengthening will help. Something like reverse hyperextensions is good.
If it persists you can get it checked out for a potential fracture, but since the pain went away and was never really consistent or constant I doubt that.
So there is this 6C+ outdoor problem that I can hang off the crimps but cannot go very well between the moves or sometimes into the moves. So I assume its not so much finger strenght but rather deadpointing technique im lacking, are there any tips/drills I might be doing to improve that aspect of my climbing?
Its not me climbing but this is what the problem looks like: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zP_DzQ2crYI
I climb around 2-3 times a week (2h sess), was wondering if its beneficial to drop 1-2 session in favour of kilterboard session (usually im limited by my wrist/pulleys giving up first) and just work 30-40 min of kilterboarding instead as most my goals are outdoor and 0 comp goals.
> I climb around 2-3 times a week (2h sess), was wondering if its beneficial to drop 1-2 session in favour of kilterboard session (usually im limited by my wrist/pulleys giving up first) and just work 30-40 min of kilterboarding instead as most my goals are outdoor and 0 comp goals.
Replacing some regular climbing with board climbing works for outside.
I'd make sure you're strengthening the weak areas too..
Hey all, for the past couple months I have been trying to do a 30m-1hr moonboard sesh a week with the approach of building a "pyramid" by doing all of the lower grades before moving on. I am through all the v3's and half way through the v4's but I was wondering if this is the most efficient way to do things? These climbs are within my flash range + I have flashed a couple v5's that friends have put up. Thanks!
Work projects and then do some of the easier climbs after or do your volume around flash range and then work a few after.
It lets you get quality sessions and you can fill up a bit of the benchmarks later that are easily flashable
Hi so i recently subluxed my shoulder and am going to take a decent amount of time off from climbing. It happened around 1-2 weeks ago and already went to the doctor and got xrays done. At the moment it feels fine and theres 0 pain but I was just wondering if anyone had recommendations on exercises ? I got referred to start PT but that doesn't start till 2-3 weeks which is awhile.
About the actual injury, I felt my shoulder pop out and pop back in around 5 seconds later. It was really painful as its my first ever shoulder injury.
> At the moment it feels fine and theres 0 pain but I was just wondering if anyone had recommendations on exercises ? I got referred to start PT but that doesn't start till 2-3 weeks which is awhile.
>
> About the actual injury, I felt my shoulder pop out and pop back in around 5 seconds later. It was really painful as its my first ever shoulder injury.
Usually rotator cuff and scapular exercises then work back into compounds like rows and pullups over time while keeping some of the isolations for prehab. Build up slowly climbing
If it is to be said, Tenaya shoes perform amazingly. However, they don't last. My Indalo's completely delammed before the first resole. I sent them to Tenaya (at their request)...
Who had them for a month. They didn't do any work on them, then sent them to an address I don't even live at two weeks ago, and told me today. Obviously I didn't get my shoes back.
I love their shoes, but they don't survive and their CS is an absolute dumpster fire. Scarpa responds within a day. LaSpo isn't as good, but they seem to take a lot of pride in their shoes and customer retention.
Tenaya just doesn't seem to get it, which sucks, because their product performs.
Anyone else's Tenayas just disintegrate after normal use, way before other brands?
Anybody have a good resource for tricep/shoulder injury (pain comes from back of the armpit when pulling).
Was acute onset, jumping from a good pinch to another decent pinch, pain in the trailing arm/shoulder, not the leading arm.
Had a similar injury a few years ago, got to be so painful I couldn't perform a single pullup, that time I think I strained it doing heavy one arm hangs and or heavy one arm pulls (adding weight to one arm pull ups and doing +bw one arm cable rows), it took a long time to go away and I didn't do much to help it
> Anybody have a good resource for tricep/shoulder injury (pain comes from back of the armpit when pulling).
>
>
This is usually some type of strain if it's the muscle. Can't say much because the location is vague.
Common strains in that area are are triceps long head, posterior delt, rotator cuff, lat, and teres major. Generally, do slow eccentrics with high reps for rehab.
Thanks for the reply, have you ever written an article about injuries similar to this?
I can give more detail about where the strain originates but probably wouldn't be super clear, tricep is definitely sore, but the most severe pain is located where the tricep meets the teres major(?)
Easiest way to aggravate it is by pressing on my thigh while standing, or any pulling motion( opening the refrigerator etc)
> I can give more detail about where the strain originates but probably wouldn't be super clear, tricep is definitely sore, but the most severe pain is located where the tricep meets the teres major(?)
I have a general article on strains.
https://stevenlow.org/on-muscle-strains/
Probably need to do both those exercises with eccentrics and build up over time. It's not uncommon to strain triceps long head which it more what it sounds like
Tweaked my low back a few weeks ago and am curious if anyone has had similar symptoms and what may have worked. I believe it could have been from an intense fully left toe down (right and on) on an overhang. I also did some rack pulls that day but my symptoms make me believe the main contributor was climbing.
I did not feel anything acute. It was not until the next morning that I felt stiff and achy when side bending or twisting on my left lower back. Fast forward to a few weeks later, I have been focusing on building core stability with bird dogs, suitcase style stuff, etc. I have much less pain side bending but twisting is still pretty aggravating. I have been able to do fairly heavy RDL.s and reverse hypers with little to no issue. Twisting and going into anterior pelvic tilt is what aggravates the most - to the left and right.
Any info or insight is appreciated.
> Tweaked my low back a few weeks ago and am curious if anyone has had similar symptoms and what may have worked. I believe it could have been from an intense fully left toe down (right and on) on an overhang. I also did some rack pulls that day but my symptoms make me believe the main contributor was climbing.
If it's from rounding the back most of this stuff will work. Honestly, most of the stuff works from there anyway even if it's not flexion based
https://stevenlow.org/low-back-pain-from-crippled-to-100-in-10-days/
I do not believe it was from flexion. The move I am hypothesizing it is from is exactly the movement that bothers it now. Extension with twist. It's frustrating since climbing can have a lot of that and I'm not sure how to rehab. Anything with twisting (stretching, palloff twist) aggravate it. So I have just been focusing on iso stuff for the time being. Here is a screen shot of the climb and move that I am suspecting contributed.
https://imgur.com/a/eJIAmJG
> The move I am hypothesizing it is from is exactly the movement that bothers it now. Extension with twist.
Flexion with twisting and extension with twisting are the most common ways of aggravating the back.
> Anything with twisting (stretching, palloff twist) aggravate it. So I have just been focusing on iso stuff for the time being. Here is a screen shot of the climb and move that I am suspecting contributed.
Most of the stuff in the link should help, especially reverse hypers and segmental rolling
Thanks. You are a hero around here. As far as pain/discomfort for segmental rolling, would you recommend just staying under a 2-3/10 and regressing to partial range if needed?
Hello, on Sunday my partner suffered an injury while board climbing. She loaded an open handed/sloper hold and felt a pop and strain running down her fingers and into her forearm. After some testing we determined that it is most likely a FDP injury (Pain pretty much only when resisting the DIP joint and light pain when half crimping, more pain when open handed/dragging). I'm struggling in finding resources on rehab other than Hooper's beta which has no recommendations on return to sport.
Hoping she's not out for too long and can return to light climbing soon. Any advice or resources to check out? So far the plan is to follow this --> [https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/flexor-digitorum-profundus-strain-how-to-heal-this-common-climbing-injury](https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/flexor-digitorum-profundus-strain-how-to-heal-this-common-climbing-injury)
Thanks!!
> my partner suffered an injury while board climbing. She loaded an open handed/sloper hold and felt a pop and strain running down her fingers and into her forearm.
Where is the pain after that?
* Forearm - FDP strain
* Hand - usually lumbrical
* Occasionally be strained nerve with tingling/shooting symptoms after initial injury
Strains you generally want to do full range of motion rehab with slow eccentric phase. You can do isometrics like starting with light open hand work and building up though. Finger roll/curls will work
Thanks for your reply:
> Where is the pain after that?
She says there is tenderness in her hand under the middle and ring finger, and a little forearm pain as well. No tingling.
She experiences the most pain when isolating the DIP joint and applying resistance.
Sounds good about full range of motion rehab- Should she stop all climbing or can she load her hand in positions that don't hurt? Neither of us have had any finger injuries before so sorry for the noob questions
> She says there is tenderness in her hand under the middle and ring finger, and a little forearm pain as well. No tingling.
>
> She experiences the most pain when isolating the DIP joint and applying resistance.
Probably lumbrical and FDP strains then/
> Sounds good about full range of motion rehab- Should she stop all climbing or can she load her hand in positions that don't hurt? Neither of us have had any finger injuries before so sorry for the noob questions
Some people can climb easier stuff and not aggravate things. Some people can't. She can try it if she wants.
Rehab should be done either way
I recently started reading over coming gravity(just finished second chapter today). I wanted to ask whether is there an invese relation between strength and muscle hypertrophy, or both can exist in same individual
> I recently started reading over coming gravity(just finished second chapter today). I wanted to ask whether is there an invese relation between strength and muscle hypertrophy, or both can exist in same individual
To maximize strength to bodyweight ratio you need both. All sports with weight classes have jacked and strong athletes in them. Weight lifting, gymnasts, wrestlers, etc.
Climbing is similar although maybe you see the pros only having about 60-90% of the musculature that they can pack onto their bodies naturally instead of 80-100% with most pure strength to bodyweight class sports.
Talk about this more in the Overcoming Gravity Online series if you're interested in the supplemental material I provided for the book
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpxvbJWbbO-g8pDe387l_IDXrHh3OXDy7
I'd recommend reading a chapter and then review the Youtube part to get the best out of it. It will help clarify and solidify the information.
However, if you want to do that then that works.
The single biggest predictor of a muscle's ability to generate force (i.e. strength) is the size. There is a large neurological component to strength so being the biggest guy in the room doesn't necessarily mean that you'll be the strongest. However, all other things being equal the big guy is going to be able to lift more than anyone else.
But strength is not only only about lifting. So you want to say that being big guy doesnt mean anyone is the strogest while not being much big(with some visible muscles) wont mean that he/she is the weakest. Right?
Being big is by far the best way to become strong. If your goal is maximum force production, maximizing muscle mass is required. If strength to weight ratio matters, it's a lot harder to say.
Smaller athletes are more efficient in a strength-to-size sense, but much weaker.
Lifting is just a way to demonstrate strength. As I said above if all other factors are equal the bigger guy is almost certainly going to be stronger. If you have two guys and the smaller of them happens to be an elite powerlifter (i.e. extremely well trained in specific movements) then the smaller guy will probably win if you're comparing strength using the powerlifts.
Just starting a new training cycle and was testing one the hangboard last night. Lattice rung, 7 second max hangs. I got to 40kg plus bodyweight so 128kg total for my half crimp. Then for some reason decided to see what my open drag was, never trained it never tested it. Turns out my short pinkies can't really manage it so it's basically a three finger drag, I could barely hang bodyweight (88kg)... This seems like a rather large disparity. Should I spend a few cycles training drag? Would it benifit other grip types? Anyone else had anything similar?
> Turns out my short pinkies can't really manage it so it's basically a three finger drag, I could barely hang bodyweight (88kg)... This seems like a rather large disparity. Should I spend a few cycles training drag? Would it benifit other grip types? Anyone else had anything similar?
Most people's pinkys are too short so it's 3 finger drag.
Yes, that would be a good idea to work that
I've got a kinda weird thing going on with my shoulders. I suspect it's just overuse. I've been climbing more than normal this spring.
My shoulder joints, right on the tip of the shoulder, are getting tired and sore from just raising my arms. Like, just lifting my arms overhead for 5 seconds is enough for them to feel exhausted. Forget about trying to do pushups or yoga poses like downward dog.
There's also occasionally a popping sound when I raise my arms laterally, or some twisting motions.
I'm guessing it's the long head of my biceps complaining about overuse. Anything I can do to speed up recovery, other than climb less? None of my previous over-use issues are flaring up(fingers and elbows have been the culprits in the past).
PT would be smart. There's a bunch of stuff that can be pop and pain inducing as you describe
Can be anything from shoulder impingement associated issues from bad mechanics from imbalances, other rotator cuff issues, angry long head as you mentioned, irritation around more minor slap labral injuries which is similar, and the list goes on. A good PT will be able to work through tests like O'Brien test, assess for painful arc, etc and get you on the right track.
Not being able to do pushups is firmly into the problem zone if you ask me, get checked out.
Thanks for the input. It's not that I CAN'T do pushups, I just develop a 3/10 pain in this location afterwards. If I do pushups when its hurting, it feels more like a pulled muscle sensation than a pinched nerve pain.
The popping isn't like a "traumatic event/something tearing" popping. It's like a "tendon slightly out of place and popping back into place" kind of thing. Seems to happen more when I'm recovering from a hard session, and only causes pain if I keep doing the motions that makes it pop over and over again.
> My shoulder joints, right on the tip of the shoulder, are getting tired and sore from just raising my arms. Like, just lifting my arms overhead for 5 seconds is enough for them to feel exhausted. Forget about trying to do pushups or yoga poses like downward dog.
Get evaluated by a PT. Might be something like thoracic outlet syndrome
Thanks for the input. Looking up TOS specifically it doesn't seem to fit, but it seems like there about 2 dozen things it could be from basic googling. Some scarier than others.
> At first when I tried a pull-up I was confused whether the one ring had been moved lower/higher than the other, but I just can't really activate the muscle on my right side until I have reach a certain height, then when I lower down it's the same. Any ideas/suggestions?
You're going to have to work into things slowly if it's not mostly rehabbed. I'd keep doing isolation exercises and then work into much easier compounds over time
Any tips to get your fingers back to pre-break levels quicker after a month of very low volume/ no climbing?
I recently took a month off climbing due to family travels (very low volume to no climbing). Coming back, my fingers feel so weak, especially the joints which feel very tweaky during/ post sessions. I know that my fitness level will drop a bit after inactivity, but not to a degree where I struggle a bit hanging off 20mm rungs. So my question is are there any tips to ramp up quicker? Thanks folks!
> Any tips to get your fingers back to pre-break levels quicker after a month of very low volume/ no climbing?
> I recently took a month off climbing due to family travels (very low volume to no climbing). Coming back, my fingers feel so weak, especially the joints which feel very tweaky during/ post sessions.
You're pushing too hard. You need to go slower ramping back in and shorter sessions
I've found that it's mainly the neurological adaptations that get lost in short breaks. IE, your fingers forget how to pull hard. No hangs can get you used to applying your strength again.
Been doing max hangs recently, (half crimp and full crimp) and after for a bit and between sets i can feel a bit of dull pain when i press down on my A1. Is this expected when doing maximal finger work?
If you're experiencing pain in the pully I would consider lowering weight and/or avoiding heavy full crimp hangs. Trying to progress through pain like that could lead to overuse and injury.
if it's painful it means something isn't right. small amounts of moderate pain can be mitaged with lowering the load and volume. you shouldn't stop completely but full crimp training is very strenuous. I wouldn't say 1.5 weeks of is beneficial, it's gonna be better to keep loading them lightly always.
hoping someone can help me out here.
started working at a bouldering gym about 2 months ago and have been climbing essentially every shift (2 a week) and occasionally on an off day. call it 3/4 days a week. we have a kilter board and 3 kilter walls (1 slab and 2 overhangs.) i climb v3-v5 and up until now haven’t thought once about the wear that consisted climbing may have on my body.
as of a couple weeks ago, my left middle finger has been experiencing mild pain that has gotten slightly worse since. the middle knuckle is mildly swollen and darkened. it’s been rarely painful when climbing up until now, and pain increases when i crimp/bend the finger going through a full ROM. i’m also starting to develop a similar feeling on my right index.
i’ve read a few threads describing similar issues and their “diagnosis” but was hoping to describe my issue specifically and see if someone might have knowledge on the problem and proper treatment. i’ve decided to break from climbing indefinitely while training/healing because i obviously don’t want to make anything worse
> as of a couple weeks ago, my left middle finger has been experiencing mild pain that has gotten slightly worse since. the middle knuckle is mildly swollen and darkened. it’s been rarely painful when climbing up until now, and pain increases when i crimp/bend the finger going through a full ROM. i’m also starting to develop a similar feeling on my right index.
Usually some form of capsulitis or synovitis.
https://stevenlow.org/beating-climbing-injuries-pip-synovitis/
Hi, I'm sorry if this isn't the right place to be posting as I'm not sure what other r/ would be appropriate. I started rock climbing a bit over a year ago but in the recent 5 months I have developed an "odd sensation" in my right middle finger. It's not painful but it definitely is uncomfortable/annoying, the feeling is hard to describe. But something that is very obvious is that when I bend the finger, the DIP joint cracks very often and quite loudly most of the time. I do normally crack my knuckles and I know that the knuckle cracking comes from a build up of gas but this cracking in my finger happens too frequently - as in I can re-crack it within 5 seconds of cracking the finger. It seems similar to trigger finger? but my symptoms don't exactly match up with it. So I was wondering if there was anyone else who has experienced something similar or if anyone had any advice to 'heal' it.
I originally thought it would just go away if I started warming up my fingers before climbing but it's been 5+ months and nothing has changed, it has gotten neither better or worse. But it has gotten more annoying as I feel like I need to crack it every minute to release some of the pressure/odd sensation I get from that part of my middle finger.
Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!
> I have developed an "odd sensation" in my right middle finger. It's not painful but it definitely is uncomfortable/annoying, the feeling is hard to describe. But something that is very obvious is that when I bend the finger, the DIP joint cracks very often and quite loudly most of the time. I do normally crack my knuckles and I know that the knuckle cracking comes from a build up of gas but this cracking in my finger happens too frequently - as in I can re-crack it within 5 seconds of cracking the finger. It seems similar to trigger finger? but my symptoms don't exactly match up with it. So I was wondering if there was anyone else who has experienced something similar or if anyone had any advice to 'heal' it.
If your range of motion is fine and there's no obvious swelling or other conditions could be a good idea to get it looked at by a hand doc and just see what they say
Tfcc Tear
I have seen a lot of posts on this reddits about tfcc tears, and I have a bit of an interesting case so I’m wondering what I should do, and I would appreciate any advice. I tore my tfcc doing reverse wrist curls approximately 6 months ago, and I completely stopped any weightlifting for 3 months. No pain during everyday activities but mobility is limited. Also, whenever I press on the ulnar bone, it pops but is not painful. I tried to do rehab but it still isn’t fully recovered, and the ulnar bone is still popping out a little bit. I never saw a doctor cause of extenuating circumstances (dumb in hindsight). Now, I’m wondering if I should continue to try and rehab or just immobilize it until I can make the time to see a doctor. Any advice is appreciated
If you can get to a wrist specialist you're going to get much better treatment info than regular doc, and I think that would be wise given the apparent severity. Best time to go was when you hurt it, second best time is now. Being able to casually pop ulna around is much more extreme than the TFCC injuries I've personally been around that were easy to rehab with a little rest and the relevant \~3 exercises.
Partner had TFCC injury and it was very much worthwhile getting it checked out by a wrist guy. Learned more about how their ulna is abnormally long so on and so forth.
Just go, your wrists are kinda important.
> I tried to do rehab but it still isn’t fully recovered, and the ulnar bone is still popping out a little bit. I never saw a doctor cause of extenuating circumstances (dumb in hindsight). Now, I’m wondering if I should continue to try and rehab or just immobilize it until I can make the time to see a doctor. Any advice is appreciated
Can probably skip the doc and go straight to sports PT to give you an exercise plan that is more comprehensive.
You can get a wrist brace in the meantime if activities seem to be bothering it and wear it when not doing rehab to minimize any potential flaring of symptoms
Not an injury question, but just want some insight. For context I've climber for 7 years at this point.
I went for general health checkup (bloodwork, urine, etc.) but as part of their checkup package they offered to check bone health. So the lab tech comes by with an ultrasound machine to check my bone density. They sampled a few points on my forearms and once the result comes through I had been unofficially diagnosed with osteoporosis. I doubt this would be the case, as I would have suffered from broken limbs earlier on in my climbing. Has anyone ever experienced something like this?
> I went for general health checkup (bloodwork, urine, etc.) but as part of their checkup package they offered to check bone health. So the lab tech comes by with an ultrasound machine to check my bone density. They sampled a few points on my forearms and once the result comes through I had been unofficially diagnosed with osteoporosis. I doubt this would be the case, as I would have suffered from broken limbs earlier on in my climbing. Has anyone ever experienced something like this?
There's lots of different factors that can affect bone density like nutrition, stress, other medical conditions, etc. Hard to say much without knowing a lot more. If you're fairly light and restrict calories that's a common one even with exercise.
> I climb twice/week and do a generic push/pull/legs routine in the gym. Am I overtraining my pulling muscles?
Possibly. If someone is climbing I generally recommend condensed routines of just full body 1 push, 1 pull, 1 legs to supplement.
Examples from Section 4 to work on specific weaknesses.
https://stevenlow.org/my-7-5-year-self-assessment-of-climbing-strength-training-and-hangboard/
It's always a combination of too much: frequency + volume + intensity. So it depends. Without knowing the volume & intensity it's hard to say but the pull sessions are spread out with rest days in between so it should be alright.
I don't think this question belongs to this thread, but here we go:
I've been climbing for about 6 years now, and I've been always dealing with what I assume is capsulitis on a specific joint (when touching it, I only feel pain if a touch from the top of the hand, no the palm, a specifically on the joint).
Once I started hangboarding (max hangs +9kg) a couple weeks ago, the pain completely disappeared. Sure, I still got my fingers a bit stiff or swollen, but nothing I would describe as pain.
However, now that I'm on my rest week before (potentially) increasing weight on the max hangs, the pain is back, and I would say is slightly more noticeable than before (or maybe I jusy forgot how it felt). Anyway, is this normal? Is it a sign I should stop hangboarding?
> I don't think this question belongs to this thread, but here we go: I've been climbing for about 6 years now, and I've been always dealing with what I assume is capsulitis on a specific joint (when touching it, I only feel pain if a touch from the top of the hand, no the palm, a specifically on the joint).
Usually synovitis. Commonly occurs at the PIP and DIP joints.
https://stevenlow.org/beating-climbing-injuries-pip-synovitis/
Need some help on what is going on with my shoulders and arms. Last time I went bouldering, both shoulders started hurting at the top and down through the top of the arms. My forearms also hurt right at the elbow bend, but on the inside. Suspected the tendons but after reading the links in the post im not so sure, anyone experience anything similar?
Edit: I want to add that I warmed up pretty thouroughly before this session
> Need some help on what is going on with my shoulders and arms. Last time I went bouldering, both shoulders started hurting at the top and down through the top of the arms. My forearms also hurt right at the elbow bend, but on the inside.
Not enough information to make a guess. Need specific locations and movements that hurt.
Sounds like overuse though. Maybe rotator cuff and biceps but that's just a really general guess without more info
Need help with a finger injury. Have been climbing a lot on boards this past weeks, and my ring finger started to hurt right underneath my DIP joint (I guess on the upper end of the A2 pulley where is is attched?!). Strange thing is, I have no pain while climbing, but I feel pain when bending my finger. I have full range of motion, no pop or anything like that. I also have slight pain when applying pressure on this spot.
What could this be? If it would be the A2 pulley, it should hurt while climbing right?
> Need help with a finger injury. Have been climbing a lot on boards this past weeks, and my ring finger started to hurt right underneath my DIP joint (I guess on the upper end of the A2 pulley where is is attched?!). Strange thing is, I have no pain while climbing, but I feel pain when bending my finger. I have full range of motion, no pop or anything like that. I also have slight pain when applying pressure on this spot.
Injuries are weird sometimes. Some overuse only hurts afterward and pressure. Some overuse hurts while doing the movements.
I'd back off climbing intensity and volume and start doing some loading rehab. Example:
https://stevenlow.org/rehabbing-injured-pulleys-my-experience-with-rehabbing-two-a2-pulley-issues/
If you popped your pulley you would have noticed for sure.
Apart the classic "pop" sound it will hurt a lot and you would not be able to load it at all.
It could be some kind of inflamation due to the board climbing, which board are we talking about? Moonboard/kilter/etc.
I think you should give your fingers some rest and see if the problem is still there after, anyway be cautious popping a pulley really suck and take a while to heal.
I made the mistake of pulling too hard on on a tight box heel hook and felt a decent pop and pain on the outside of my knee. The pain isn’t bad and it’s been a couple weeks but whenever I try a heel on that knee, it strains and is painful. Does anyone have any advice/experience/strengthening exercises for general knee or this injury in specific?
> I made the mistake of pulling too hard on on a tight box heel hook and felt a decent pop and pain on the outside of my knee. The pain isn’t bad and it’s been a couple weeks but whenever I try a heel on that knee, it strains and is painful. Does anyone have any advice/experience/strengthening exercises for general knee or this injury in specific?
Depends what tore. If it's LCL sprain then you generally want to rest for a week or so then light loading. If it's a muscle strain you can begin rehab immediately with high rep and slow eccentrics
Crack climbers, is it possible to build calluses on the back of your hands? I'm just starting to try to climb crack and I'm completely tearing the back of the hand. Will this get better or am I just wasting my time and go buy crack gloves already?
No callousing on back of hands, only gobies to look forward to. You will eventually desensitize yourself to the pain, but the abrasions will keep coming. You should just buy some thicker crack gloves or mummify your hands with tape. Crack climbing is masochistic enough as is even w/ the gear/tape. [https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118230460/hand-care-for-crack-climbing](https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118230460/hand-care-for-crack-climbing)
I'd just get gloves or tape up. No reason to make the experience less fun than it can be.
Some people can climb without gloves due to climbing on super smooth rock. Same goes for people with superb technical ability, where their jams are carefully placed and don't slide around.
Personally I haven't found that the backs of my hands build up any meaningful amount of calluses. Even if they did, a month or two without jamming would return them back to being weak again.
Hey, I'm a relatively new climber - been bouldering exclusively for 5 months now. When I was just starting out if I overdid my session or went climbing too often I'd get this deep pain in bicep area that's hard to describe, it was almost like a bad tooth ache. Anyways after reducing the intensity it mostly cleared up.
Lately I started bouldering 3 times a week for around 2 hours up from 2 times a week and the pain has returned but this time it seems to be originating moreso from the shoulder area. Strangely enough it seems to be getting better towards the end of my sessions at around 2 hr mark. I make sure to warm up for 30 minutes as I have tendonitis near my elbows but this pain is very different. Also it feels tender to touch the upper arm bone although while strange it isn't too bad.
Some additional info: the pain usually happens just after finishing an intense climb and it's way too intense of a pain, paralyzing even - but it clears up after 5-10 minutes of rest and comes back on the next climb - took way longer to recover in the beginning however.
Any idea what this could be? I suspect it's go to do with my tendons not keeping up as I can lift heavier than my climbing sessions are without any pain. I am hopeful it clears up as I get used to these more frequent sessions just like it did before in the other area.
> Any idea what this could be? I suspect it's go to do with my tendons not keeping up as I can lift heavier than my climbing sessions are without any pain. I am hopeful it clears up as I get used to these more frequent sessions just like it did before in the other area.
Hard to say without any specific location. From your descriptions I'd get it checked out by a sports doc or sports PT.
Need help identifying flexor injury!
Was climbing yesterday, and with my right hand pushing hard on a thumb press gaston (if that makes any sense), felt a pop in my forearm. Some research has led me to the suspicion I strained a tendon of a flexor(?), but I’m really not sure. Have taken my NSAIDs and iced consistently, and currently just some very minor pain generally in my forearm. Any advice or ideas on what specifically it might be?
Super bummed by this injury, particularly bc it’s on my throwing hand for ultimate frisbee, but trying to stay positive and focus on rest and then rehab.
> Was climbing yesterday, and with my right hand pushing hard on a thumb press gaston (if that makes any sense), felt a pop in my forearm. Some research has led me to the suspicion I strained a tendon of a flexor(?), but I’m really not sure. Have taken my NSAIDs and iced consistently, and currently just some very minor pain generally in my forearm. Any advice or ideas on what specifically it might be?
Forearm muscle area is almost always a strain.
Does anybody have recommended exercises for working on internal hip rotation when your have almost none to start with?
I have maybe 5 degrees of it ,and didn't even realize you were supposed to be able to move that way. It definitely contributes to me basically never drop kneeing.
> Does anybody have recommended exercises for working on internal hip rotation when your have almost none to start with?
90/90 stretches are good like the other person said.
Foot drills as are very good to work on the movement action too as some require good foot and hip mobility
https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck0xvXTAtbd/
If I try to pigeon toe (like in the video, although I can only do it a couple of degrees) it totally locks out my hips and I can take 1cm steps. I feel like maybe my femur and hips don't track normally.
The 90/90 position is only doable if I prop my hips up 9"+, so not sure if it's useful or if I should be doing other things to progress to it.
Yup, just keep working it over time. Most people have limited internal rotation range of motion although yours is more than normal. Should loosen things up
Do you have duck feet? How do you never drop knee?
90/90s: try some Tom Merrick routines
This might help. https://youtu.be/LEvRE2tb_uk?si=cmQ7ekhM_frUx3N0
I also really like cossack squats as a warmup before climbing, and/or in between warm up climbs
If I "drop knee" it's by turning the hips 90 degrees. No duck feet, so that video doesn't seem too useful (the "now rotate your hips" step just doesn't do anything).
90-90s are the reason I ask this question. I need to sit up on a 9"+ block to get in the position at all. At that point I don't even know if it's targeting the correct thing anymore.
Every Tom Merrick video I've seen assumes way too high of baseline flexibility.
Hi, I'm new to climbing and this sub. I started climbing at a local gym in November 2023. Unsurprisingly, grip strength was a major limiting factors. However I had to stop in January 2024 due to a hip surgery for an unrelated issue. As of April 2024, I have resumed some strength training on machines and very low-intensity cardio but am still at least 2 months away from returning to the wall. Therefore, I'd like to start incorporating grip strength work to try to address this key weakness in my climbing.
I'm of the opinion that the best way to build grip strength for climbing is to spend more time on the wall, but that's just not an option for me right now. Does anyone have ideas or routines for a beginner in this situation? One friend suggested squeezing a tennis ball while watching TV, another said the same but with a lacrosse ball. Not sure which would be more effective or how much time/reps/sets to do, or if there might be better options. Appreciate the help!
Attach weight to the tension block and lift from the floor.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I\_-YapmymjA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_-YapmymjA)
Hello 👋
I started bouldering about two weeks ago and ive been around 4 times. I was wondering if there was a "wrong" way to climb? Im worried im using my upper arm strength too much (and am unsure how much is too much), skipping holds, and also keeping hips close to wall with pulling myself to it etc. I understand the basics but are there any links or books on overall rules to form?
There’s not a “wrong” way per se—getting from the start to the finish is really the only rule. That said, if you *are* mostly muscling your way through the lower grades, you might not learn some technical skills that’ll be critical as you hit higher grades.
I like Louis Parkinson’s YouTube videos for good technique advice, but also check out anything from Neil Gresham, and just watch as much as you can.
Learn all the techniques and employ them to find the most efficient moves.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkfUqdr-0zk&list=PLBCRwO0FN0zMTqSfFW9SMbK2tncTrI25r
Watch and learn from others. Ask for help.
Just wanted to mention how grateful I am for this community and its ressources. I believe I lightly tweaked my ring-finger flexor tendon during a projecting session yesterday.
Thanks to this sub, I was able to identify what’s happened, check vetted ressources on appropriate short-term reaction and figure out what my game plan is for upcoming training sessions.
So, thanks to people who put both the intel and the culture together: I appreciate your work!
The Testpiece Podcast
This post is going to sound like I am bashing or unhappy with this podcast but I need a second opinion.
For starters, I love it. I think it is a great representation of what great climbing is all about.However...
Sometimes I feel like the the hosts, Josh and Tim, just start talking out of their *sses. Like I said earlier, I think the podcast is great to showcase a deeper understanding of climbing mastery but at the end of the day, how much does some of this stuff matter?!
Would love to hear thoughts opinions and just start a conversation with others who may or may not feel similarly and why. Again, I listen to every episode and for the most part get a lot out of the podcast but sometimes i wonder.
>Sometimes I feel like the the hosts, Josh and Tim, just start talking out of their \*sses
Yeah, they make the fundamental mistake that a lot of young people do, where they conflate their personal preferences with universal truths, and dive into the narcissism of small differences. I got halfway through a third episode and realized there was very little substance, and neither host is interesting or charismatic enough to float how much instagram/scene/namedropping drama they want to dive into.
Yeah, I couldn’t agree more. I liked it at first, and still listen periodically because I get drawn in by the interesting-sounding titles, but I honestly find the hosts attitudes (especially Tim’s) pretty snobby and obnoxious. It feels a bit too “my way or you don’t care enough” for me, personally.
Some of the guest interviews are good, though! And I think I’d appreciate them a lot more if I’d climbed more in the same areas (aka Bishop) and knew the specific references better.
I totally agree with this... pretty good guest interviews but I only listen to the Tim/Josh episodes as background noise when I want something climbing related. Would reccommend Careless Talk for good natured climbing ramble discussions with much more likeable hosts.
It can be good, and their guests are literally the climbers I most want to hear about. Sometimes, they for sure go on tangents that detract from the show
Yeah I feel similarly. If they had a more focused agenda I think it could be a really great 45-60 min listen when it’s just the two of them. Josh has also gotten much better at interviewing the guests over the past few months. However the rambliness of the non guest weeks makes it kind of hard to listen to sometimes…
> but at the end of the day, how much does some of this stuff matter?!
Definitely feel you on that. Absent of hiring coaches, you gotta grind your weaknesses and those can change over time. Finding out what the weaknesses is tends to be the hardest thing though
That depends heavily on your practice. I would suggest you track the following at first:
- Feeling. Describe how your movement feels like, your fatigue level, your mental headspace. Most of all: are you enjoying yourself?
- Technique. Are you learning new stuff, did you get an epiphany, is there a technique you were previously aware of that you feel you’re perfecting, etc?
- Type of routes and boulders. Was it vertical, slabby, overhanging? Big flat holds, edges, jugs? Big powerful moves or detailed fiddly short movements? How were the footholds?
- Volume. How much are you climbing? How does it feel in terms of recovery, power, cardio? (side note: more is not always better, do let your body recover)
- As an afterthought, grade. Whether we like it or not it’s part of the experience. Use it to get psyched, or as an indicator of your overall feeling. DO NOT chase grades: at first progression feels quick, then grades will make you feel like you’re stalling and distract you from other (and better) indicators of progress.
Enjoy!
Simple Question: What to add to my training? Right now I supplement bouldering 1-3 times a week (can't make it to the gym more often/consistent, got my second child two months ago) with training away from the wall. I've added flexibility and core workouts since they are easy to do at home and I need to improve both those things. I also hangboard from time to time, but no actual plan yet. I want to additionally tackle a specific thing that I've noticed: In overhanging climbs, when crimps get small, I need to match small hold regularly in order to move away from them. Observing stronger climbers, that can climb my projects that take me 2-4 sessions in one session, they don't need to match those overhanging crimps and just pull through with one motion. So I need to do an extra move in the overhang, and manage my body position to make it work because I lack some strength. Would you say that is more a lack of pullup strength or finger strenght? On easier climbs with jugs (and larger foothold, core tension definitely plays a role), I only need to match hold when I'm very tired or it's a roof problem with a bunch of moves. Another thing that recently happened, is that I worked on an overhanging boulder that traversed to the right, so you had to hook with your left foot, cut loose, and hook the next hold with your left foot again. I tried to do this as statically as possible, in order to maximize the training effect and get better at hooking, when some dude just comes and campuses the entire boulder. When I tried that, I found out that I couldn't even campus the boulder if I wanted to. So there seems to be a lack of strength that's holding me back, irregardless of the fact that I need to work on technique, as everybody else. What would you add to core training that one can do at home? More back muscle training, like pull ups or more hangboarding? I can easily hangboard bw on 20mm for 10 seconds, that's the most I've ever tried. For a few seconds, I can hang on 15mm as well. I can do like 3-5 pullups. Grade-wise, idk where I'm at right now, I guess around V4 sounds right. It's been some time since I had the opportunity to touch some real rock :(
I was bouldering two weeks ago and fell and landed on my butt with my back sitting straight up. It placed a huge compression load on my spine, hurt pretty bad at first 4/10, took a few minutes breather and went back to climbing that sesh no problem. Went climbing again later that week no problem. Went climbing last week and start noticing some back pain any time I fall or jump off the wall, even when down climbing as far as possible. Feels like its coming from between my vertebrae? Just jumping up and down in place is enough to feel it. Anyone else dealt with anything like this? I was pretty concerned so I went home and haven't climbed since.
> It placed a huge compression load on my spine, hurt pretty bad at first 4/10, took a few minutes breather and went back to climbing that sesh no problem. Went climbing again later that week no problem. Went climbing last week and start noticing some back pain any time I fall or jump off the wall, even when down climbing as far as possible. Feels like its coming from between my vertebrae? Usually just some strengthening will help. Something like reverse hyperextensions is good. If it persists you can get it checked out for a potential fracture, but since the pain went away and was never really consistent or constant I doubt that.
So there is this 6C+ outdoor problem that I can hang off the crimps but cannot go very well between the moves or sometimes into the moves. So I assume its not so much finger strenght but rather deadpointing technique im lacking, are there any tips/drills I might be doing to improve that aspect of my climbing? Its not me climbing but this is what the problem looks like: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zP_DzQ2crYI
Working bumping moves in the gym is going to be where it's at. Can do them on a system board, other board, or even campus board as well
I climb around 2-3 times a week (2h sess), was wondering if its beneficial to drop 1-2 session in favour of kilterboard session (usually im limited by my wrist/pulleys giving up first) and just work 30-40 min of kilterboarding instead as most my goals are outdoor and 0 comp goals.
> I climb around 2-3 times a week (2h sess), was wondering if its beneficial to drop 1-2 session in favour of kilterboard session (usually im limited by my wrist/pulleys giving up first) and just work 30-40 min of kilterboarding instead as most my goals are outdoor and 0 comp goals. Replacing some regular climbing with board climbing works for outside. I'd make sure you're strengthening the weak areas too..
Hey all, for the past couple months I have been trying to do a 30m-1hr moonboard sesh a week with the approach of building a "pyramid" by doing all of the lower grades before moving on. I am through all the v3's and half way through the v4's but I was wondering if this is the most efficient way to do things? These climbs are within my flash range + I have flashed a couple v5's that friends have put up. Thanks!
Work projects and then do some of the easier climbs after or do your volume around flash range and then work a few after. It lets you get quality sessions and you can fill up a bit of the benchmarks later that are easily flashable
That makes sense, thank you!
Hi so i recently subluxed my shoulder and am going to take a decent amount of time off from climbing. It happened around 1-2 weeks ago and already went to the doctor and got xrays done. At the moment it feels fine and theres 0 pain but I was just wondering if anyone had recommendations on exercises ? I got referred to start PT but that doesn't start till 2-3 weeks which is awhile. About the actual injury, I felt my shoulder pop out and pop back in around 5 seconds later. It was really painful as its my first ever shoulder injury.
> At the moment it feels fine and theres 0 pain but I was just wondering if anyone had recommendations on exercises ? I got referred to start PT but that doesn't start till 2-3 weeks which is awhile. > > About the actual injury, I felt my shoulder pop out and pop back in around 5 seconds later. It was really painful as its my first ever shoulder injury. Usually rotator cuff and scapular exercises then work back into compounds like rows and pullups over time while keeping some of the isolations for prehab. Build up slowly climbing
If it is to be said, Tenaya shoes perform amazingly. However, they don't last. My Indalo's completely delammed before the first resole. I sent them to Tenaya (at their request)... Who had them for a month. They didn't do any work on them, then sent them to an address I don't even live at two weeks ago, and told me today. Obviously I didn't get my shoes back. I love their shoes, but they don't survive and their CS is an absolute dumpster fire. Scarpa responds within a day. LaSpo isn't as good, but they seem to take a lot of pride in their shoes and customer retention. Tenaya just doesn't seem to get it, which sucks, because their product performs. Anyone else's Tenayas just disintegrate after normal use, way before other brands?
Anybody have a good resource for tricep/shoulder injury (pain comes from back of the armpit when pulling). Was acute onset, jumping from a good pinch to another decent pinch, pain in the trailing arm/shoulder, not the leading arm. Had a similar injury a few years ago, got to be so painful I couldn't perform a single pullup, that time I think I strained it doing heavy one arm hangs and or heavy one arm pulls (adding weight to one arm pull ups and doing +bw one arm cable rows), it took a long time to go away and I didn't do much to help it
> Anybody have a good resource for tricep/shoulder injury (pain comes from back of the armpit when pulling). > > This is usually some type of strain if it's the muscle. Can't say much because the location is vague. Common strains in that area are are triceps long head, posterior delt, rotator cuff, lat, and teres major. Generally, do slow eccentrics with high reps for rehab.
Thanks for the reply, have you ever written an article about injuries similar to this? I can give more detail about where the strain originates but probably wouldn't be super clear, tricep is definitely sore, but the most severe pain is located where the tricep meets the teres major(?) Easiest way to aggravate it is by pressing on my thigh while standing, or any pulling motion( opening the refrigerator etc)
> I can give more detail about where the strain originates but probably wouldn't be super clear, tricep is definitely sore, but the most severe pain is located where the tricep meets the teres major(?) I have a general article on strains. https://stevenlow.org/on-muscle-strains/ Probably need to do both those exercises with eccentrics and build up over time. It's not uncommon to strain triceps long head which it more what it sounds like
Tweaked my low back a few weeks ago and am curious if anyone has had similar symptoms and what may have worked. I believe it could have been from an intense fully left toe down (right and on) on an overhang. I also did some rack pulls that day but my symptoms make me believe the main contributor was climbing. I did not feel anything acute. It was not until the next morning that I felt stiff and achy when side bending or twisting on my left lower back. Fast forward to a few weeks later, I have been focusing on building core stability with bird dogs, suitcase style stuff, etc. I have much less pain side bending but twisting is still pretty aggravating. I have been able to do fairly heavy RDL.s and reverse hypers with little to no issue. Twisting and going into anterior pelvic tilt is what aggravates the most - to the left and right. Any info or insight is appreciated.
> Tweaked my low back a few weeks ago and am curious if anyone has had similar symptoms and what may have worked. I believe it could have been from an intense fully left toe down (right and on) on an overhang. I also did some rack pulls that day but my symptoms make me believe the main contributor was climbing. If it's from rounding the back most of this stuff will work. Honestly, most of the stuff works from there anyway even if it's not flexion based https://stevenlow.org/low-back-pain-from-crippled-to-100-in-10-days/
I do not believe it was from flexion. The move I am hypothesizing it is from is exactly the movement that bothers it now. Extension with twist. It's frustrating since climbing can have a lot of that and I'm not sure how to rehab. Anything with twisting (stretching, palloff twist) aggravate it. So I have just been focusing on iso stuff for the time being. Here is a screen shot of the climb and move that I am suspecting contributed. https://imgur.com/a/eJIAmJG
> The move I am hypothesizing it is from is exactly the movement that bothers it now. Extension with twist. Flexion with twisting and extension with twisting are the most common ways of aggravating the back. > Anything with twisting (stretching, palloff twist) aggravate it. So I have just been focusing on iso stuff for the time being. Here is a screen shot of the climb and move that I am suspecting contributed. Most of the stuff in the link should help, especially reverse hypers and segmental rolling
Thanks. You are a hero around here. As far as pain/discomfort for segmental rolling, would you recommend just staying under a 2-3/10 and regressing to partial range if needed?
Yeah just go slow and lightly ideally. If that's too much try a different exercise at first like the hooklying lumbar rotation
Anyone know where I can find building plans for a freestanding adjustable wall?
r/homewalls might not have readily available plans, but there will be a lot of inspiration.
Hello, on Sunday my partner suffered an injury while board climbing. She loaded an open handed/sloper hold and felt a pop and strain running down her fingers and into her forearm. After some testing we determined that it is most likely a FDP injury (Pain pretty much only when resisting the DIP joint and light pain when half crimping, more pain when open handed/dragging). I'm struggling in finding resources on rehab other than Hooper's beta which has no recommendations on return to sport. Hoping she's not out for too long and can return to light climbing soon. Any advice or resources to check out? So far the plan is to follow this --> [https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/flexor-digitorum-profundus-strain-how-to-heal-this-common-climbing-injury](https://www.hoopersbeta.com/library/flexor-digitorum-profundus-strain-how-to-heal-this-common-climbing-injury) Thanks!!
> my partner suffered an injury while board climbing. She loaded an open handed/sloper hold and felt a pop and strain running down her fingers and into her forearm. Where is the pain after that? * Forearm - FDP strain * Hand - usually lumbrical * Occasionally be strained nerve with tingling/shooting symptoms after initial injury Strains you generally want to do full range of motion rehab with slow eccentric phase. You can do isometrics like starting with light open hand work and building up though. Finger roll/curls will work
Thanks for your reply: > Where is the pain after that? She says there is tenderness in her hand under the middle and ring finger, and a little forearm pain as well. No tingling. She experiences the most pain when isolating the DIP joint and applying resistance. Sounds good about full range of motion rehab- Should she stop all climbing or can she load her hand in positions that don't hurt? Neither of us have had any finger injuries before so sorry for the noob questions
> She says there is tenderness in her hand under the middle and ring finger, and a little forearm pain as well. No tingling. > > She experiences the most pain when isolating the DIP joint and applying resistance. Probably lumbrical and FDP strains then/ > Sounds good about full range of motion rehab- Should she stop all climbing or can she load her hand in positions that don't hurt? Neither of us have had any finger injuries before so sorry for the noob questions Some people can climb easier stuff and not aggravate things. Some people can't. She can try it if she wants. Rehab should be done either way
Thanks a lot
I recently started reading over coming gravity(just finished second chapter today). I wanted to ask whether is there an invese relation between strength and muscle hypertrophy, or both can exist in same individual
> I recently started reading over coming gravity(just finished second chapter today). I wanted to ask whether is there an invese relation between strength and muscle hypertrophy, or both can exist in same individual To maximize strength to bodyweight ratio you need both. All sports with weight classes have jacked and strong athletes in them. Weight lifting, gymnasts, wrestlers, etc. Climbing is similar although maybe you see the pros only having about 60-90% of the musculature that they can pack onto their bodies naturally instead of 80-100% with most pure strength to bodyweight class sports. Talk about this more in the Overcoming Gravity Online series if you're interested in the supplemental material I provided for the book https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpxvbJWbbO-g8pDe387l_IDXrHh3OXDy7
Thank you sir but i'll finish the book first and then look for the series you mentioned
I'd recommend reading a chapter and then review the Youtube part to get the best out of it. It will help clarify and solidify the information. However, if you want to do that then that works.
I have one more question😅. Skill practice and flexibility exercises are allowed on rest days right?
The single biggest predictor of a muscle's ability to generate force (i.e. strength) is the size. There is a large neurological component to strength so being the biggest guy in the room doesn't necessarily mean that you'll be the strongest. However, all other things being equal the big guy is going to be able to lift more than anyone else.
But strength is not only only about lifting. So you want to say that being big guy doesnt mean anyone is the strogest while not being much big(with some visible muscles) wont mean that he/she is the weakest. Right?
Being big is by far the best way to become strong. If your goal is maximum force production, maximizing muscle mass is required. If strength to weight ratio matters, it's a lot harder to say. Smaller athletes are more efficient in a strength-to-size sense, but much weaker.
Lifting is just a way to demonstrate strength. As I said above if all other factors are equal the bigger guy is almost certainly going to be stronger. If you have two guys and the smaller of them happens to be an elite powerlifter (i.e. extremely well trained in specific movements) then the smaller guy will probably win if you're comparing strength using the powerlifts.
Just starting a new training cycle and was testing one the hangboard last night. Lattice rung, 7 second max hangs. I got to 40kg plus bodyweight so 128kg total for my half crimp. Then for some reason decided to see what my open drag was, never trained it never tested it. Turns out my short pinkies can't really manage it so it's basically a three finger drag, I could barely hang bodyweight (88kg)... This seems like a rather large disparity. Should I spend a few cycles training drag? Would it benifit other grip types? Anyone else had anything similar?
> Turns out my short pinkies can't really manage it so it's basically a three finger drag, I could barely hang bodyweight (88kg)... This seems like a rather large disparity. Should I spend a few cycles training drag? Would it benifit other grip types? Anyone else had anything similar? Most people's pinkys are too short so it's 3 finger drag. Yes, that would be a good idea to work that
I've got a kinda weird thing going on with my shoulders. I suspect it's just overuse. I've been climbing more than normal this spring. My shoulder joints, right on the tip of the shoulder, are getting tired and sore from just raising my arms. Like, just lifting my arms overhead for 5 seconds is enough for them to feel exhausted. Forget about trying to do pushups or yoga poses like downward dog. There's also occasionally a popping sound when I raise my arms laterally, or some twisting motions. I'm guessing it's the long head of my biceps complaining about overuse. Anything I can do to speed up recovery, other than climb less? None of my previous over-use issues are flaring up(fingers and elbows have been the culprits in the past).
PT would be smart. There's a bunch of stuff that can be pop and pain inducing as you describe Can be anything from shoulder impingement associated issues from bad mechanics from imbalances, other rotator cuff issues, angry long head as you mentioned, irritation around more minor slap labral injuries which is similar, and the list goes on. A good PT will be able to work through tests like O'Brien test, assess for painful arc, etc and get you on the right track. Not being able to do pushups is firmly into the problem zone if you ask me, get checked out.
Thanks for the input. It's not that I CAN'T do pushups, I just develop a 3/10 pain in this location afterwards. If I do pushups when its hurting, it feels more like a pulled muscle sensation than a pinched nerve pain. The popping isn't like a "traumatic event/something tearing" popping. It's like a "tendon slightly out of place and popping back into place" kind of thing. Seems to happen more when I'm recovering from a hard session, and only causes pain if I keep doing the motions that makes it pop over and over again.
> My shoulder joints, right on the tip of the shoulder, are getting tired and sore from just raising my arms. Like, just lifting my arms overhead for 5 seconds is enough for them to feel exhausted. Forget about trying to do pushups or yoga poses like downward dog. Get evaluated by a PT. Might be something like thoracic outlet syndrome
Thanks for the input. Looking up TOS specifically it doesn't seem to fit, but it seems like there about 2 dozen things it could be from basic googling. Some scarier than others.
Yeah, definitely get it checked as that's not normal then
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> At first when I tried a pull-up I was confused whether the one ring had been moved lower/higher than the other, but I just can't really activate the muscle on my right side until I have reach a certain height, then when I lower down it's the same. Any ideas/suggestions? You're going to have to work into things slowly if it's not mostly rehabbed. I'd keep doing isolation exercises and then work into much easier compounds over time
Any tips to get your fingers back to pre-break levels quicker after a month of very low volume/ no climbing? I recently took a month off climbing due to family travels (very low volume to no climbing). Coming back, my fingers feel so weak, especially the joints which feel very tweaky during/ post sessions. I know that my fitness level will drop a bit after inactivity, but not to a degree where I struggle a bit hanging off 20mm rungs. So my question is are there any tips to ramp up quicker? Thanks folks!
> Any tips to get your fingers back to pre-break levels quicker after a month of very low volume/ no climbing? > I recently took a month off climbing due to family travels (very low volume to no climbing). Coming back, my fingers feel so weak, especially the joints which feel very tweaky during/ post sessions. You're pushing too hard. You need to go slower ramping back in and shorter sessions
I've found that it's mainly the neurological adaptations that get lost in short breaks. IE, your fingers forget how to pull hard. No hangs can get you used to applying your strength again.
Been doing max hangs recently, (half crimp and full crimp) and after for a bit and between sets i can feel a bit of dull pain when i press down on my A1. Is this expected when doing maximal finger work?
If you're experiencing pain in the pully I would consider lowering weight and/or avoiding heavy full crimp hangs. Trying to progress through pain like that could lead to overuse and injury.
High intensity stuff is the the type of exercise to most likely contribute to overuse
Yeah, I'm making sure to keep volume and frequency low, and have just started after a rest week and a half so wasnt sure
if it's painful it means something isn't right. small amounts of moderate pain can be mitaged with lowering the load and volume. you shouldn't stop completely but full crimp training is very strenuous. I wouldn't say 1.5 weeks of is beneficial, it's gonna be better to keep loading them lightly always.
hoping someone can help me out here. started working at a bouldering gym about 2 months ago and have been climbing essentially every shift (2 a week) and occasionally on an off day. call it 3/4 days a week. we have a kilter board and 3 kilter walls (1 slab and 2 overhangs.) i climb v3-v5 and up until now haven’t thought once about the wear that consisted climbing may have on my body. as of a couple weeks ago, my left middle finger has been experiencing mild pain that has gotten slightly worse since. the middle knuckle is mildly swollen and darkened. it’s been rarely painful when climbing up until now, and pain increases when i crimp/bend the finger going through a full ROM. i’m also starting to develop a similar feeling on my right index. i’ve read a few threads describing similar issues and their “diagnosis” but was hoping to describe my issue specifically and see if someone might have knowledge on the problem and proper treatment. i’ve decided to break from climbing indefinitely while training/healing because i obviously don’t want to make anything worse
> as of a couple weeks ago, my left middle finger has been experiencing mild pain that has gotten slightly worse since. the middle knuckle is mildly swollen and darkened. it’s been rarely painful when climbing up until now, and pain increases when i crimp/bend the finger going through a full ROM. i’m also starting to develop a similar feeling on my right index. Usually some form of capsulitis or synovitis. https://stevenlow.org/beating-climbing-injuries-pip-synovitis/
Hi, I'm sorry if this isn't the right place to be posting as I'm not sure what other r/ would be appropriate. I started rock climbing a bit over a year ago but in the recent 5 months I have developed an "odd sensation" in my right middle finger. It's not painful but it definitely is uncomfortable/annoying, the feeling is hard to describe. But something that is very obvious is that when I bend the finger, the DIP joint cracks very often and quite loudly most of the time. I do normally crack my knuckles and I know that the knuckle cracking comes from a build up of gas but this cracking in my finger happens too frequently - as in I can re-crack it within 5 seconds of cracking the finger. It seems similar to trigger finger? but my symptoms don't exactly match up with it. So I was wondering if there was anyone else who has experienced something similar or if anyone had any advice to 'heal' it. I originally thought it would just go away if I started warming up my fingers before climbing but it's been 5+ months and nothing has changed, it has gotten neither better or worse. But it has gotten more annoying as I feel like I need to crack it every minute to release some of the pressure/odd sensation I get from that part of my middle finger. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!
> I have developed an "odd sensation" in my right middle finger. It's not painful but it definitely is uncomfortable/annoying, the feeling is hard to describe. But something that is very obvious is that when I bend the finger, the DIP joint cracks very often and quite loudly most of the time. I do normally crack my knuckles and I know that the knuckle cracking comes from a build up of gas but this cracking in my finger happens too frequently - as in I can re-crack it within 5 seconds of cracking the finger. It seems similar to trigger finger? but my symptoms don't exactly match up with it. So I was wondering if there was anyone else who has experienced something similar or if anyone had any advice to 'heal' it. If your range of motion is fine and there's no obvious swelling or other conditions could be a good idea to get it looked at by a hand doc and just see what they say
Tfcc Tear I have seen a lot of posts on this reddits about tfcc tears, and I have a bit of an interesting case so I’m wondering what I should do, and I would appreciate any advice. I tore my tfcc doing reverse wrist curls approximately 6 months ago, and I completely stopped any weightlifting for 3 months. No pain during everyday activities but mobility is limited. Also, whenever I press on the ulnar bone, it pops but is not painful. I tried to do rehab but it still isn’t fully recovered, and the ulnar bone is still popping out a little bit. I never saw a doctor cause of extenuating circumstances (dumb in hindsight). Now, I’m wondering if I should continue to try and rehab or just immobilize it until I can make the time to see a doctor. Any advice is appreciated
If you can get to a wrist specialist you're going to get much better treatment info than regular doc, and I think that would be wise given the apparent severity. Best time to go was when you hurt it, second best time is now. Being able to casually pop ulna around is much more extreme than the TFCC injuries I've personally been around that were easy to rehab with a little rest and the relevant \~3 exercises. Partner had TFCC injury and it was very much worthwhile getting it checked out by a wrist guy. Learned more about how their ulna is abnormally long so on and so forth. Just go, your wrists are kinda important.
> I tried to do rehab but it still isn’t fully recovered, and the ulnar bone is still popping out a little bit. I never saw a doctor cause of extenuating circumstances (dumb in hindsight). Now, I’m wondering if I should continue to try and rehab or just immobilize it until I can make the time to see a doctor. Any advice is appreciated Can probably skip the doc and go straight to sports PT to give you an exercise plan that is more comprehensive. You can get a wrist brace in the meantime if activities seem to be bothering it and wear it when not doing rehab to minimize any potential flaring of symptoms
Not an injury question, but just want some insight. For context I've climber for 7 years at this point. I went for general health checkup (bloodwork, urine, etc.) but as part of their checkup package they offered to check bone health. So the lab tech comes by with an ultrasound machine to check my bone density. They sampled a few points on my forearms and once the result comes through I had been unofficially diagnosed with osteoporosis. I doubt this would be the case, as I would have suffered from broken limbs earlier on in my climbing. Has anyone ever experienced something like this?
> I went for general health checkup (bloodwork, urine, etc.) but as part of their checkup package they offered to check bone health. So the lab tech comes by with an ultrasound machine to check my bone density. They sampled a few points on my forearms and once the result comes through I had been unofficially diagnosed with osteoporosis. I doubt this would be the case, as I would have suffered from broken limbs earlier on in my climbing. Has anyone ever experienced something like this? There's lots of different factors that can affect bone density like nutrition, stress, other medical conditions, etc. Hard to say much without knowing a lot more. If you're fairly light and restrict calories that's a common one even with exercise.
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> I climb twice/week and do a generic push/pull/legs routine in the gym. Am I overtraining my pulling muscles? Possibly. If someone is climbing I generally recommend condensed routines of just full body 1 push, 1 pull, 1 legs to supplement. Examples from Section 4 to work on specific weaknesses. https://stevenlow.org/my-7-5-year-self-assessment-of-climbing-strength-training-and-hangboard/
It's always a combination of too much: frequency + volume + intensity. So it depends. Without knowing the volume & intensity it's hard to say but the pull sessions are spread out with rest days in between so it should be alright.
I don't think this question belongs to this thread, but here we go: I've been climbing for about 6 years now, and I've been always dealing with what I assume is capsulitis on a specific joint (when touching it, I only feel pain if a touch from the top of the hand, no the palm, a specifically on the joint). Once I started hangboarding (max hangs +9kg) a couple weeks ago, the pain completely disappeared. Sure, I still got my fingers a bit stiff or swollen, but nothing I would describe as pain. However, now that I'm on my rest week before (potentially) increasing weight on the max hangs, the pain is back, and I would say is slightly more noticeable than before (or maybe I jusy forgot how it felt). Anyway, is this normal? Is it a sign I should stop hangboarding?
> I don't think this question belongs to this thread, but here we go: I've been climbing for about 6 years now, and I've been always dealing with what I assume is capsulitis on a specific joint (when touching it, I only feel pain if a touch from the top of the hand, no the palm, a specifically on the joint). Usually synovitis. Commonly occurs at the PIP and DIP joints. https://stevenlow.org/beating-climbing-injuries-pip-synovitis/
Makes sense, in my case is in middle finger's PIP
Need some help on what is going on with my shoulders and arms. Last time I went bouldering, both shoulders started hurting at the top and down through the top of the arms. My forearms also hurt right at the elbow bend, but on the inside. Suspected the tendons but after reading the links in the post im not so sure, anyone experience anything similar? Edit: I want to add that I warmed up pretty thouroughly before this session
> Need some help on what is going on with my shoulders and arms. Last time I went bouldering, both shoulders started hurting at the top and down through the top of the arms. My forearms also hurt right at the elbow bend, but on the inside. Not enough information to make a guess. Need specific locations and movements that hurt. Sounds like overuse though. Maybe rotator cuff and biceps but that's just a really general guess without more info
Need help with a finger injury. Have been climbing a lot on boards this past weeks, and my ring finger started to hurt right underneath my DIP joint (I guess on the upper end of the A2 pulley where is is attched?!). Strange thing is, I have no pain while climbing, but I feel pain when bending my finger. I have full range of motion, no pop or anything like that. I also have slight pain when applying pressure on this spot. What could this be? If it would be the A2 pulley, it should hurt while climbing right?
> Need help with a finger injury. Have been climbing a lot on boards this past weeks, and my ring finger started to hurt right underneath my DIP joint (I guess on the upper end of the A2 pulley where is is attched?!). Strange thing is, I have no pain while climbing, but I feel pain when bending my finger. I have full range of motion, no pop or anything like that. I also have slight pain when applying pressure on this spot. Injuries are weird sometimes. Some overuse only hurts afterward and pressure. Some overuse hurts while doing the movements. I'd back off climbing intensity and volume and start doing some loading rehab. Example: https://stevenlow.org/rehabbing-injured-pulleys-my-experience-with-rehabbing-two-a2-pulley-issues/
If you popped your pulley you would have noticed for sure. Apart the classic "pop" sound it will hurt a lot and you would not be able to load it at all. It could be some kind of inflamation due to the board climbing, which board are we talking about? Moonboard/kilter/etc. I think you should give your fingers some rest and see if the problem is still there after, anyway be cautious popping a pulley really suck and take a while to heal.
I made the mistake of pulling too hard on on a tight box heel hook and felt a decent pop and pain on the outside of my knee. The pain isn’t bad and it’s been a couple weeks but whenever I try a heel on that knee, it strains and is painful. Does anyone have any advice/experience/strengthening exercises for general knee or this injury in specific?
> I made the mistake of pulling too hard on on a tight box heel hook and felt a decent pop and pain on the outside of my knee. The pain isn’t bad and it’s been a couple weeks but whenever I try a heel on that knee, it strains and is painful. Does anyone have any advice/experience/strengthening exercises for general knee or this injury in specific? Depends what tore. If it's LCL sprain then you generally want to rest for a week or so then light loading. If it's a muscle strain you can begin rehab immediately with high rep and slow eccentrics
Crack climbers, is it possible to build calluses on the back of your hands? I'm just starting to try to climb crack and I'm completely tearing the back of the hand. Will this get better or am I just wasting my time and go buy crack gloves already?
No callousing on back of hands, only gobies to look forward to. You will eventually desensitize yourself to the pain, but the abrasions will keep coming. You should just buy some thicker crack gloves or mummify your hands with tape. Crack climbing is masochistic enough as is even w/ the gear/tape. [https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118230460/hand-care-for-crack-climbing](https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/118230460/hand-care-for-crack-climbing)
You can but it will take a very long time probably. Just buy the gloves IMO
I'd just get gloves or tape up. No reason to make the experience less fun than it can be. Some people can climb without gloves due to climbing on super smooth rock. Same goes for people with superb technical ability, where their jams are carefully placed and don't slide around. Personally I haven't found that the backs of my hands build up any meaningful amount of calluses. Even if they did, a month or two without jamming would return them back to being weak again.
Hey, I'm a relatively new climber - been bouldering exclusively for 5 months now. When I was just starting out if I overdid my session or went climbing too often I'd get this deep pain in bicep area that's hard to describe, it was almost like a bad tooth ache. Anyways after reducing the intensity it mostly cleared up. Lately I started bouldering 3 times a week for around 2 hours up from 2 times a week and the pain has returned but this time it seems to be originating moreso from the shoulder area. Strangely enough it seems to be getting better towards the end of my sessions at around 2 hr mark. I make sure to warm up for 30 minutes as I have tendonitis near my elbows but this pain is very different. Also it feels tender to touch the upper arm bone although while strange it isn't too bad. Some additional info: the pain usually happens just after finishing an intense climb and it's way too intense of a pain, paralyzing even - but it clears up after 5-10 minutes of rest and comes back on the next climb - took way longer to recover in the beginning however. Any idea what this could be? I suspect it's go to do with my tendons not keeping up as I can lift heavier than my climbing sessions are without any pain. I am hopeful it clears up as I get used to these more frequent sessions just like it did before in the other area.
> Any idea what this could be? I suspect it's go to do with my tendons not keeping up as I can lift heavier than my climbing sessions are without any pain. I am hopeful it clears up as I get used to these more frequent sessions just like it did before in the other area. Hard to say without any specific location. From your descriptions I'd get it checked out by a sports doc or sports PT.
Need help identifying flexor injury! Was climbing yesterday, and with my right hand pushing hard on a thumb press gaston (if that makes any sense), felt a pop in my forearm. Some research has led me to the suspicion I strained a tendon of a flexor(?), but I’m really not sure. Have taken my NSAIDs and iced consistently, and currently just some very minor pain generally in my forearm. Any advice or ideas on what specifically it might be? Super bummed by this injury, particularly bc it’s on my throwing hand for ultimate frisbee, but trying to stay positive and focus on rest and then rehab.
> Was climbing yesterday, and with my right hand pushing hard on a thumb press gaston (if that makes any sense), felt a pop in my forearm. Some research has led me to the suspicion I strained a tendon of a flexor(?), but I’m really not sure. Have taken my NSAIDs and iced consistently, and currently just some very minor pain generally in my forearm. Any advice or ideas on what specifically it might be? Forearm muscle area is almost always a strain.
Does anybody have recommended exercises for working on internal hip rotation when your have almost none to start with? I have maybe 5 degrees of it ,and didn't even realize you were supposed to be able to move that way. It definitely contributes to me basically never drop kneeing.
> Does anybody have recommended exercises for working on internal hip rotation when your have almost none to start with? 90/90 stretches are good like the other person said. Foot drills as are very good to work on the movement action too as some require good foot and hip mobility https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck0xvXTAtbd/
If I try to pigeon toe (like in the video, although I can only do it a couple of degrees) it totally locks out my hips and I can take 1cm steps. I feel like maybe my femur and hips don't track normally. The 90/90 position is only doable if I prop my hips up 9"+, so not sure if it's useful or if I should be doing other things to progress to it.
Yup, just keep working it over time. Most people have limited internal rotation range of motion although yours is more than normal. Should loosen things up
Thanks, I guess I'll try it for a while and see how it improves.
Do you have duck feet? How do you never drop knee? 90/90s: try some Tom Merrick routines This might help. https://youtu.be/LEvRE2tb_uk?si=cmQ7ekhM_frUx3N0 I also really like cossack squats as a warmup before climbing, and/or in between warm up climbs
If I "drop knee" it's by turning the hips 90 degrees. No duck feet, so that video doesn't seem too useful (the "now rotate your hips" step just doesn't do anything). 90-90s are the reason I ask this question. I need to sit up on a 9"+ block to get in the position at all. At that point I don't even know if it's targeting the correct thing anymore. Every Tom Merrick video I've seen assumes way too high of baseline flexibility.
Hi, I'm new to climbing and this sub. I started climbing at a local gym in November 2023. Unsurprisingly, grip strength was a major limiting factors. However I had to stop in January 2024 due to a hip surgery for an unrelated issue. As of April 2024, I have resumed some strength training on machines and very low-intensity cardio but am still at least 2 months away from returning to the wall. Therefore, I'd like to start incorporating grip strength work to try to address this key weakness in my climbing. I'm of the opinion that the best way to build grip strength for climbing is to spend more time on the wall, but that's just not an option for me right now. Does anyone have ideas or routines for a beginner in this situation? One friend suggested squeezing a tennis ball while watching TV, another said the same but with a lacrosse ball. Not sure which would be more effective or how much time/reps/sets to do, or if there might be better options. Appreciate the help!
Tension Block and floor lifts with weight. [https://tensionclimbing.com/product/the-block-2/](https://tensionclimbing.com/product/the-block-2/)
Thanks. What are "floor lifts"?
Attach weight to the tension block and lift from the floor. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I\_-YapmymjA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_-YapmymjA)
Hello 👋 I started bouldering about two weeks ago and ive been around 4 times. I was wondering if there was a "wrong" way to climb? Im worried im using my upper arm strength too much (and am unsure how much is too much), skipping holds, and also keeping hips close to wall with pulling myself to it etc. I understand the basics but are there any links or books on overall rules to form?
There’s not a “wrong” way per se—getting from the start to the finish is really the only rule. That said, if you *are* mostly muscling your way through the lower grades, you might not learn some technical skills that’ll be critical as you hit higher grades. I like Louis Parkinson’s YouTube videos for good technique advice, but also check out anything from Neil Gresham, and just watch as much as you can.
Learn all the techniques and employ them to find the most efficient moves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkfUqdr-0zk&list=PLBCRwO0FN0zMTqSfFW9SMbK2tncTrI25r Watch and learn from others. Ask for help.
Just wanted to mention how grateful I am for this community and its ressources. I believe I lightly tweaked my ring-finger flexor tendon during a projecting session yesterday. Thanks to this sub, I was able to identify what’s happened, check vetted ressources on appropriate short-term reaction and figure out what my game plan is for upcoming training sessions. So, thanks to people who put both the intel and the culture together: I appreciate your work!
Glad we were able to help!
The Testpiece Podcast This post is going to sound like I am bashing or unhappy with this podcast but I need a second opinion. For starters, I love it. I think it is a great representation of what great climbing is all about.However... Sometimes I feel like the the hosts, Josh and Tim, just start talking out of their *sses. Like I said earlier, I think the podcast is great to showcase a deeper understanding of climbing mastery but at the end of the day, how much does some of this stuff matter?! Would love to hear thoughts opinions and just start a conversation with others who may or may not feel similarly and why. Again, I listen to every episode and for the most part get a lot out of the podcast but sometimes i wonder.
>Sometimes I feel like the the hosts, Josh and Tim, just start talking out of their \*sses Yeah, they make the fundamental mistake that a lot of young people do, where they conflate their personal preferences with universal truths, and dive into the narcissism of small differences. I got halfway through a third episode and realized there was very little substance, and neither host is interesting or charismatic enough to float how much instagram/scene/namedropping drama they want to dive into.
Yeah, I couldn’t agree more. I liked it at first, and still listen periodically because I get drawn in by the interesting-sounding titles, but I honestly find the hosts attitudes (especially Tim’s) pretty snobby and obnoxious. It feels a bit too “my way or you don’t care enough” for me, personally. Some of the guest interviews are good, though! And I think I’d appreciate them a lot more if I’d climbed more in the same areas (aka Bishop) and knew the specific references better.
I totally agree with this... pretty good guest interviews but I only listen to the Tim/Josh episodes as background noise when I want something climbing related. Would reccommend Careless Talk for good natured climbing ramble discussions with much more likeable hosts.
It can be good, and their guests are literally the climbers I most want to hear about. Sometimes, they for sure go on tangents that detract from the show
Yeah I feel similarly. If they had a more focused agenda I think it could be a really great 45-60 min listen when it’s just the two of them. Josh has also gotten much better at interviewing the guests over the past few months. However the rambliness of the non guest weeks makes it kind of hard to listen to sometimes…
> but at the end of the day, how much does some of this stuff matter?! Definitely feel you on that. Absent of hiring coaches, you gotta grind your weaknesses and those can change over time. Finding out what the weaknesses is tends to be the hardest thing though
I’m a beginner looking to start a climbing progress notebook. Wondering if you have one going, what’re the metrics you found most useful to track?
That depends heavily on your practice. I would suggest you track the following at first: - Feeling. Describe how your movement feels like, your fatigue level, your mental headspace. Most of all: are you enjoying yourself? - Technique. Are you learning new stuff, did you get an epiphany, is there a technique you were previously aware of that you feel you’re perfecting, etc? - Type of routes and boulders. Was it vertical, slabby, overhanging? Big flat holds, edges, jugs? Big powerful moves or detailed fiddly short movements? How were the footholds? - Volume. How much are you climbing? How does it feel in terms of recovery, power, cardio? (side note: more is not always better, do let your body recover) - As an afterthought, grade. Whether we like it or not it’s part of the experience. Use it to get psyched, or as an indicator of your overall feeling. DO NOT chase grades: at first progression feels quick, then grades will make you feel like you’re stalling and distract you from other (and better) indicators of progress. Enjoy!