Movement
Climb Them All
Tags: climbing, John Sullivan photo, Micah Elconin, Movement, Tactics
By Micah Elconin Eugene, Oregon is not famous for its rock climbing. My home for more than a decade is better known for its hippy communes and track athletes. So, it’s not surprising that climbers from out of the area usually have one of two responses when learning where I’m from. “So, you must climb…
Polar Skills
Tags: drills, Movement, Rachel Speer, Skills
By Rachel Speer When I first started climbing, I learned quickly how to balance my body on the wall, I got stronger, and I rocketed through the grades, improving rapidly. For a few years I coasted on the easy gains until I came upon my first plateau, at the upper end of the 5.11 range. …
Self-Limiting Exercise
Tags: crossfit, Gray Cook, Mobility, Movement, Self-Limiting, Strength
by Steve Bechtel “True training and conditioning is as much about learning as it is about energy expenditure.” – Gray Cook Walk into any gym in the world and you’ll see someone doing isolation exercises to focus on building strength or size in one muscle group. Isolation is a good way to build strength…
5 Biomechanical Tips to Improve Your Climbing Technique
Tags: activation, breathing, Movement, Philip Ferrara, Practice
by Philip Ferrara At every level, rock climbing requires strength and the application of that strength through efficient technique. Efficiency, however, is determined by proper biomechanics. This means using interdependent muscle systems to apply force at the right time and in the right direction using as little energy as possible. To a new climber, getting…
Four Ways To Instantly Improve Your High Step
Tags: high step, hips, kevin perrone, Mobility, Movement
Kevin Perrone LMBT, EP-C The high step is an easily relatable example of mobility in climbing. How well you can flex at the hip is a measure of both flexibility and strength. Who among us hasn’t had that awkward experience of being a little extended between holds and trying to get a toe up on…
Effective Warm-Ups
Tags: activation, crag warm-up, Movement, preparation, Warm-Ups
Training is the thing that makes you stronger. Warming up right is the thing that makes training work. For most of us, warming up has an intuitive “feel” to it – we start easy, and after a few minutes of gentle activity we feel ready to go. Younger athletes do, and need, less warming up….
Improve Your Hip Mobility And Core Strength For Better Climbing
Tags: Core Strength, Flexibility, Kettlebells, Mobility, Movement, Stability, Strength, Stretching
by Charlie Manganiello SFG II Does your butt sag and feet pop off on cave problems? Ever try a dyno or thrutch for some reachy move and struggle because you can’t get your foot high enough on the hold you need? How about those times you go to make the big move and you end…
Get It Exactly Right
Tags: Assessment, Habits, Movement, Planning, Practice, Skills
by Steve Bechtel You’ve heard it many times – when someone sends their hardest it feels effortless. We talk about it as the “flow” state or as having an out-of-body experience. No matter what you call it, it’s a performance state you’d like to recreate as often as possible. We usually see ourselves get to…
The 2014 Survey
Tags: Assessment, Expertise, Finger Strength, Movement, Questions, Survey
By Steve Bechtel When I was in college, I got interested in which physical traits and abilities were consistent among high-performing climbers. At that time, in the mid-1990s, there were some basic assumptions and many things we considered common sense. It was clear that climbers had to be relatively thin, relatively strong, and somewhat flexible….
Introductory Hip Mobility Drills
Tags: Balance, Flexibility, Injury Prevention, Mobility, Movement, Movement Preparation, Recovery, Stability, Stretching
by Steve Bechtel If you want to see the damage that a desk job can do, teach squats to a group of adults. Many of us spend our days sitting at a desk, drive in a car for an hour or more, sit on the couch for a couple of hours, then curl up in…
Mobility and Stability, A Primer
Tags: Balance, Flexibility, Injury Prevention, Mobility, Movement, Movement Preparation, Recovery, Stability, Stretching
By Steve Bechtel …or “why you should stop doing everything else until you get this.” Mobility and stability is probably the most important training a climber can do away from the crag is to injury-proof himself. This can include a whole host of treatments, but for the average joe, it means training joint mobility and stability….