sport specific strength

The Pillars of Climbing

Today we are discussing sport specific strength that contributes to the Strength pillar of climbing.

Sport specific strength describes strength that is particular to climbing and the movements encountered in our sport.

Examples include finger strength, upper body pulling strength, hip strength for high steps, posterior chain tension for overhangs, etc.

There are two ways to approach increasing sport specific strength: off the wall and on the wall.

To train the bigger muscles off the wall, specifically selected general strength exercises are used. From the above examples, training weighted pull ups, doing box step ups, doing deadlifts, etc. is a great way to support sport specific strength. To train the fingers off the wall, the hangboard and similar tools are used.

The advantages to training off the wall is that you can zero in and effectively target your areas of development. The gains are easy to measure and track. The disadvantage is there may be lag time between gaining the strength and applying it on the wall, since that requires practice.

On the wall strength training emphasizes the strength side of the intersection between strength and technique.

For example, training finger strength can look like climbing on small holds in a ladder-like style.

While some climbing coordination is required, the skill threshold is pretty low so strength is emphasized.

The bigger muscle examples could look like practicing single lock offs, creating difficult but straightforward high step moves, and climbing on steeper and steeper angles.

To concentrate on strength on the wall, the same rules of thumb outlined in last week's general strength email should be used.

This means high intensity, short duration efforts with long rests in between. For example, if you are doing the ladder finger training, you should NOT be getting super pumped super fatigued. The moves should feel hard at an intensity of 8-9 RPE and should ideally not exceed 10 seconds.

The advantage to on the wall strength training is that it's both training and directly applying your strength. The disadvantage is that it can be more difficult to know if you're at the right intensity and if you're progressing.

So which is better for sport specific strength, on the wall or off the wall?

The answer is that both are helpful but at different times in your training. The truth is that you shouldn't be doing everything all the time and periodizing your training will yield the best results.

Off the wall strength training is advantageous for an offseason period where you are more focused on building foundational strength and sport practice is lower priority.

As you transition to an in season/performance period, on the wall strategies can help you apply that foundational strength to the wall.

What are your experiences with sport specific training, on or off the wall? Let me know by replying to this email!