The Science of Climbing: How to Build Strength and Endurance for Rock Climbing
The better you are at climbing, the less energy you'll need to climb a route. If you can climb efficiently and use less strength, you'll be able to climb longer.
Improve Your Technique
Your technique might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about endurance, and there’s a good reason why you should address technique first. If you can climb efficiently and rely less on brute strength to get you up the wall, you will be able to last longer and repeat more routes.
Furthermore, keep working on your technique, and try climbing more accessible routes with good form. The obvious takeaway here is that repeating bad habits will never work out well. It's really hard to break a bad habit and learn a new one at the same time. It's like trying to do two things simultaneously, and you usually won't be very good at either.
Hangboard Sessions And Dead Hangs
Hangboards are precisely what they sound like - it’s a board, and you hang. These tools are designed to strengthen your fingers similarly to gym equipment that targets specific muscles.
Moreover, hangboards exist to train everything finger-related, from endurance to optimizing your grip in a multitude of orientations. Hangboard workouts are vast and riddled with increasing complexity and some scientific basis. However, the most accessible place to start is the classic 7:3 Repeater exercise.
Increasing Strength In Your Core + Back + Shoulders
Becoming stronger will help with the ability to bust out multiple moves repeatedly. Some areas to start are your shoulders, back, and core. Even a Yoga session once a week would lead to noticeable improvements.
(4x4s) For Bouldering
4 x 4s (Four by fours) is a classic exercise designed to train your power endurance. In other words, it teaches you to pump out powerful explosive moves for longer!
The idea is to train through the pump. In doing so, you not only get fitter and stronger but also build the mental capacity to work through the exercises and learn to try hard. After a good warm-up, pick 4x boulder problems that you know are relatively comfortable and are not likely to cause tweaks or injuries, ideally a few grades below your max.
Cross-Training
Add other cardio to help develop your base and improve your mental stamina. If you start to feel a little sore or tired, or if you get bored with climbing, try doing something else, like another outdoor activity or a gym workout.
Push Your Limits And Build Endurance With SouthernXposure
Are you ready to take your climbing to the next level? SouthernXposure offers expert guidance and personalized training programs to help you build strength, endurance, and technique. Contact us today to book your adventure!