Functional Training for Climbers and Others.

The main muscle groups we use for climbing are quite obvious. I’m sure from time to time you felt them all after a hard day of climbing.

What perhaps isn’t so obvious is how to train these muscles groups to benefit your climbing, without actually climbing. To improve fitness level or sports performance, consistency and training are fundamental. Climbing like all exercise, challenges your body in a way that requires it to repair and then to adapt. However these adaptations don’t last if you don’t use them and continue to challenge your body. This is why it is important to train through the week. 5 days in between climbing on weekends is enough time for the body to repair, adapt, then loose the adaptations because they haven’t been used and re challenged.

I still believe that holistically, the best way to improve your climbing is to climb, however to work on specific weaknesses other forms of training are required, for example power can be enhanced through bouldering. For those who don’t have access or time to climb during the week, or can’t climb because of injury, finding an ideal training program becomes more complex.

The trap most people fall into when looking for a training program outside of climbing (weights etc) is to target those main muscle groups we use without considering muscle integration, functionality and impacts on the neural system, that are specific to climbing.

Climbing movements work within a ‘closed kinetic chain,’ we are moving our bodies to or away from something. ‘Open chain,’ is the opposite, it is moving something to or away from us. Basic example à Chin ups – closed chain, Lat pull down – open chain, Push ups – closed chain, Bench press – open chain. Closed and open chain exercises train the body differently by creating different neural pathways in the muscles. Remember, specificity is vital.

The second main consideration for a climbing training program are the movements and muscle integration. Performing exercises that isolate muscle groups is essentially ‘de-training’ and this is why I steer myself and my clients clear of most resistance training machines. Not only do they tend to isolate muscle groups, they also lock you into one range of motion and take away the functionality, core and stability component of an exercise. Considering that virtually every sport or functional activity requires high levels of neuromuscular integration and activation of postural muscles, common gym machines, which don’t even require you to maintain your centre of gravity over your own base of support, or exercises isolating muscles are not a suitable way to train for climbing. Each climb with its unique moves and sequences becomes a playground where our bodies are stretched and twisted testing our ability to connect the dots relying on our range of motion and skill of moving functionally, which requires stability in the joints along with strength of movement patterns through all planes.

Consider climbing a ladder, the movement is repetitive, your weight is more or less kept over your feet and the force on your shoulders is minimal – it’s a basic exercise. Now consider the force applied to your shoulder when you reach, grab and move off of a wide gaston. You place your shoulder in a compromised position then continue adding strain as you apply weight and move off it. Regardless of the strength in the shoulders prime movers, without the stabilizers acting to hold the humeral head in alignment with the shoulder blade and collar bone, the movement is either not achievable or a high risk for injury. To add to this is the functionality of the rest of the body through that movement. Applying pressure to the gaston and available foot holds and moving past the gaston requires the integration of many muscles and movements all stemming from the core.

There is now a lot of ‘rave’ about the core, and there should be. It is essentially the body’s powerhouse, and becomes a very important component of strength in the world of climbing because it is through our core that we are able to apply pressure to foot and hand holds and maintain body tension. Along with rave, is a lot of misconception in how to train and utilise it. Training the core, like all other muscles, needs to be functional in movements and integration. Without going too deep and technical, the core is made up of an inner unit and an outer unit and it is the core that needs to be switched on first before completing any exercise. Many common abdominal exercises such as sit ups and crunches isolate the muscle and do not exercise the core. Crunches and sit ups tend to over activate the hip flexors, can lead to incorrect muscle recruitment and to poor posture. I can’t think of any sports where a crunch or sit up would actually improve performance. So again, the key to training the core for climbing or for any activity is functionality and specificity.

To improve performance and prevent injury for climbing or for any sport, general health or fitness, consider what movements, muscle integration and recruitment is required to enhance your performance rather than detract from it. If you feel that you need guidance, I have included a couple of examples and I am available to assess you and develop training programs specific to your needs.

Below are some pictures and examples. Work out what exercises will work best for you and contact Lauren today!

Lauren Chandler

www.shinewellbeing.com.au