Daily Training Routine

Gymnasts and yogis practice almost everyday. Their bodies seem to adapt to these persistent efforts. This way, they acquire techniques and get flexible fast. Climbers trying this approach tends to get overtrained and tired.

In the video above, I have integrated a daily routine that takes only 3 minutes and can be done even on rest days to makes fingers healthier and stronger.

Summary of the Routine

On a full pad edge with both hands.

1. All fingers - Open hand: 4x (10s-5s) @ 20kg
2. Single finger - Half crimp: 1x(10s-0s) @ 5-10kg - cycle all fingers
3. Single finger - Open hand: 1x(10s-0s) @ 5-10kg - cycle all fingers
4. All fingers - Open hand: 4x (10s-5s) @ 20kg

Which rock climbing exercises can we climbers do everyday? The key to this routine is to stay at an intensity so low that you don’t get any tiredness from it. It get blood flowing in the forearm, tendon gliding and nutriments in the structures. On rest days it helps recovering faster and on climbing days the exercise acts as a good morning warm-up.

Adapt your body to climbing

Taking 3 minutes, the routine can easily be integrated to a routine. It gets your body used to pulling on grips and to the various exercises. It is important to keep the intensity low enough that your body still recovers when doing these exercises. The workout should feel more like a warm-up.

Creating habits

Very short workouts are easy to integrate and can become habits. It states your base climbing level higher and helps with your awareness of the strength you are pulling on climbing holds.

Mono-fingers

Some finger positions takes time to get your structures adapted. Using holds with a single finger is tricky and can easily injure the unprepared. Daily low intensity exercises worked for me to get my hands used to pulling with individual fingers.

The importance of high intensity training

Despite their key role in rock climbing performance and health, low intensity routines are not the more glamorous when it comes to training. Don’t worry, I will get to high intensity workouts with Entralpi in the next posts. On that note, following a recommendation by Gerry Banning, a fellow Canadian climber and trainer, I have recently read the book “The One-Minute Workout" about high intensity interval training. The book presents multiple very short routine with all-out exercises and proper rest. Your body adapts to the hard workouts. Your climbing ability is largely based in your maximum strength which is built during intense workouts, such as the one I'm preparing next.