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Hello Eric! I am 18 and I’ve been bouldering regularly for 2.5 years. I’ve been searching for good ways to train for climbing, but I find that all sources say the same: “while training for power/strength, less is more.” But many sources also say that you want to spend more hours climbing, because it takes 10,000 hours to master something. So how do I combine these? Right now I have 4 sessions every week that go on for ~3h, where I do ~2h of climbing (hard), and 30m – 1h of strengthening exercises. My highest flash probably is around 7a+ and my highest RP around 7b/7b+. Do you think I am ready to start some easy hangboard training as well? Thanks for creating such an amazing site for training information! –Sebastian
Hi Sebastian! First, the “10,000-hour rule” is for becoming a master of skilled movement in sport, so you don’t want to apply this to strenuous climbing, strength training, max bouldering and such! I advocate climbers log a lot of time on sub-maximal roped climbs–building towards the 10,000 hours–to develop technique, efficient movement skills, and mental mastery.
That said, if climbing the high grades is your passion, then you certainly do need to partake in some strength and power training in addition to time spent climbing. Such training is always risky, especially for people with less than 3 years’ experience (tendons take several years to thicken up in order to survive elite training practices). So you are right at the margin of being ready to move into this kind of training. Initially, do some hangboard “repeators” (series of 5 – 10 second hangs) on a crimp, pinch, and pocket holds of a fingerboard. Use open-hand and half-crimp grip, but NEVER full/closed crimp! Do a small amount (~30 minutes) of this towards the end of your climbing session, twice per week. I suggest you limit yourself to just 2 max bouldering and hangboard workouts per week (done on the same day); also do 1 or 2 other days of sub-maximal “volume” climbing (roped routes or easy bouldering) building towards the 10,000 hours. During these workouts you should NOT get massively pumped–think of these sessions as “skill and recovery” workouts.
Remember, many climbers at the gym overtrain….doing way more than they should, and getting lackluster results (or an injury) because they simply climb too much, train too hard, and rest too little. Program design is an art, but unfortunately I can’t set you up with a program via email. But you can self-coach effectively, if you research and act with intention and intelligence. Good luck!
Eric, I started climbing later than average (around age 25) and was immediately hooked. About a month ago, I did a dynamic move to a bad hold and managed to only hit it with my ring–I felt pain go through my tendon and down into the forearm. I was told this type injury was fine to continue climbing, just be careful of the holds and if something hurts don’t do it. I kept climbing and it didn’t seem to get better, so I backed off for two full weeks. Saw a physical therapist I trust, and he released a lot of forearm pressure. I see a lot of information that climbing on it is good and gets blood flow, and other information to stay off of it entirely. After two weeks off I have been going to the gym twice a week and only getting on real easy climbs, as my physical therapist says my forearm is feeling much better. But the pain has since moved into my palm/hand predominately and some in my wrist. My question is: is it not smart to keep climbing? It feels weak and tender most days. –Sean (North Carolina)
Hi Sean, Sorry to hear about your injury. Every tendinopathy evolves and resolves a little differently, so there are no hard-and-fast rules. But here are a couple general guidelines to follow. If there is swelling or any significant pain (more than a 1 or 2 on a pain scale of 1 to 10), then don’t climb. Do ice if swollen, but otherwise not. Do motion therapy and continue with your PT, but anything more than light climbing is a big mistake if it hurts. Again, a 1 or 2 out of 10 on pain scale (slight discomfort) is usually okay to climb through, but never anything worse. With a cautious approach you may be able to work through this in a few more weeks…but again, every case is different.
Most important—as a climber of just 1.5 years you do NOT want to be hangboard training, nor campus training. Max bouldering is also risky, and leads to many injuries in climbers of less than 2 or 3 years’ experience. Strengthening tendons takes several years, so it’s not until you’ve logged several years of progressively stressing the tendons will they become strong enough for you to move into the most stressful forms of climbing and training. So for now, perhaps focus more on roped climbing–and developing technique and endurance—both of which will serve you well in the long term. Hope this helps—good luck!
Hi Eric! I want to start off by saying thank you for your great books Training for Climbing and How to Climb 5.12. I have learned so much from them and would not be anywhere close to the climber I am if not for reading them. My question: I have a week-long trip to the Red River Gorge this spring and I’m looking for some training advice. After focusing solely on bouldering for most of the past season, I took about 10 days off and started a 4-3-2-1 training cycle in preparation for the Red. I’m currently beginning the anaerobic endurance phase and I’m curious about the best approach—interval training, 4 x4s, endurance-oriented exercises, etc? –Brad (Louisiana)
Hi Brad! Yeah, the RRG is all about endurance, but it’s important to keep in mind that developing max strength also gives you more endurance! So, using a training cycle like the 3-2-1 is really the best approach. If you are now in the anaerobic endurance phase, so doing 4x4s or other types of interval training is great. Try to train in a way that simulates a climb—doing short bursts of hard climbing (30-90 seconds) with shakeout periods of a minute or two, then repeat up to a total of 4 to 6 “bursts”. This type of specific training really works (simulates a long, sustained RRG route!), because it triggers adaptations that help you tolerate and climb through the pump (and acidosis) that develops as a result of extensive anaerobic metabolism.
If you are training to the point of a massive pump (forearm muscle failure), you’ll want to limit yourself to just 2 of these sessions per week–these are very stressful workouts and take longer to recovery from. So if you climb, say, 4 days per week, you will want to also do one brief bouldering/hangboard session (to maintain max strength) and then 1 easy “aerobic/recovery” session (in which you do easy climbing to get the blood flowing, but never get pumped), in addition to your two pumpy anaerobic training sessions.
Ultimately, developing RRG fitness takes time—and knowing just how much rest is enough between workouts and days of climbing is something you’ll learn with experience. Everyone responds a bit differently, but overtraining is the most common thing I see with climbers. Final comment: be sure to take that “taper/easy” week of training before you arrive at the Red. You cannot cram when it comes to training—people who do this, arrive at the Red weak and often have disappointing results. You want to arrive there physically fresh and mentally ready to climb fast. Have fun!
Dear Horst, I’ve been climbing for quite a few years, but since I’ve started using your methods (as detailed in Training for Climbing) I saw a huge improvement in my strength and in my technical skills. In just two months my redpoint level jumped from 5.11a to 5.11d! After almost two months of training, I’ve taken a week of break and now I’ll restart with a second cycle.
I’m starting the 4-3-2-1 cycle, but I need a little clarification on the 4-weeks of skill/endurance training. Should I climb really easy stuff for long periods (like 15 minutes repetitions) with short breaks in between, or should I climb random routes one or two grades below my onsight level? –Guido (Idaho)
Hi Guido! Good to hear from you—congrats on your successes! For the 4 week phase, you can use both approaches you describe. For example, maybe do 2 days per week that you do many routes just a couple grades below your limit—avoid getting on max routes, but strive to climb moderately-hard climbs that make you work (moderate pump), but don’t completely pump you out (that’s AE, third phase). Rest enough between climbs to make really solid efforts, again that don’t pump you out. Also you can do 1 or 2 days per week when you climb even easier routes that you can easily ascend with little or no pump—think of these as aerobic/recovery workouts. Simply climb for mileage in a relaxed, low-stress state, and being sure to get no pump whatsoever. Throughout all of these workouts, strive to climb with utmost technique and aspire to learn some new moves on submaximal terrain. Focus on climbing smoothly and efficiently. You should NOT go home exhausted—the next two phases will be higher intensity and more exhausting, so stay with the program as outlined. Hope this helps—good luck, my friend!
Hi Eric, Mi name is Timofey and I am climbing around 1 year now. My goal is to improve bouldering performance as much as possible. Could you please advise how I should arrange the training process? I wonder if I should switch from hard bouldering to some easy volume and stamina climbing from time to time? Is some kind of periodization necessary if hard short boulder routes is my only goal? Also, I have heard that advanced climbers train almost 7 days per week and this is what gives a result. I like this kind of approach to training (maximum training = maximum result).What do you think about it? — Timofei (Russia)
Hi Timofei, No, maximum training will not give you maximum performance—this approach may get you injured, burned out, and it will give negative results in the long-term. As a young boulderer, you must be very careful, as the fingers, elbows, and shoulders can all get injured from bouldering too hard, too fast…and without enough rest between sessions. Periodization (doing some periods of easier roped climbing) is very important, although bouldering sounds like your main focus. I suggest you limit intense/hard training days to just 3 per week, and then do 2 days of general training (antagonist training for general fitness and injury prevention). Most important, I would take two days of rest per week! Quality nutrition, adequate sleep, and frequent rest days are critical for your nervous system to recovery and your muscles and tendons to grow stronger. Good luck, my friend!