Finger strength training climbing reddit. He and Dicki emphasize mobility training quite a bit. 2 days ago · Explore the essential anatomy and function of finger joints, vital for your hand’s precision and everyday movement. Considering the toll that outdoor and board climbing takes on the fingers, how might one fit these around hangboarding? Would it be reasonable to only do 2 finger intensive workouts per week? Fitting into this category would be crimpy overhung outdoor routes, board climbing and hangboarding. Because sloper strength is so complex- compared to crimp strength at least- I personally just like climbing a lot of sloper climbs to improve. Of course training specific things helps a lot too. Dedicated to increasing all our knowledge about how to better improve at our sport. I believe having greater awareness has helped me apply my strength gains more easily. Jun 29, 2025 · Each finger has a name that’s used in daily English: thumb, index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky. Perhaps have a look at r/climbharder which is dedicated to climbing training. Dec 31, 2024 · Fingers are classified as digits, with four fingers on each hand alongside an opposable thumb. Apr 7, 2024 · Introduction to Arm-Lifting finger strength training Finger strength training is essential if you want to improve your climbing. 172K subscribers in the climbharder community. 28 votes, 75 comments. Reddit's rock climbing training community. But increased strength on its own did not equal increased grades for me. Oct 18, 2024 · Learn why strength training is great for climbers, with a complete 14-week training program to improve your climbing performance. Apr 24, 2023 · Enthusiasm for this ‘new’ training method has exploded, as attention is drawn to the incredible feats of strength happening at the intersection of rock climbing and grip sport (Yves Gravelle, Tanner Merkle and others), while at the same time, suspension type fingerboards and grip tools have become far more available. How to improve finger strength. Some of the training exercises require rock-climbing grip training equipment or other exercise tools but most of them can be found in your local climbing gym or inexpensively online. There have been a half dozen climbing specific studies that indicate grip trainer strength does not correlate to hangboard strength or to on-the-wall performance. Hard bouldering with finger-intensive holds basically does the same thing as repeaters. Beginners will definitely benefit from the extra gains, just be careful to give your connective tissues plenty of time to adjust. Learn about their anatomy, function, conditions, and treatment. Training finger strength, weighted pull ups, shoulder stability/strength, and flexibility all helped me improve. As to whether the gripper exercisers increase your grip strength, I think it depends on specificity, if you need a specific type of grip strength you would be better off with an exercise that matches the specific demands of your sport or job. In climbing, the fingers remain relatively static after grabbing a hold, so it’s best to train finger strength in the most common positions: If non-climbing exercises are a no-go as a beginner like me, should I climb v2-3s and focus on footwork? Repeat them a bunch of times so that I get some strength training? Or should I do some beginner exercises on the hangboard or maybe some finger push ups and some pull ups? What's a good training regime for those? If you’re training finger strength (hangboard), always train open hand just to avoid injury and because it’s the one you and most people are worse at. 174K subscribers in the climbharder community. Looking for some advice. Mar 10, 2023 · For most climbers, certainly the trained ones, finger training has tended to mean doing weighted hangs on a 20mm edge for either 7 or 10 seconds. 5 pounds) with a body weight of 67kg (147. Aug 14, 2010 · Learn the proper names of each finger and how to accurately describe the location of your hand pain using this practical example. These names help when talking, counting, or showing actions. What will help you best is learning technique. This will increase fore arm strength and wrist stability. The crux of the "climbing as primarily a strength sport" idea is that most people can acquire the climbing skill over enough time to climb hard (lets say V-double digit) but many fewer people will be able to build that appropriate amount of elite finger and hand strength. 62x BW 1rm chinup and working on OAC) ? Edit: thank you for everyone who seriously answered! Finger Strength Training I’d like some feedback on integrating hangboarding to my climbing/training routine. And right now you're a beginner at all of them, so it makes sense to "just climb" where you can work all of those facets. TLDR: it’d be more beneficial to train open hand strength than full crimp strength. I generally climb v5, 11b-11c outside and I can only pull 40-45lbs for 10 reps and it feels like it's working my climbing muscles a lot harder than doing deadlifts with the tension block with 90-100lbs. If you are moderately new to climbing and your finger-, pull- and body strengths are equally good or bad. 171K subscribers in the climbharder community. . Grip type is extremely nuanced in actual climbing, while on hangboarding it is relatively one-dimensional. Initially, it was used for pinch blocks to isolate the thumb more effectively, but soon, climbers realized they could also use this approach for regular edges to spice up their finger strength training! The best climbing coaches and athletes, including Lattice Training, Tyler Nelson, and Yves Gravelle, use this state-of-the-art In experimenting with various types of finger training over the years (weighted hangboarding, repeaters, block pulls), I have come across concentric finger curls, and overcoming isometric pulls as a method to gain (potentially) more finger strength. Max finger strength is your ability to grab a hold for five to 10 seconds. If you're a boulderer, stick with the Climbing Finger Strength Analyzer 2. Mar 23, 2023 · Learn Dr. What is an efficient way to train finger strength for a climbing beginner who has a decent amount of pulling strength from Callisthenics (1. Your mileage may vary. Feb 24, 2023 · Finger strength, though critical to climbing performance, is just one component to climbing hard. Finger training doesn’t make climbing magically way easier, but it does make holding small holds MUCH more comfortable and that will allow you to climb a lot of climbs you couldn’t before. I like the idea of hypertrophy training using whatever you want, but the published data indicates that gripper training is at best tangentially beneficial to climbing. So I've been climbing for about 1 year, 9 months and recently have tried lattice finger strength testing on their 20mm fingerboard to find my 1RM. But most finger strength training research uses 22-25mm edges, and these edge depths, especially the 25mm, make more sense for recruitment than smaller edges. Any advice for training finger strength further? Due to my work schedule, actually climbing about once a week is pretty much the most I can do. Feb 15, 2024 · Arm-Lifting is a recent trend in finger strength training. For example, Dicki/Patrick got Megos into rings training because they noticed his shoulders were holding him back in climbing. I don't really relate my hangboard numbers to my climbing, except in that I simply use it to rehab or improve finger strength. You’re still brand new to climbing and tendons take a lot longer to get stronger than muscle. FINGER meaning: 1 : one of the five long parts of the hand that are used for holding things; 2 : one of the four that are not the thumb Nov 21, 2022 · Learn four essential fingerboard training protocols to improve your climbing capacity, endurance, and strength-to-weight ratio. Nov 9, 2022 · Methods of Training Finger Strength There are essentially 4 different methods in which you can train your finger strength: Climbing: Bouldering or climbing on a board Campusing: Either on a campus board or boulder wall Fingerboarding: Isometric hangs Lifting: Taken from grip strength sports However each method comes with its own level of precision in training, in other words how easy it is to See full list on trainingforclimbing. Finger strength training is not recommended without climbing 2x or more a week for a year due to the historical use of hangboards at body weight load. Training with weight swinging tools (heavy clubs, kettlebell, mace) are good tools to add as a general fingers to wrist to elbow to shoulder girdle mechanics and in my experience over the last year of expirimenting with them has been great for upper body mechanics and mobility and forearm strength for sure. 5kg (82. 1. Hangboarding seems very unnecessary at a v5 level. I’ve been climbing 3. Climbing skill pretty much comes down to finger strength, bodyweight, technique, and endurance- so you need to work on all of them to get better. Reply reply I recently just started to be able to hang with a half crimp on a 20mm edge, but I don't think this routine is responsible for my finger strength gains, but it has allowed me to feel better on my climbing days to pull harder. As long as you have a solid base of climbing experience (climbers just starting out will find maximum benefit from just climbing), finger strength training is an excellent addition to a climber’s training regimen. Jan 5, 2022 · Tools Climbing Finger Strength Analyzer The Finger Strength Analyzer will allow you to see how strong your fingers are. MembersOnline • jendretz ADMIN MOD It's very easy to overdo grip strength training and get tendinitis. And yes we are scared of falling. I think this is likely true from a statistical sense. Aug 8, 2023 · Learn how to use the Tindeq Progressor to perform the perfect finger flexor Critical Force measurements and optimize your endurance training! Hangboard Training for finger strength and endurance Seems like there are a ton of different hangboard workouts out there and I'm not sure which exactly fit into what I'm training for. Reply reply JurrasicParfait • Reddit's rock climbing training community. It takes 2 or 3 months of climbing before your ligaments start to strengthen at all. Dedicated to increasing all our… Reddit's rock climbing training community. 0. So repeaters with added weight and max hangs are going to do it anyway. Both target finger and grip strength, but I'm curious about their comparative effectiveness for climbing. This will give you a basic idea of how hard you should be able to boulder and how much time you should invest in strength training to progress. Feb 6, 2024 · Each finger comprises three small bones called phalanges, which give the finger its shape and strength. The fingers on the hands correspond to the toes of the feet. Have any of you tried both these methods? I'd appreciate your experiences, insights, and any The only answer is time and consistency, introduce finger boards when there’s no climbs available that are challenging your fingers strength, or you’re adding weight to max hangs (after minimum a year of solid climbing) You theoretically can finger board now and probably avoid injury, but the reward for risk is not worth it. If you identify a specific weakness, programing in 15 minutes to address that weakness In humans, the fingers are flexibly articulated and opposable, serving as an important organ of tactile sensation and fine movements, which are crucial to the dexterity of the hands and the ability to grasp and manipulate objects. What injuries to the hands and fingers have you typically seen when training finger strength? The main things to watch for are finger and wrist injuries from overuse. Do a lot of push exercises as well to prevent injury. Your grip strength is determined by forearm strength and the tendons in your fingers, hands and wrists. 7 pounds) with two arms. The home of Climbing on reddit. The fingers are essential for grasping, manipulating objects, and performing fine motor tasks. I did a short cycle this year with recruitment pulls as outlined by Tyler, FWIW I hit my personal best on finger strength after this cycle after a pretty long layoff from consistent climbing and training (~18months). Use our weekly Q&A posts for your questions, routines, exercises, reviews of equipment you use, grip accomplishments, technique/training tips, grip sport news, grip Reddit's rock climbing training community. Dedicated to increasing all our knowledge about how to… I was rather surprised, and somewhat dismayed, to find that my fingers are apparently incredibly weak. These first years are good to practice technique, improve general body strength and your mind while leading, but I'd avoid doing a lot of fingerboard training or too many crimpy routes. Training your crushing grip strength as part of a well rounded hand/forearm prehab/strength protocol is great, training it as a substitute for climbing is not. How to know when finger strength is holding us back? Share Add a Comment Sort by: Best Open comment sort options came_to_post_this • Reddit's rock climbing training community. Holds in real climbing are very complex, and the forces you apply on them are even more complex. Jun 25, 2020 · Pinpoint your biggest weaknesses and help you effectively target them Give you an instant automatic assessment and help you design a training plan tailored to your exact needs! If you're a sport/lead/trad climber, follow this link. As this is 100% right i have focused on improving technique in the past year and made a lot of gains there but here comes the question. This statement seems reasonable since the heavy finger rolls cause repeated, high-intensity eccentric and concentric contractions of the forearm This is a list of 12 great training exercises that come from training books, interviews with professional climbers, social media, Reddit and some of my climbing friends. I’ve been climbing for ~4 years with a focus on bouldering and generally climb 3-4 days per week, now at a v5-7 level (indoors). Anecdotally, I have a buddy who can three finger drag 6 mil all daybut he sucks at slopers because his shoulders are weak. 11- sport climbing level in Colorado. The traditional method of building finger strength is deadhanging, and Reddit's rock climbing training community. So do you need hypertrophy training? It depends on what constitutes hypertrophy training, but in general strength training is going to give you all the hypertrophy you need. Some climbers suggest waiting until you can comfortably climb at V4, while others recommend waiting for at least two years of climbing experience. com Jan 26, 2024 · It’s important to allow your fingers to adapt and strengthen naturally through consistent climbing. Hangboarding only trains force in one direction, while climbing require three dimensional strength, even on crimps. Hangboarding will be better for training crimp strength than climbing. Someone with good core strength will be able to use that far away foothold on a steep wall and gain a little strength back in their arms whereas someone with poor core strength is only going to drain their strength more. Training strength usually requires isotonic exercises like pull-ups that involve moving the joint through its range of motion, so muscles get stronger at every angle. I've only been climbing for about a year and am climbing outdoors at a V3 bouldering and 5. It has been shown to reduce injury risk by exposing the fingers to supramaximal loads in a controlled environment and to improve performance by allowing you to climb harder and more frequently 1. Sorry for the wall of The Soviet climbers claimed that heavy finger rolls produce measurable gains in forearm circumference (a sign of muscle hypertrophy), whereas strength gains from fingerboard or campus training are primarily the result of neurological adaptations. Here’s when to call your doctor about swollen fingers. This is an INCREDIBLY simplified view of capacity, recovery, maximal gains accounting when training for climbing-- with only 3 variables instead of 10+, no discussion of the real world (life stress, work, diet, sleep), social context, strength in any other system than fingers. edit: I just wanted to point out that in trying to make the point that isometric training is generally preferable for climbing I implied that it doesn't train your muscles. These bones are connected by joints and surrounded by a network of muscles, tendons, and ligaments, which allows smooth and coordinated movement. Nov 9, 2022 · Methods of Training Finger Strength There are essentially 4 different methods in which you can train your finger strength: Climbing: Bouldering or climbing on a board Campusing: Either on a campus board or boulder wall Fingerboarding: Isometric hangs Lifting: Taken from grip strength sports However each method comes with its own level of precision in training, in other words how easy it is to Reddit's rock climbing training community. Hi guys, as the title asks, does anyone have any tips on how to improve my finger strength? I love climbing but my fingers ache so much after a few climbs. 5 years, am 5’ 8. Could a person overcome a poor fingerstrength-to-weight ratio by hypertrophy training forearms, or is it really the most optimal to continue strength training fingers and keeping bodyweight on the downside? tl;dr: Hypertrophy training for forearms alongside fingerstrength training to overcome heavier bodyweight? Aug 14, 2019 · Siegrist spoke with Climbing to discuss possible injuries to beware of while training finger strength, as well as how to prevent and mitigate these injuries. 5” tall, and currently weigh 195lbs. Fingers are located on the distal part of the hand, extending from the palm. 166K subscribers in the climbharder community. Thanks! Mar 26, 2025 · Fingers of steel are the foundation of harder climbing. I've talked about resting and finger strength but the same applies to all types of climbing movement and climbing strengths. 131 votes, 78 comments. Thanks for this, inspired me to swap from barbell finger rolls to tension block finger curls on a lat pull down machine. Technique should be your main focus and some strength training around climbing specific muscle groups. Climbing finger strength is not the same as hangboard strength. which is +37. I recently got the Metolius rock rings and have been using those regularly but can’t seem to get past the 4 finger hang. I have incredibly weak fingers that I’m looking to strengthen. What are the fingers? The human finger is a flexible, long and thin extension of the hand commonly referred to as the digits. MembersOnline • Beauboon ADMIN MOD Has anyone trained wrist or forearm strength in particular and noticed useful carry over to improvements in climbing? Has anybody has success with training this longer term? I recently see increasing content online relating to isolated training of the wrists via forearm training inspired by forearm training tools and drills with the wrist wrench and heavy roller style exercises from the likes Specific exercises will newrly always beat out non specific exercises for the specific thing they train. Climb V3-V5 indoors (V4-V5 on Vert/Slab/sloper/burley climbs or basically anything that doesn’t require true finger strength, V3 on any significant incline/overhang). Know your hand anatomy! 4 days ago · Swollen fingers (dactylitis) can be caused by too much salt, heat, or a serious health condition. The routines specifically designed for climbing usually have 5 to 10 s fingertip hangs etc to prevent overuse. How do you train specifically for sloper holds? I'm climbing in the 11a range but when it comes to big slopes I can't do much. For crimps I worked on finger strength, for slopes should I practice palming basketballs? We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Humans have five fingers on each hand and a significant feature in humans is the opposable thumb. Dedicated to increasing all our knowledge about how to… Dec 21, 2022 · Build long-term finger strength while avoiding injury with this structured hangboard training plan designed by Steve Bechtel. /r/GripTraining is a resource for anyone wanting stronger hands, bigger forearms, or to compete in the sport of grip. Hangboards and no hang devices are the best substitutes for long periods of no climbing, 6 weeks is actually a great timeframe for a training cycle too! There are tons of protocols out Reddit's rock climbing training community. I'm debating between two methods: hangboard + weights vs arm lifts using a small edge with added weight. Also notice how the excersises work the antagonistic (opposing) muscles in your hands and forearms, this helps to prevent repetitive strain injuries. Nov 2, 2024 · Your finger joints are the most frequently used joints in the body. Sure maybe low volume hangboard could be beneficial and further improve your finger strength but the risk of overdue / training incorrectly isn't near as beneficial as just climbing more and learn how to effectively use it. 205 votes, 98 comments. Apparently the 20mm edge size is a good baseline standard for measuring finger strength. All of your effort goes into maintaining a strict crimp, and that allows you to best overload the finger muscles that hold a crimp. Every video I've watched on finger strength assessment has subjects hanging on 20mm edges with various amounts of added weight or lengths of time. However, there is no one-size-fits-all recommendation for when to start finger training. It takes between 1 and 2 years to build enough finger strength to not injure them while climbing a lot and hard. Useful in sports like climbing and martial arts, grip training will carry over to many aspects of every day life. My forearms like they’re getting stronger but my fingers feel stagnant. Combining a finger program with mental conditioning and movement training can further optimize per How much time does a mild finger tendon injury need to heal while “at rest”? Can low-grade climbing help encourage my finger to heal faster? What back or pull exercises can I do instead of pull-ups/toes-to-bar to continue strength training for climbing? Can finger rolls be beneficial with a hurt finger or do I risk injuring further? Reddit's rock climbing training community. What would you… Hello climbing community! I'm seeking your input on optimizing finger strength training. Probably also campus boarding on small rungs? Reddit's rock climbing training community. Tyler Nelson's new effective finger strength active recruitment and muscle coordination protocols to break that climbing plateau! Trying to train that way every day caused some finger injuries. Their training plans were quite focused, both in terms of physical training and route pyramid. Dedicated to increasing all our… In the climbing community better climbers are talking to newbie climbers to focus on technique first and then on finger strength. 4M subscribers in the climbing community. amecvdu mayd kwtadz enne emtb rgigz zof jyzrfxmp kdkyuwax plbi