By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS A good functioning shoulder is essential to a climber’s performance. When the shoulder is healthy, reaching for holds and holding strenuous positions feels secure. Whether you’re yarding on a deep lock-off at the gym, pressing out a corner in Eldo, or snatching holds during big deadpoints while in Rocky...
By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS In rock climbing, your “engine” is actually three separate systems working in concert. Whether you are sticking a desperate dyno or grinding through a multi-pitch day, your body chooses a specific chemical pathway to create Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP)—the molecule that powers every muscle contraction. Each discipline has differing demands...
By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS Plyometrics are a type of exercise that involve explosive, high-intensity movements and are often used in sports training and rehabilitation programs for many types of overhead athletes, but not often enough for rock climbers. They can be an effective way to improve muscle power, speed, and coordination, and can...
By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS The sport of rock climbing continues to grow and expand in popularity and participation. With more climbers comes more injuries. For coaches, trainers, and healthcare professionals identifying the injury profile and mechanisms for injury has become an important topic. Knowing what causes injury and who gets the injuries can...
The shoulder is an integral component of a climber’s ability to scale walls efficiently and effectively. It allows for an incredible range of motion that makes spanning large distances and cramming yourself into cracks possible. However, the same mobility that makes it so valuable also makes it susceptible to injury. Shoulder issues account for 17%...
By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS Rock climbing, like all other sports, has risk factors that contribute to injury rates. Knowing what factors contribute to added injury risk can help participants build better training programs and potentially reduce future risk of injury. Luckily, researchers have begun to ask these questions and have made progress in...
By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS Competitive youth climbing is a rapidly growing sport. With the large increase in indoor climbing gyms has come a significant increase in access to the sport of rock climbing. Many of these gyms have recreational and competitive youth programs that have led to a much larger exposure to the...
By John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS Overtraining syndrome (OTS) is a condition that arises from an imbalance between training, recovery, and the body’s ability to adapt. In the context of rock climbing, which is a demanding sport requiring strength, endurance, and mental acuity, recognizing the signs and symptoms of OTS can help to avoid injury...
Overtraining syndrome (OTS) is a condition that arises from an imbalance between training, recovery, and the body’s ability to adapt. In the context of rock climbing, which is a demanding sport requiring strength, endurance, and mental acuity, recognizing the signs and symptoms of OTS can help to avoid injury and setbacks in reaching goals ....
Rock climbing is a challenging sport. However, training for climbing might be an even more challenging endeavor. To rock climb well requires developing strength, endurance, power, mobility, and sport specific skill. Moreover, it requires developing all of those areas for the entirety of the body due to the whole body nature of the sport. However,...