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cheapclimb
Jul 13, 2004, 10:15 PM
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Registered: Jun 21, 2004
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hey i know all you people are talking about door frame pullups but today i tried one and i can't even hold myself..anyone know anything to strengthen my fingers or anything?? HELP ME! :shock:
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zozo
Jul 13, 2004, 10:21 PM
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Registered: Feb 3, 2004
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Dont do those!! If your not that strong you will pull tendons. Just boulder like a fiend! That will get you plenty strong.
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overlord
Jul 14, 2004, 8:43 AM
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Registered: Mar 25, 2002
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i gues youre a beginner, right??? (if you werent, youd be able to at elast hold yourself).
if you cant hold yourself, dont do it. youll just injure yourself. for a beginner learning technique is much more important thatn strength. just climb, strength specific training can wait.
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chalked4dyno
Jul 14, 2004, 11:36 AM
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Registered: Jun 30, 2004
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finger strength is undoubtedly an important part of rock climbing. I have a grip exercisor ring that works great. they also have some fancy stess-ball type exercisers with elastic bands so you can work the oposing muscles as you extend you fingers.
http://www.mec.ca/...&bmUID=1089804880151
that's the ring I have.. it's good cuz it's not all that stenuous, but if you do it for a while you can burn up those fore-arms.
*edited for spelling, unless you grip has demons, you probably won't be exorcising... please pardon any other mistakes i've missed.
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headchop
Jul 14, 2004, 1:54 PM
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Registered: Sep 7, 2003
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In reply to: finger strength is undoubtedly an important part of rock climbing. I have a grip exercisor ring that works great. they also have some fancy stess-ball type exercisers with elastic bands so you can work the oposing muscles as you extend you fingers.
These things won't do much for your contact strength. Best thing they're good for is warming up before climbing or warming down afterwards. If you want to build strength, which the originally poster shouldn't do at this point, you need much more resistance and specificity to climbing.
Actually, I believe MEC does market that ring as a warm-up device.
BTW, I believe the elastic bands you mention are for working the antogonistic muscle groups to help minimize muscle imbalance - which in turn can cause tendonitis. Now that's a good idea. You can also just use normal rubber bands or a bucket of sand/pebbles/dried beans/rice/etc.
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andy_reagan
Jul 14, 2004, 1:56 PM
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Registered: Jan 12, 2004
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I think its better if you're a beginner to not try to push the grade as much as possible. Try to onsight as many routes as you can within your limit.
Onsighting as many different routes as possible is done for three reasons:
1) builds up endurance and trains cappilary response, etc
2) prevents injuries by keeping the intensity low (your tendons are still baby fresh)
3) builds technique at a level you can synthesize and process
I've found I learn the most when I come to a move that requires finesse or technique that is on a climb with a letter grade at my onsight level. I'm comfortable, relaxed, and open to learning.
(plus this plan will force you to get out of the gym and go to a different climbing area almost every month to feed the onsight machine, i.e. wicked fun)
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bigeastcoastsissy
Jul 14, 2004, 2:11 PM
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Registered: Feb 27, 2004
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The first thing you need to do is move away from Idaho...
Here's something that works relatively well: If you have access to a chin-up bar or another bar that you can manage to hang from, just simply reach up, grab the bar, and lift your feet off of the ground. Have a clock handy, or somebody to time you. Try to make it to 30 seconds at first. Do this 3 or 4 times with a rest in between, maybe a 1 minute rest. Several things that you can do once you are able to do lengths of 30 seconds repeatedly are
a) simply increase the time that you are hanging
b) add weight - I use a scuba diving belt with 10-15 lbs on it
c)widen the diameter of the bar that you are hanging from. I've used everything from sliding a pvc pipe over the bar, to wrapping and taping a cloth around it.
Hangboards are good, too, because you can vary the size of the hold that you're grabbing. If you're interested, pm me and I'll explain an excercise called a "frenchie" or "super seven" (same thing)
Bryan
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braaaaaaaadley
Jul 14, 2004, 3:29 PM
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Registered: Dec 9, 2002
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In reply to: These things won't do much for your contact strength. Best thing they're good for is warming up before climbing or warming down afterwards. If you want to build strength, which the originally poster shouldn't do at this point, you need much more resistance and specificity to climbing. Actually, I believe MEC does market that ring as a warm-up device.
Actually, finger strength can be gained from bd's ring... try doing 200 reps with that thing on each hand and tell me it does not burn. I agree its not the best tool, but its cheap and better than nothing.
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headchop
Jul 14, 2004, 3:58 PM
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Registered: Sep 7, 2003
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In reply to: Actually, finger strength can be gained from bd's ring... try doing 200 reps with that thing on each hand and tell me it does not burn. I agree its not the best tool, but its cheap and better than nothing.
Sorry, don't agree. Doing endless reps may improve endurance but likely not strength. I say "likely" as I recall reading about how long distance running (over 1.5 hrs) has been shown to improve fast-twitch muscle response in runners but I'd be surprised if this were true with finger training as you're trying to strengthen the tendons/pulleys more than the muscle itself.
FYI, muscle "burn" is not a sign of strengthening. It may, however, help with anaerobic endurance to some extent.
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bellatoris
Jul 14, 2004, 8:36 PM
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Registered: May 27, 2003
Posts: 187
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Unless you are onsighting 5.13 you are better off climbing as much as possible. Technique is key to getting up most routes. Elite climbers are masters of saving energy. You will get stronger by climbing tons of routes anyway.
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