By Rachel Speer

I’ll be the very first one to admit it: I hate dynos. I would much prefer to figure out a way to do a move statically, even if it takes ten times the energy and strength than it would to just… for lack of a better word… yeet myself up the wall. I hate that feeling of not really being in control. I don’t like the sense of security leaving me when I let go of the wall. Moving dynamically is something I am not inherently good at, something I actively avoid unless I absolutely have to. I struggle with the coordination and power. It is one of my most glaring weaknesses on the wall and has held me back from many a redpoint.

So I need to work on it.

Let’s be honest. As the grades get more challenging, moving with momentum becomes more and more necessary. Sure you could cherry-pick your projects to play to your strengths as you get stronger, but does that make you a better climber overall? I’m not saying you have to stop doing what you love and only exclusively train what you’re bad at… that would be miserable. However, I am saying that you should dedicate at least some significant percentage of your skill training time to improving those things you’re not so great at. So for me, I need to take some time and dedicate it to working on climbing with momentum.  

I have several examples of basic momentum drills, most of which can scale up as you gain those new skills. Dedicated practice is really the best way to build an effective skill set. There are multitudes of drills for building momentum and coordination, I’ll be listing a few of my favorites below. First, though, a few pointers. Power movements in climbing can come from the upper body but more often they’re generated through your feet, so establish a solid connection to the wall for these drills to avoid the dreaded face bash if your feet happen to blow off of the holds you’re using. Dynamic movements are really coordination movements… pushing with the feet and pulling with the arms and releasing at just the right time. It takes practice and slowly leveling up, so don’t be too hard on yourself if you look ridiculous at first. Just keep at it, the rewards are worth the effort.

Deadpoints

This drill is all about identifying the ideal time to catch a hold, the deadpoint. When you’ve launched yourself up and have reached the brief moment of weightlessness before gravity pulls you back down. This is best done on a vertical or very slightly overhung spray wall with lots of handhold and foothold options. Start on even-ish feet and hands, positioned where your arms are straight and knees bent, squatting down a bit. Identify a hold that you can reach without moving your feet and launch yourself up to it as quickly as you can, only allowing yourself to grab it when you’re weightless.

Go back to the start position and go again. This is also fun to do with a partner, letting them call out your holds for you and changing places every 5-10 reps. Repeat until it feels natural and easy, then make the target harder. When making your leap, try to leave at least one foot on the starting foot holds, preferably both. No need to be cutting feet on this skill drill until you feel like you are absolutely ready, and progress slowly. Remember: it is a coordination effort.

Finger Ninja

This is another great drill for finding the deadpoint. I like to do this one on vertical terrain and longer routes. You’re going to climb the route like normal, except that you’re going to move both your hands at the same time. You can grab the same hold or different holds, so long as they land simultaneously. Work on harder routes and moving faster as you gain confidence and skill.

Two-Up

This is a progression to the deadpoint drill. The only difference is, once you’ve reached your target hold with your feet still on their startholds, you’re going to launch up and jump for one handhold past your first target. So if you do your initial deadpoint with your right hand, jump up and reach for the next hold with your left. At this point you WILL be cutting your feet. This drill is also a great first introduction to the paddle moves that you see in competition bouldering.

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Dynos

The next logical progression of the deadpoints and two-up drills. Set up exactly the same, but this time your first hold will be the one you were going for second in two-up. Once that feels natural for you, make the target hold farther and more difficult. Progress slowly with this.

Pogo

Up to this point we’ve been making sure we have decent feet and an optimal position, all nice and scrunched up, ready for a jump. What happens when the route you’re on puts you in a position where you can’t get your feet up for a launch, though? How do you create momentum when you can’t precoil your spring? The Pogo drill uses your as a pendulum leg to create momentum. By swinging your leg down and behind you before exploding up and forward and at the same time pulling your body up and into the wall with your arms, you can do big moves from low body positions. Set up for this drill by not letting yourself scrunch down, and use the swing from your leg to direct your leap.

Discus Throw

Discus throw is just like Pogo but you’ll be using a free arm to create momentum rather than a free leg. Using your arms is usually a little more precise than using a leg, though it can be less powerful at first.

One Arm/One Leg

This is a fairly self-explanatory drill. What is pretty fun about it is you can climb the same route or boulder four times, each time dropping just one limb, and it really does feel different each time. This can be fairly tiring, and leave you powered down if you don’t rest enough.

Peg Leg Ninja (see: silly)

Combine the Finger Ninja drill with One Leg climbing. Only one leg at a time for the whole route, and you have to move both hands at the same time. This one is surprisingly effective despite how silly you look and how much fun it can be.

Momentum drills tend to leave you powered down after a while. I practice momentum movements in power phases, and I like to do one or two of these drills at the beginning of my climbing session after a good warmup, or after a power workout. Pay close attention to your body and speed, because just like with power workouts, the session should be over when you notice that you’re slowing down and not moving as explosively. When learning any new skill, its best to start on terrain that is almost absurdly easy for you, so you can focus exclusively on moving with perfect execution. Once you own a skill on easy terrain, make it harder by going to harder problems or routes… but I caution against moving up too fast. If you don’t really own that movement, its all too easy to ingrain poor movement patterns.

Practice, dedicated practice, even if it makes you look ridiculous, is the best way to improve in a skill-based sport like climbing. Being strong means nothing if you can’t move well. Of course there’s a base level of strength required to do some things, I’m not arguing that. But how many 5.13 climbers do you know who can’t hang half as much on their harness on a 20mm edge as a very strong climber who struggles on 5.10? It's all about how you move, and how you practice, even on easy terrain… especially on easy terrain, where you can devote more brain power and focus to moving exceptionally well, to even further cement the best habits into your climbing.

ABOUT RACHEL SPEER

Rachel discovered rock climbing 18 years ago. She immediately fell in love with the sport and the way it pushed her both physically and mentally. Since that time, Rachel’s climbing career has taken her all over the country with experience in everything from multi-pitch trad climbing in Arizona – to the wondrous sport climbing at Shelf Road in Colorado – to endurance climbing in the annual 24 Hours of Horseshoe Hell in Arkansas (24HHH). She is currently pursuing the NASM personal trainer and AMGA Single Pitch Instructor certifications.

After struggling early on with plateaus and overuse injuries early in her own climbing career, Rachel began researching solutions and discovered the many benefits of climbing specific training. An intensive regimen of self-study, research, and coursework on the subject allowed Rachel to begin rehabilitating her injuries and pushing past her plateaus. Seeing other climbers also struggling with similar issues, Rachel realized that she could help them too and this developed into a passion for assisting others with maintaining balance in the body while pushing ever higher for gains in strength and technique. Rachel put her passion into practice, opening a business in her local area to build training plans and offer coaching services to local athletes. In this position, she helped multiple clients of various ability levels to safely build strength and reach new heights in their climbing.

As Rachel’s coaching career developed, she realized that her passion for climbing training aligns directly with Climb Strong’s mission, energy, and approach for helping climbers improve performance while avoiding injury. Working now with Climb Strong as a coach Rachel is excited to continue pursuing her passion to help climbers progress through individualized training. Her favorite thing in the world is seeing people get stronger and crush their projects!

 

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