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brianthew
Oct 8, 2002, 3:09 AM
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Since I've started climbing I've noticed I have the ability to crack any joint in my hand including my wrists at will and at random; my wrists and fingers will just keep popping until I stop moving them. Now, of course, I know this isn't desirable, but I'm curious if anyone else has this and what they did about it.
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stoutclimb1
Oct 8, 2002, 3:37 AM
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I asked my sister, who is a first year a nursing school and she said its not very good for your fingers. something having to with stress on the tendoins, I dont know she was talking to adult for me. but since then I havent cracked my fingers and they have been doing good
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blackboard
Oct 11, 2002, 3:12 AM
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I've always been dubious about the negative effects of "knuckle cracking" or popping those bubbles between joints elsewhere. I can understand it to the extent that it causes more wear, but that arguement can be applied comparing any activity vs no activity.
There would be no arguement if the popping was activated by an otherwise unnecessary habit (alright, I'm guilty of that too), but at least for me, in order to reach and extend the full range of motion in certain parts of my body (AKA stretching), I have to pass the point where a joint gets popped.
Also, though I cannot claim to fully know the physical or anotomical nature of this, at least phychologically, I feel more secure knowing that my knuckles and joints have been pre-popped. To illustrate why, I'll give my shoulder as an example. Like some joints, my shoulders can take quite a bit of force before they are popped, relinquishing that extra bit of extension in the desired direction. If that bubble hasn't been cleared, the resistance it provides may fool me to think I've reached the limit of it's extention (dead-hang) and bear all my weight or even dyno off it. If the joint does pop as more force is generated during the move, I risk instability at best, and more likely than not, injury.
This is akin to a loaded nut hung on some crystals that break before the nut(hopefully!) catching on something reliable as it drops.
So, long story short: Activating the Rice Krispies between my bones is not a self-destructive bad habit; I'm stretching, and that's the story I'm sticking with!
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stevematthys
Oct 13, 2002, 9:19 PM
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all i know that i crack my knuckles before i start a pitch, i have not died yet, so it seems to be working for me
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djmicro
Oct 30, 2002, 5:31 AM
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If you are concerned about the tendons/ligaments that you are stretching read about arthritis. This is a bit extreme, but it will definately tell wich you should crack and wich not.
I say this because I was diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondilytis 2 years ago and is still very much a part of my life.
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abkaiser
Oct 31, 2002, 6:58 PM
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http://www.rockclimbing.com/forums/viewtopic.php?topic=7387&forum=16
[ This Message was edited by: abkaiser on 2002-10-31 11:00 ]
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gravical
Nov 4, 2002, 11:49 AM
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i can't crack mine even when i try - i have had tendon probs even without though
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purplemonk
Nov 5, 2002, 3:52 PM
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word to the wise- we're climbers, we're all gonna have arthritis when we're older. if cracking your knuckles helps bring it out, it's sorta like adding to an already full pot. i crack my knuckles all the time before i start a pitch of hard crimps b/c my hands get stiff otherwise and it's tough to pinch as hard... if the joints are cracking just by moving them, though... that's more of a problem, it sounds like you might have some floating junk in there... if you're wrist is cracking just by rotating it, it wouldn't hurt to have it checked out by a doctor. better to be safe when it comes to your climbing.
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