Im a pretty big guy (270lbs)

Not only does it work, but it works well. Helps build up wrist strength and prevent injury. Its a common work out for our climbing team.

Jay, why be such a hater (besides the fact that you are from SoCal)?

If all our training theories are wrong, and you are all knowing, then please enlighten us.

So far you have offered nothing to this discussion.

There is nothing I can add to what trainers like fluxus have written in the literature and in these forums. It's hard for me to believe that any coach would not already be familiar with that material, but you seem to be completely unaware of it. Try doing a search.

Jay

I met this old lady whom was on the (I am sure my terminology is wrong) the governing board of individuals who determined the standard of arm and hand PT. She looked like a typical grandma. 55-60yrs, heavyset woman, grey hair, glasses and always had chocolate chip cookies for me. In a nutshell, she knew her PT better than anyone around.

She did all sorts of hand strength tests, so she could monitor how much more hand strength I developed in a 8 week period. After a lot of initial conversation about how my injury occured, where it hurt, when it hurt, how it felt when it was hurt and how and when my injuries would take place. She concluded I had tendonitis in my fingers that was caused from a muscle imbalance. I know, climbers with a muscle imbalance.....never!

She explained how your flexor tendon is wrapped in spots by your pully tendons (called A2, A3, A4). In short, my flexor tendon would swell, and could not glide easily through the pullys....in turn creating a block on either side of the pully. When I applied enough power from climbing to foce the flexor to glide through the pully, I damaged/ruptured the pully and I was out for 3-6 months.

Here is the jist of my PT. I started with a hot wax dip, called parafin, every time for 10-15 minutes.....this was comfortably hot.
After a hand massage she started doing various exercises to develop my extensors.

My exercieses consisted of this.
1. reverse wrist curls. I started with 2lbs. At first, I was like 2lbs? Is this a joke? No joke. Arm on a table, wrist and hand in free space. Start all the way down, and move to the upward position slowly and hold for 7-10 seconds, and then go down to your starting position slowly (5 seconds to reach starting position). If you are not already doing wrist curls, I guarantee this will make your forearms burn! So each wrist curl is taking just under 20 seconds total. Do 7-10 of these. I am currently doing 5-6 reps with 20 lbs.

2. find a rubbermaid bin (at least 1'x1'x6'') and fill with rice. (sand works too, but is a lot dirtier). Put your fingers into the rice with all your fingertips touching covering up to the top of your hand. Open your hand slowly untill your fingers are fully extended. Each one should last about 7-10 seconds. Do this 7-10 times. For added resistance, add a couple handfulls of pennies into the rice and mix it together.

3. With 2 regular brown rubber bands maybe 1.5''in diameter. Put them around your main knuckles of your four fingers (not your fingertips), Open your fingers slowly and hold open for 7-10 seconds. Then close your hand, but take 5 seconds to close it. Do 7-10 reps on each hand. Once again, the top of your forearm will be on fire after a while. Be very deliberate in going slowly.

You may think you can do it with the rubber bands at you tips cause you climb hard. Well, look at it this way. You are a beginner at this, and you need to work up to doing it harder. "must learn stand, before lean fly...nature rule Daneil-son...not mine" Mr. Myagi in Karate Kid l.

In order to work the opposite of what you just did, you will need two packages of silly putty. Combine them to make one big piece. With your hand in the same position (without rubber bands on them), put the putty in between your index and third finger, then close your fingers together. Make sure you keep your hand flat and straight. You will find you can exert more force by folding your hand a bit. Limit this as much as possible. Do this between all of your fingers. You should spend 7-10 seconds squeezing the putty each time. Do this inbetween each finger three times, each hand.

4. Back to the rubber bands. Put them on your fingers the same as the other exercise, but this time include your thumb. Do this on a table or flat surface. When you open your hand, it should look like you are reaching for a water glass. Learning this on a table is necessary for proper technique......you need to keep you arm and hand straight in line. Hold the open position for 7-10 seconds, and do this 7-10 times. This develops your opposing pinch. After time, you will notice your thumb muclse increasing is size.

My PT lady never told this to me, but I figured it out on my own and I think it makes sense. It is important to hold your hand in the open position for 7-10 seconds becasue that is how we climb. When you grab a pinch or crimp, you grab and hold, then let go. Rarely are you grabbing a hold and letting go quickly, it is usually for 4-6 seconds.
I notice a lot of people working with rubber bands and they are opening and closing over and over very quickly. As climbers, it makes sense to develop your extensors this way becasue of how we climb.

There are a slew of other exercises I have, but they are too difficult to write out. PM me and we can talk.

The earth was flat was a common belief, too.

Jay

Where did doug say that grip strength excersisers don't work?

Sure maybe they don't help much for people who climb 5.12 allready, but for a n00b just starting why wouldn't it help?

Wow, yet another convincing argument from Jay.

I didn't really say it works, or it works well...

...for a total beginner I don't see why it wouldn't help.

I'm sorry you didn't understand my point. I'll make it explicitly: the fact that the exercise is common does not imply that it is effective. Furthermore, both you and lambone have expressed the vagueness fallacy: it "works," it "works well," etc. What do you mean by that? Can you explain in terms of quantifiable measures of climbing performance how effective this exercise is? If not, than you have no good reason to believe that this exercise improves climbing performance.

Jay

Jay, for some, this is just a source for discussing training techniques, and we don't want it to delve into the exact number of reps, with what weight, for how long, enabled us to climb X amount better. That would be asinine on a whole bunch of levels - you would need a control, you would need to know that it wasn't some other part of your training, you would need more than just one experience etc. Arguing that because we don't have 'quantifiable' evidence that this workout is no good is asinine. I don't have quantifiable evidence that when I eat healthy, instead of junkfood, I'm healthier, but it's the truth. I don't have quantifiable evidence that when I train with the forearm rolling deal, I climb better, but I do. I get a little stronger, but mainly get more endurance, can recover faster, and can shake out better - it pumps your arms like nothing else, and if you train with it, you can train to better manage pump.

So, to sum up, it works, and works well. If you want more numbers than this, then piss off somewhere else to get them, and in the meantime, let others read this who aren't looking for your asinine level of 'quantifiable' detail.

Will

Classic!

Classic!

Yeah, classic exasperation with the idiots on this site.

Best training for climbing, according to n00b.com: swimming, slacklining, running, pull-ups, focusing on the hands instead of the feet, playing chess, winding up a bar with a suspended weight. What have I forgotten?

This isn't a "Technique and Training" forum. Not one post in 100 has any validity. The forum should be renamed "Misconceptions about Technique and Training."

Jay

Yeah, I've entered into pissing matches with jay a couple of times before - good entertainment to avoid studying. Still, it seems like he folded on his hopeless argument and resorted to ad hominem attacks pretty early this time, doesn't it? Oh well, I guess I get more studying done.

Will

No, Will, I just don't have the patience to explain almost self-evident concepts when I'm outnumbered by morons by 100s to 1.

Jay

what do you know...he kept on fishin'!

don't get trolled by this assface fellas.

"Assface." That was mature.



Jay

Go fuck yourself, Will.

Jay

and this is?



And that was?