As a climbing coach, the first thing I do with my clients is perform a strength and technique assessment. Understanding a climber’s current level in each helps me create a more personalized program. If a client is outclimbing their strength, I know that their technique is in a good spot and prioritizing strength will be the best plan of action. In contrast, if a client is stronger than the current grade they’re climbing, I know that focusing on technique will be the most helpful.

For example, a rough benchmark of the V4–V5 level is being able to do around five pullups. If a client comes to me climbing V5 but is only able to do two pull ups, upper-body strength is an easily identifiable “low-hanging fruit” to focus on. In contrast, if a client comes to me climbing V5 and is able to do 10 pullups, it’s clear that strength is not their limiting factor and technique should be the priority.

Let’s begin by more clearly defining both strength and technique.

What Is Strength?

Strength is the ability to exert force. This is exactly what we do all the time on the wall, whether that’s pulling down during a lockoff and exerting force through our upper body and fingers, or standing up through a highstep and exerting force through our hips, legs, and toes. Strength can be specific to a particular move (such as a difficult heel hook or a tricky mantel), specific to climbing (such as finger strength and upper-body pulling strength), or general (such as hip strength and core strength). To become a well-rounded climber, it’s important to cultivate all three types of strength.

What Is Technique?

Movement is getting from point A to B, but technique is getting from point A to B efficiently. There’s often more than one way to get through a climb, but some ways are better than others. Examples of good technique include being accurate with footwork, finding ideal hip positions for tricky moves, and moving at a pace that’s appropriate for the terrain. Having good technique means both being able to execute a climb as well as to figure out the best way to do so.

Strength vs. Technique

While at first glance strength and technique may seem like contrasting aspects of climbing, they are actually interdependent components that comprise the integral climber. In other words, you’ll only get so far with only one or the other—both are necessary for becoming the best climber you can be. Meanwhile, there are benefits to excelling in each but there are also limits.

The relationship between strength and technique is an ebb and a flow, as depicted in this diagram. Oftentimes it’s difficult to make huge progress in both simultaneously (the exception to this is when you are a newer climber: In this case, it’s not unusual to see rapid improvement in both.) While one of these components of climbing is improving, the other is often plateaued.

For example, you may find that you’ve stalled in your climbing after making good gains in your technique—you’ve reached a point where you’ve learned all of the movement you can execute at your current strength level. Therefore in order to level up your climbing (breaking into the next grade, becoming more solid at your current redpoint level, improving your foundation of climbs below your redpoint grade, etc.), you need more strength. Once you gain more strength, you then need to learn how to apply this new strength to the wall, and your technique begins to improve again. This process repeats itself over and over again: Improving in one aspect of your climbing can help you break through a plateau in the other.

Assessing Your Climbing

So, how do you figure out which aspect to work on? Here is a simple self-assessment you can do at the gym or your local crag.

Choose four different climbs:

• A technical vertical climb
• A strength-based vertical climb
• A technical overhanging climb
• A strength-based overhanging climb

Examples of a technical vertical climb would be a competition-style boulder or a delicate slab with poor footholds. Success here will depend on learning the movement and executing the skill; you’ll need some strength, but it’s not the determining factor.
For the strength-based vertical climb, such as a straightforward crimp ladder with highsteps and deep lockoffs, success is dependent on stability in movement and execution of force—for example, having the hip strength to stand up through the highsteps or having the finger and shoulder strength to pull through the deep lockoff. Technique will be important here, but is not the determining factor for success.
On a technical overhanging climb, for example a tricky roof climb that requires kneebars, toe hooks, and bicycles, specific footwork skills and movement efficiency are necessary for success. You need to know how to execute technical footwork while optimizing momentum and hip positioning. Strength tends to be more important on steeper climbs, but the application of this strength will be reliant on good technique.
Lastly, on a strength-based overhanging climb, such as a dynamic, yet simply sequenced, steep climb that requires big pulls and toeing in hard, success is dependent on power, upper-body strength, and core strength. In this case, the application of technique is reliant on strength.

Perform each of these styles of climbs, videoing yourself for reference. Score yourself on a scale from 1 to 3.

• 1: Unable to complete the climb, encountering a lot of difficulty figuring out and performing the movements
• 2: Able to complete the climb but with a moderate amount of difficulty. Feeling like the climb could have been executed better.
• 3: Able to complete the climb with little difficulty and satisfied with the execution.

When taking a look at your scores, you can then determine what your strengths are and where your weaknesses lie. Use this information to then target these areas for improvement.

If you find that strength is holding you back, a good starting point is to do some structured strength training. If you’re new to strength training, it’s recommended to hire a coach or find an instructional program. If you find that technique is your deficit, a good starting point is to create intentional practice with your climbing and have a goal for each session (for example, focusing on footwork during your warm-up, taking video of yourself on your project, etc.). Again, a coach or instructional program can be additionally helpful.

Juliet Hammer (julietamanda.com) is a remote climbing coach based out of Chattanooga, Tennessee. She helps climbers of all levels reach their goals through technique and strength training.